Ann Arbor — The way Michigan right tackle Andrew Sprague and the rest of the offensive linemen view their new position coach, Jim Harding is like a father figure. And he further enforces that by texting them in the most dad-like ways. Harding, who joined head coach Kyle Whittingham in the move to Michigan from Utah, is 52 years old. Michigan’s former offensive line coach, Grant Newsome, who played for the Wolverines, is 29, so the father-figure analogy works. Harding also is a 6-foot-6 former offensive lineman inducted into the Toledo Hall of Fame. He was a captain and four-year All-MAC selection, and that also has their attention.
“He's a lot older than them, so he has a lot more experience,” Sprague said Thursday when asked to compare Harding to the previous staff. “He really is like a father figure in our life. I always tell people, if I called him in the middle of the night and had a flat tire at 3 a.m., he might be mad, but he would definitely come help me fix it. He's just a great guy. He's always there for us.” But like many dads, Harding has a tendency to over-communicate with the players and texts in a way that amuses them to the point — probably — of eyeroll emojis. “He texts us a little too much,” Sprague said with a laugh. “He's always texting us, always checking in on us. I love Coach Harding. He'll text us in the middle of the night, talking about the drill we're doing tomorrow. "He always texts us all caps, 'GREAT DECISIONS.' Stuff like that.” Harding also arrived with plenty of credibility as far as the players are concerned, not just as a successful former player but because he developed former Utah tackles Spencer Fano and Caleb Lomu into first-round NFL Draft picks selected earlier this year. His opinions and coaching carry plenty of weight for the Michigan linemen, so as he assembles the Wolverines’ two deep during camp, they are confident in what he’s building. Right now, Jake Guarnera is set at center and Sprague at right tackle. Competitions are ongoing at left tackle and both guard spots. Sprague has been a fixture on the right side, and Harding saw that during spring practice. “I don't want to say anything's etched in stone,” Harding told reporters recently referring to Sprague. “But I think he's put himself in a position that now my expectation is, 'OK, you're pretty locked into what you're doing,’ now I need you to be a little bit more vocal. Hey, we need to build this chemistry. I need you to reach out to the younger players.' And so that's kind of been my challenge to him. But I thought he made a lot of progress in the spring." There are ongoing competitions at left tackle with Frazier, Andrew Babaloa and Evan Link, who also is practicing inside, and Nathan Efobi and Brady Norton at right guard. “It’s been pretty intense,” Sprague said. “They all want it so bad. That’s why they came here -- to start. None of those guys came here to sit on the bench and lose a position battle.” As those competitions play out, Sprague said the offensive linemen are feeling more confident this camp versus at this point a year ago. “Last year we had bad days at practice, and I haven't felt a bad day at practice yet,” Sprague said. Part of that is a function of having a season of starting experience behind them, and that includes Sprague, Guarnera, who was at right guard, and Blake Frazier, who made eight starts at left tackle. But it’s also because of how they feel physically after spending the last eight months training with Doug Elisaia, director of football sports performance, who also came from Utah to Michigan. Whittingham spoke at Big Ten media days about the enormous and much-needed strength gains the team has had under Elisaia, and Sprague said he has seen a transformation in his body. He is leaner with more muscle and said he dropped more than 20 pounds of fat and now carries 310 pounds, down five from last season, on his 6-7 frame.
“It's definitely lifting heavy, but it's also a lot of mental warfare,” Sprague said of the team’s conditioning program. “Just get us strong when the fourth quarter comes. Don't break down. You've got to keep pushing through. One thing we always talk about is when you feel like your body's about to shut down, you still actually have 40% left, so that's one thing we like to emphasize.” They have evidence of having more in the tank, because they get pushed to find that extra 40%. They’ll run more, have competitions, push sleds, do extra in the weight room. “Lots of running, though,” Sprague said, with a laugh. “We run a lot.” And from being pushed, the players discover there is always more to give, which translates into late-game scenarios. Sprague said the line is in better shape than a year ago. “There's been times where I thought I couldn't go anymore, and I still got on the line and kept running every time,” Sprague said. “Probably 10 more gassers and just keep going.” All of which means — if Harding were texting them — the line’s progress has been all about: GREAT DECISIONS. achengelis@detroitnews.com @chengelis This article originally appeared on The Detroit News: Michigan O-linemen aim to make 'dad' proud with GREAT DECISIONS