Josaiah Stewart shares a few players who are stepping up at Edge for Michigan

There are a few young guys who are stepping up.

Trent Knoop | Aug 10, 2024

Jan 1, 2024; Pasadena, CA, USA; Michigan Wolverines defensive end Josaiah Stewart (5) celebrates after sacking Alabama Crimson Tide quarterback Jalen Milroe (4) in the first quarter in the 2024 Rose Bowl college football playoff semifinal game at Rose Bowl. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports / Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports

Michigan should boast one of the nation's best defensive lines this upcoming season. The Wolverines return Mason Graham and Kenneth Grant to clog up the middle and the Michigan Edge rushers just might be an upgrade from last season. Josaiah Stewart and Derrick Moore were technically backups last year, but they rotated in plenty for Braiden McGregor and Jaylen Harrelll.

What made the Wolverines' defensive line so great last year was the depth. Having guys like Stewart, Moore, and Grant as 'backups' spoke to the depth of the defensive line. But with guys graduating and off to the NFL, the Michigan depth is a little unknown entering the 2024 campaign.

There have been a few names that keep popping up during media availability and Stewart confirmed a few of those names recently. Veteran TJ Guy is definitely one name to keep an eye out for.

"Definitely TJ Guy, he'll be there playing for us a lot this year," Stewart said of who stepping up. "Cam Brandt, like I mentioned earlier, he's been great for us. But other guys: Dom Nichols, a freshman coming in. He's really thriving right now, but I can't wait to see how he is."

Brandt, a sophomore, registered 60 snaps last season in 2023 as a freshman. The Wolverines will need at least one more Edge rusher to step up opposite from Guy in the two-deep and Brant or true freshman Dom Nichols are two players who have been getting some rave reviews this spring -- and now fall.

More sacks in 2024?

Stewart (5.5 sacks) and Moore (five sacks) were second and third on the Wolverines last season. Stewart believes that playing beside Graham and Grant will allow the Edge rushers to get even more sacks in '24. The way those two disrupt the pocket for the quarterback will collapse the pocket.

"When I'm next to them playing, I see the pocket collapsing a lot," Stewart said of playing next to Mason Graham and Kenneth Grant. "I see a lot of QBs stepping up. They also give us a lot of sacks because there is nowhere to step up. We got them in there, but they're dawgs in that middle. They hold it down for us, and I feel like us all four together, we all play together well."

Michigan will open the season on August 31 against Fresno State.

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