Michigan football team shuffles linemen in hopes of solving dearth of depth

A need for defensive tackles arose after Rodriguez moved Will Campbell to the offensive line last week. Now, offensive lineman Quinton Washington heads from offense to defense.

Rodriguez made the switches during off-week practices. Although he cautioned they’re not yet permanent, he anticipated the two players would stick with the changes for the foreseeable future.

At 6-foot-5, 333 pounds, Campbell immediately became the team’s biggest offensive lineman. “He actually approached us about trying it over there,” Rodriguez said. “He’s a pretty smart football player. His head will be spinning for a while, but I think he’ll be a natural at guard.”

Stephen Schilling, the Wolverines’ most experienced guard and an Outland Trophy candidate, is excited about welcoming Campbell to the position.

“I always thought he liked to finish us in practice instead of making tackles,” Schilling said. “It was exciting to see him play. He could be a really good offensive lineman.”

Craig Roh had a similar instinct about Washington, a 6-4, 315-pound redshirt freshman.

“I thought that Quinton should be playing defense about a month ago,” Roh said. “He’s got that aggressive manner that’s really good for defense. To a certain extent, he’s learning from scratch, and it’s going to take him a while to really become comfortable there.”