Last week, Mike Sainristil addressed the media just an hour after he was officially named a team captain for the second season in a row. There, he had the chance to give a final fall camp update on a top Michigan football transfer addition — cornerback Josh Wallace, who has reportedly been turning heads thus far. Come Week 1, which is set to take place in just six days, Wallace may find himself in a starting role at cornerback across from rising sophomore (and former five-star) Will Johnson.
Final fall camp update on new standout Michigan football transfer
Josh Wallace (from UMass) was a huge addition to the 2023 Michigan football transfer portal class — he is the Wolverines’ most experienced cornerback in the room right now and brings a lot of unrecognized talent to the table. With Michigan thin at cornerback right now, Wallace will likely find a large role in the Maize and Blue this year, perhaps even landing a starting role.
Mike Sainristil, who was a massive reason that Wallace picked Michigan football, recently gave a final fall camp update on this new transfer addition — it appears that all is going quite well for the new Wolverine.
“Most definitely (he can play),” Mike Sainristil said of new Michigan football transfer Josh Wallace. “I had texted Josh (Wallace) while he was being recruited and I told him the opportunity he had. I said, ‘Look, you wouldn’t be being recruited if coaches didn’t think you could be here, one. Two, you have an opportunity to come in and potentially start at corner. So take advantage of it if you do decide to come.’ And then when he got here, I told him, ‘Look, be by my side all summer, I promise I will lead you in the right direction,’ and he texts me back, he said, ‘I already planned on it.’ So since he’s gotten here, he’s been like a brother to me, we’ve already gotten close and I feel like he has a bright future ahead of him here.”
More from Mike Sainristil on Josh Wallace
Mike Sainristil says that Josh Wallace has a bright future with Michigan football. So, what does Wallace bring to the table? What does he do best?
“Josh (Wallace), I think he’s a great cover guy,” the Michigan football captain continued. “He’s not a guy who’s scared to come down and hit somebody. He’s physical when needed, and he’s a guy that takes coaching, he doesn’t take anything personal, and he’s a guy who is looking to do the right things, looking to help, however. DJ Waller, I think for his size he’s very freaky. He moves very well for his size, he runs better than people might think because of his size, and for him, I feel like once he does understand it, once he does get the overall concept of our defense, and once the game slows down for him, he’s going to be a really special player here.”
It will take a few weeks for Michigan football to fully figure out its cornerback depth this season, but according to Mike Sainristil, Josh Wallace can be expected to make an impact for the Wolverines in year one.
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