Josh Priebe’s December commitment from Northwestern gave Michigan a significant addition to the Transfer Portal.
The graduate student offensive lineman, who has been playing primarily left guard, has been speaking with media about the progress of the O-line and why he chose the Wolverines more than halfway through spring camp. What he stated was this:
Regarding pledging to Michigan before the coaching changes in the off-season:
What the program’s current status was was one of the things that truly mattered to me. In any case, I wasn’t exactly devastated. I was ready for anything to happen. It was kind of implied to me that in the event of an emergency, Coach Moore might be placed in that role. They were open and honest with me at all times.
I was therefore quite pleased with all the adjustments that they had made and wasn’t really concerned when it did occur. I’m still rather happy, too.
There has been fierce competition. There’s no denying that the practice style differs from what I was used to.
However, I believe it has greatly benefited me as a player. I think I’ve been able to advance and mature. There are a lot of new players on the offensive line playing various roles. I believe that everyone is becoming more adept at playing together. Men are being moved around. Thus far, our communication has been effective, in my opinion. And yes, I believe that they should just keep pushing and competing with one another.
Regarding the primary distinctions between Michigan and Northwestern:
All I would mention is the general intensity.
I believe that some tasks require longer time to complete. It’s also true that the practices are longer, include more striking, and involve more physical contact. That seems to be one of those things that I am certain will improve me as a player. Additionally, I can already see that the practices here will make the games feel much simpler.
Regarding the skirmishes with the Michigan defense:
To begin with, competing against players like Mason Graham and KG will undoubtedly improve you. I have also played in the conference for a fair amount of time, and I haven’t faced players with that caliber of talent.
On certain teams you play against, there is a single individual who is an exceptional player. However, you will always be up against them if you have both of those people. That degree of competitiveness, in my opinion, pushes you to improve. And I believe that’s what makes Michigan so wonderful thus far—you just develop it. Because of the degree of competition and the whole culture surrounding that, guys mature at a much faster rate.
Regarding his decision to select Michigan via the Transfer Portal:
The program’s overall excellence, as it stands. For me, it was: This will be a fantastic chance to pursue my goal of becoming an NFL player and to better myself in every manner. And the strength program is something I was really anticipating. Despite a few past ailments, I’ve been well both this season and this offseason. One thing that truly appealed to me about this program, I believe, is the opportunity to grow. In addition, the atmosphere around that position was very enticing to me as an offensive lineman. So far, it’s been fantastic.
Regarding if Michigan’s history of OL transfers influenced his choice:
Yes, that undoubtedly played a role.
You see guys who had a fifth year and were in a similar situation to mine. Though their circumstances undoubtedly differ, they desired an additional year to strive for greater success. Almost all of those folks succeeded tremendously here, and they were able to.
That gave me a lot of comfort and helped to ease my decision that they really do have such a great curriculum. Additionally, the way they manage and accept transfers has improved the squad and made players extremely successful.
Regarding his viewing habits of Michigan during his time at Northwestern:
In fact, I watched them quite a bit. Because there is a lot of overlap and you can see how other defenses match up against the O-line here when you analyze other teams, particularly in the Big Ten.
Every time I tried to turn on those games, I would always observe those guys engaged in gameplay.
