Pep Hamilton Plans to Turn Speight into a ‘Championship Quarterback’

Michigan’s newly appointed assistant head coach/passing game coordinator Pep Hamilton will bring 10 years of NFL-level experience to Ann Arbor in 2017, a level of experience he sees paying dividends for Wolverines’ gunslinger Wilton Speight.

Having worked with other talented quarterbacks like Andrew Luck, Alex Smith and Jay Cutler, Hamilton is expected to improve Speight’s game significantly and ultimately mold him into the championship quarterback Michigan needs going into next season.

"My approach with Wilton has been to lay out the things that championship quarterbacks do," Hamilton said, per Steve Kornacki of MGoBlue.com. "We look at how they prepare and how they lead their teammates, and ultimately how they play the game."

Working as the Wolverines’ starter last season, Speight completed 204 of 331 his passes (61.6 percent) for 2,538 yards, 18 touchdowns and seven interceptions en route to earning All-Big Ten third team honors (coaches and media).

At 6-feet, 6-inches, 243 pounds, Speight looks the part of an NFL-ready quarterback when considering his sheer stature and arm strength, but he will need to rely on improving his mechanics and overall decision-making to take his game to the next level.

Hamilton has faith Speight’s ability to just that.

"Wilton's a smart enough guy to embrace the challenge of being very critical of himself when he watches film and being a self-evaluator," Hamilton said. "Then, ultimately, putting in the time and paying the price to work on the things that he needs to work on to be a championship quarterback."

The Wolverines’ ceiling will be determined by the success of both Hamilton and Speight, and given Hamilton’s early commitment to refining Speight’s craft, expect Michigan to climb to new heights in 2017.