Michigan DE Chase Winovich awarded co-Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week

There is no question the defensive hero for Michigan in its comeback victory against Northwestern was fifth-year senior Chase Winovich, and now he is being recognized by the Big Ten for his performance on the field.

Winovich was named the Big Ten’s co-Defensive Player of the Week alongside Ohio State defensive end Chase Young. The former led the team with nine total tackles (eight solo stops — a career-high), three tackles for loss and one sack. He also made it his 13th game in a row registering at least 0.5 tackles for loss.

This is Winovich’s first Defensive Player of the Week since last season, and first by a Wolverine since Khaleke Hudson’s freak game against Minnesota last year.

For the Buckeyes, Young tacked on six total tackles, three tackles for loss, two sacks, two pass breakups and two quarterback hurries.

Both ends played a huge role in each team’s victory, but Winovich was undoubtedly the U-M MVP on defense last week. Rashan Gary was taken out of the game due to injury, but I honestly still felt comfortable knowing Winovich was out there causing havoc, with or without Gary.

Winovich not only leads the conference, but is tied for the most tackles for loss in the country with an astounding 10.5. Through five games, he is on pace to break his personal record of 18.0 from last season.

Plus, there’s this:

There is a legitimate shot for Winovich to get there. He pretty much lives in the backfield, so that feat isn’t impossible.

So congratulations to Winovich, and here’s to another week of Michigan’s Thor dominating opposing quarterbacks and running backs.