Grant Newsome speaks highly of Colston Loveland heading into second season

Grant Newsome has spent his last nine years with the Wolverines, first as a player and now as an assistant coach. He got his first positional job a year ago, as 2022 was his first year coaching the tight ends.

Joining Jon Jansen on In the Trenches, Newsome shared the adjustment to his role and the strides the tight ends have made this offseason.

“I am immensely thankful to coach Harbaugh for giving me the opportunity, especially at a younger age than most. Extremely lucky to be given that title,” Newsome said. “I’m just fortunate to have a great group of guys and older players to make it easy for me to learn and grow as a coach and maximize on their abilities physically and mentally.”

Guys like Colston Loveland, who demonstrated great potential last year in his college debut, are the type of players Newsome hopes to bring out the best of their abilities. He talked extensively about Loveland’s growth this offseason and how he thinks he is one of the best tight ends in the country.

“He is on the right track with his development,” Newsome said. “I don’t think he has realized this fully yet. He works everyday like he isn’t the best tight end in the country. There is no arrogance, no cockiness, he is so humble and mature, with an immense amount of ability.

“I was joking with Jake Butt, he watched a practice and afterwards we sat down and talked and he was like, ‘he is going to be better than I am, he might already be better than I am.’”

According to Newsome, a lot of Loveland’s talent and ability stemmed from playing high school football in Idaho, being utilized in multiple roles to help his team wherever it was needed. That skillset stuck with him when he moved to Ann Arbor and because of that, Newsome thinks Loveland has the makings to be the best in the country.

“He was very natural. He was the best player out on the field every single week,” Newsome said. “He played everywhere on the field. We are fortunate because of his height and length, and he is already pretty strong. He is athletic and comfortable doing everything. We can move him around by game plan or matchup.”

Newsome also mentioned Loveland picked up things right away, especially in areas where it takes time.

“(Loveland) didn’t have a heavy background in blocking,” Newsome explained. “Playing with tight hands, playing with a great base, getting cleats in the ground; all the things that are tough for offensive linemen who have played for years, it came naturally to him. The foundation was good, especially for a guy with the background he had.”

The culture in the tight end room stems from the same mentality: No arrogance, just keep your head down and work. Whether that’s guys like Loveland or transfers like A.J. Barner, everyone is working collectively for the betterment of themselves and the team.

“We are very blessed. Got five guys that are high level tight ends right now and that we are confident we can win games with,” Newsome said. “It’s a credit to the guys no selfishness in the room so distributing the load will be awesome.”