Chase Winovich coming back is great news for Michigan Football

Just two days after Michigan Football lost in the Outback Bowl, Chase Winovich announced that he is returning for the 2018 season. Here’s why it matters.

It has been a somber few days for the Michigan football program. Blowing a 16-point lead in a bowl game will do that. Yet, if the Wolverines needed a pick me up, they got it Wednesday, as Chase Winovich announced his return to the team for the 2018 season.

Winovich was thinking of entering the NFL draft and as a fourth-year junior, he was eligible to do so. However, just like Maurice Hurst did last season, the defensive end decided to say, which is tremendous news for Michigan football and its defense.

Head coach Jim Harbaugh indicated that Winovich made his decision a week or two ago, but simply wasn’t ready to announce it. Well today, he took to twitter and made his intentions known, to the delight of Wolverines fan everywhere.

Over the past two seasons, Winovich has transformed himself into one of the most feared pass rushers in the Big Ten. The former special teams standout, burst onto the scene with five sacks and 8.5 tackles for loss in 2016. But it turned out, he was just getting started.

Following the graduation of guys like Chris Wormley and Taco Charlton, Winovich was able to play a full-time role and those extra snaps paid huge dividends. As a redshirt junior, Winovich led the Big Ten in sacks with 8.5. He also racked up 19 tackles for loss. In all, that gives him 41 stops in the opponents backfield the past two seasons.

As one of the best edge rushers in the Big Ten, Winovich certainly would have attracted plenty of attention in the NFL draft. He probably would not have gone in the first or maybe even in the second round. Yet, he had the look of a day two pick (2nd or 3rd round).

In the end though, a lack of team success may have swayed Winovich to return. When he talked about his decision leading up to the Outback Bowl, he mentioned that Michigan football wasn’t all the way back yet. Not where he wanted it to be, which is competing for Big Ten and national championships on a yearly basis.

Now, he will get the chance to be part of the solution again. Many are looking to 2018 as the year Michigan football finally breaks out. With an extremely challenging schedule, it won’t be easy. Yet, with Winovich back, the chances of winning more games seems much better.

The decision could also help the defensive end’s draft stock. Hurst used his extra season at Michigan to cement his status as a first-round pick. And with another productive season pressuring the quarterback, Winovich could do the same.

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Either way, Michigan football fans just need to rejoice in some good news and look forward to seeing Winovich torment opposing passers, for at least one more season in the maize and blue.