A year ago, the best competition Aamir Hall had faced was wideouts from Delaware, Sacramento State and Idaho. The now-graduate cornerback spent his first three seasons at Richmond before transferring to Albany for his senior year in 2023. This past offseason, he made the jump from FCS to FBS by transferring once more to join the Michigan football team.
And this upcoming weekend, when No. 1 Oregon waddles into Ann Arbor, Hall is in for another taste of higher caliber opponents. The Ducks’ passing offense ranks 12th in the nation, and quarterback Dillon Gabriel boasts 2,371 passing yards with just five interceptions.
Although it’ll be more difficult matching up against Oregon receivers than those of years past, Hall welcomes the challenge — as he has all season.
“It’s just honestly the speed of the game and then the physicality has been taking a step up,” Hall said Tuesday about the transition from FCS to FBS. “And it’s been really good, like, honestly, prepares me and has developed me a lot since I’ve been here. … I didn’t really know what to expect, but I knew that was going to be a challenge, and I feel like I’ve been hanging it pretty well.”
Hall has appeared in all but one game for the Wolverines thus far, making his first start against Illinois and starting again this past weekend against Michigan State. With junior cornerback Will Johnson working through an injury, Hall’s minutes and production have increased. He has 17 total tackles and two pass break-ups to his name, and his play has only continued to progress.
Specifically, Hall points to his positional versatility as the most improved aspect of his game since becoming a Wolverine.
“I’ve played boundary corner for most of my career, and here I’ve played both field and boundary,” Hall said. “Honestly, that’s helped me develop my game totally on just a versatility level. And just being in a more NFL defense, like (defensive coordinator) Wink Martindale coming down to college football, I learned a lot and feel like that will prepare me for the next level.”
This season, Michigan’s secondary as a whole has been one of its weaker areas. The Wolverines have struggled with consistent tackling issues and containing explosive plays. Hall has also experienced his fair share of growing pains, alongside others on the defense.
Michigan’s defensive backs have slowly but surely taken steps forward, though — a byproduct of settling into their roles and upping the urgency, with losses mounting.
“Just the level of urgency,” Hall said when asked what has gone into his unit’s improvement. “Coming in, we knew we had a really good defensive line, and they will, honestly, carry us through the season (and) help us win games. But the challenge is on us to challenge the receivers and just the different skill groups that come in. I feel like we’re taking on that challenge from early on in the season until now.”
Since transitioning from FCS to FBS, Hall has become familiar with challenges. This weekend is no exception, and it’ll provide Hall with a prime opportunity to prove that he can keep his head above water.
The post From FCS to FBS, Aamir Hall welcoming new challenges as he continues to settle in appeared first on The Michigan Daily.
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