Fifth-year senior OL Giovanni El-Hadi is moving back to the left side of the line, which is vital for the entire unit. He discussed the importance of having a strong offensive line on this week’s In The Trenches:
Giovanni El-Hadi has had a bit of an up-and-down career with the Michigan Wolverines . He was part of the offensive line in 2022 that won the Joe Moore Award, appearing in all 14 games that season, mostly using his experience as an extra lineman. He moved back to left guard this year after playing right guard in 2024.
On this week’s In The Trenches podcast, El-Hadi said he’s much more comfortable on that side of the line.
“I feel really comfortable. It’s like second nature, getting back on your bike. Where the team needs me, I’m going to go,” El-Hadi said.
El-Hadi said he’s moving to the left side with tackle Evan Link, and that it feels good to be playing next to someone he’s comfortable playing next to. Link predominately played on the right side with El-Hadi a season ago, so there is already familiarity among the two.
He is also focused on ensuring the young guys know what this team is about — solid play at the line of scrimmage.
“If your offensive line is not good, you’re not going to be good,” he said.
El-Hadi said the most important thing for the offensive line is to get past mistakes and not have them impact them mentally. He acknowledged that everyone, even the best players, will make the wrong decisions, but everyone needs to know how to move on to the next play and shake off the mistakes.
“The best players who make a mistake let it go,” El-Hadi said, “Worry about where your two feet are, each play is a reset.”
Understanding the playbook before anything. El-Hadi spoke about his high school playing days and the basics of “go left” or “go right.” For the freshmen just stepping into the program, everything stems from knowing the playbook, and it’s not as easy as it may have been in high school for some of these players.
El-Hadi says Avery Gach has stood out to him so far — Gach wants to come in and hit people and have that energy on the offensive line. However, as El-Hadi pointed out, it’s just as important to learn the plays.
Coaching is also important, and El-Hadi pointed out offensive line coach Grant Newsome is growing more confident and having more fun with it this season. Newsome is still a younger coach and has room to grow, but it’s nice to know players are seeing a change. El-Hadi pointed out the pressure on the coaching staff last season. He says the team is playing with a little more energy and having fun without as much pressure.