Secondary out to prove itself against Trojans

Though Michigan ranks among the top defenses in the nation, most of the credit has gone to its linebackers and front four. The secondary, ranked 74th in the country, figures it has something to prove against USC in the Rose Bowl.

The Wolverines surrendered 316 passing yards and four touchdowns in a loss to Ohio State in November. Buckeyes receiver Ted Ginn Jr. caught eight passes for 104 yards. Next, the Michigan defensive backs will face USC’s pass-catching corps, one they suspect is even more dangerous.

“I’d say they’re the finest in the country,” safety Jamar Adams said. “They have great talent and great schemes, and that is a lethal combination.”

Adams and cornerback Leon Hall praised USC’s Steve Smith for his savvy but noted that the receiver on the other side, 6-foot-5 Dwayne Jarrett, is the difference-maker in a physical way.

“Ohio State didn’t have a Jarrett-type of receiver,” Hall said. “Jarrett can put himself between the ball and the defender and, if he gets that position, then it’s almost 100% that he’s going to get the ball.”

Defensive coordinator Ron English compared covering lanky Jarrett to playing basketball, needing to box him out for the rebound.

Michigan defenders said they have spent the past few weeks reviewing footwork and basic technique. They also have worked on avoiding the blown assignments that hurt them against Ohio State.

“We played out of character in that game,” English said. “We’ve addressed it, and we’ve moved on.”

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English, known for his fiery demeanor, was not pleased with the way his players practiced after arriving in Southern California last week.

“The first day we didn’t do very well, for whatever reason,” he said.

Since then, he sees improvement in the workouts at the Home Depot Center in Carson.

The Wolverines also have paid attention to pacing.

The team practiced through Christmas, then took a day off before launching into its standard game-week routine. English said the intensity has turned up a notch each day and he hoped this trend would continue into the weekend.

“I think when you get into that kind of mode,” he said, “it’s easy for the kids to peak at the right time.”

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david.wharton@latimes.com