Former Michigan punter Chris Stapleton has gone from one trade to something altogether different, but every bit as exciting. Once one of the top punters in the Big Ten – and still No. 4 on U-M's all-time list in average per punt (40.3) – Stapleton has moved to Hollywood, where he's appearing on the big screen and on television. His latest movie, Eyes Front, is now available on DVD.

Stapleton has done it all since moving to California several years ago, having appeared in scenes with Morgan Freeman and Jack Nicholson (The Bucket List), Mark Harmon (NCIS) and Brooke Shields (Suddenly Susan), to name a few. He's currently married and has one son.

We caught up with Stapleton recently for a Q & A about his new project, memories of Michigan football and more.

The Wolverine: Tell us about your recent project, Eyes Front.

Stapleton: "There are some interesting parts about it. I basically play a "normal" guy who happens to be a serial killer, like the guy who could be living next to you … there are two stories going on at the same time. There's my story, then there's Michael Madsen's (Kill Bill, Reservoir Dogs) story, a guy that gets abusive with his wife and accidentally kills her. He's going through the remorse of dealing with that.

"You've got two killers on two different paths. One you think is a remorseless killer, but there's a lot of psychological damage with this guy. With Madsen's character it was an accident, and now he's dealing with what to do and how to deal with it.

"The message of the movie is it's a very fine line between good and evil. It's always much more of a challenge and there's something more attractive about playing somebody who is not like you at all. It's fun to be bad."

"I couldn't go to the premiere of The Bucket List because I was working on another movie called Kemper. It's based on a true story that took place in Santa Cruz, California in the early 70s, where two serial killers were on the loose at the same time. One was Edmund Kemper. He befriended the police force, one detective in particular, the guy I play [Detective Tom Harris]. He said he would help find the serial killers, and in reality he was one of them.

"Edmund Kemper is still alive. He stays in the same asylum as Charles Manson. He was 6-8 or 6-9, a massive guy. I play the lead, the detective. It's an interesting character because I become good friends with this guy, then I have to face the betrayal that he's one of the killers.

"I'll be auditioning now that the writer's strike is over. One of the shorts I'm in, Megan, was accepted for the Beverley Hills Film Festival. It is screening the 29th of this month. I also wrote another short that may move ahead in the next few months … a dark one. We'll see. I'll just keep auditioning and moving forward."

How'd you get started acting?

"I used to shoot videos on our little camcorder all the time, then I did some productions in high school … the theater instructor asked if I'd come out for Carousel, because he'd heard I could act and sing, so I played Billy Bigelow in that. I always had an interest in it and always loved movies.

"When I got to college I didn't know if I would have the opportunity or the time to work on that stuff, but I still found time in the off-season. I took theater classes and did performances in the winter."

"It's got to be the fake punt in the Rose Bowl my freshman year against USC [a 17-10 loss in 1990]. That one sticks out because I was directly involved. We practiced it all year. [Coach] Bo [Schembechler] said, 'hey, if I fold my arms, it's a go.' It was a perfect opportunity to do it, early in the fourth quarter. It was tied at 10-10, he folded his arms, I took one step and ran around left end for 25 yards. It got called back on a holding penalty by Bobby Abrams, and it was a B.S. call."

"It comes up a lot. Michigan football … as soon as you say that, people are just fascinated. When you tell them you played in three Rose Bowls, even more so.

"I did a scene with Mark Harmon [in NCIS], and he was thrilled. Here's a guy whose dad was a Heisman winner at Michigan [Tom Harmon, 1940], and who played quarterback at UCLA. He's a great guy, such a pleasure to work with … very complimentary, easy to work with and down to earth. I've worked with a lot of great people. Very rarely have I had someone who was very difficult."

"Morgan Freeman and Jack Nicholson were great. Brooke Shields was a blast, really a sweetheart. I had a scene where I was a guest star in the series Suddenly Susan. I play a cop, and she thinks I am a stripper sent by her friends for her birthday. It's really a cool scene … I saw her probably three or four years ago after we did that, and she remembered who I was and said she had put that scene on her reel.

"David Caruso, too, was great. I worked with him on CSI Miami."

"I work as a personal trainer, usually with four clients a day and a few on the weekends. It's great because it's flexible. If I need to reschedule and go to an audition, I have clients who are very understanding."