Heading to Michigan was more than just a homecoming for Louisville transfer kicker James Turner. The Saline, Michigan, native is now only 15 minutes away from his family.

Not only is he stepping into familiar territory, but he's also navigating uncharted territory as well as having to fill the massive shoes Jake Moody left behind.

Pressure is always placed squarely on the kicker's shoulders on every kick, so that's something he has always experienced. Having to replace a school legend at his position is another level of pressure, something he is embracing.

"There's good and bad for sure," Turner said. "There's definitely a spotlight on the kicker position here, so that's good and bad, obviously. If you're doing good, it's good. If you're doing bad, it's not so good.

"I think Drake said that pressure is a privilege, kind of just feed off that."

Turner hasn't been called on much in three games for the Wolverines, which is good or bad however you look at it. Good from the perspective that Turner isn't needed and bad that he isn't getting many early-season reps.

Regardless, Turner has had to work through some early nerves as he struggled kicking the ball well in the season-opener, which included a missed extra point and a missed field goal from over 50 yards.

With the jitters out of the way, things have been better for Turner, who hasn't missed a kick since.

He says he feels much more comfortable out on the field.

"ECU was OK, obviously you don't want to miss PATs, that kind of sucked," Turner said. "It was good to get that out of the way in a sense, that game, because it's definitely a different environment playing in the Big House and so that was kind of a hurdle to get over. I'm feeling a lot more confident and comfortable in there.

"I wasn't hitting them good and it kind of translated to out on the field, unfortunately."

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