Michigan’s Outback Bowl matchup against South Carolina Jan. 1 in Tampa, Fla., will be a homecoming of sorts for several Wolverines.
The Maize and Blue have 10 players on their roster who hail from the state of Florida, and junior running back Karan Higdon — a Sarasota native — talked about how special it is to be back in the Sunshine State after a recent practice.
“It feels great,” he said with a laugh. “There’s a certain smell in the air here and in the grass. The heat and humidity are coming out — it’s football weather.
“When I was younger, this was way too hot for me, but now I love it — the pouring sweat, everything. This is like coming home to paradise.”
Higdon’s hometown of Sarasota is 61 miles from Tampa, while senior left tackle Mason Cole’s hometown of Tarpon Springs is a mere 28 miles.
Cole has started every game of his Michigan career, and is slated to make his 51st consecutive start on New Year’s Day, which will tie former defensive end Craig Roh (2009-12) for the program record. The senior has not only served as a team captain, but has also played out of position — he’ll likely be an interior lineman at the next level — at left tackle because that was what his squad needed.
“Mason has meant everything,” Higdon said. “He’s left a legacy here. We’re obviously back near his home city, so it’s important to us that he goes out with a win.”
Sophomore wide receiver Eddie McDoom, who grew up in Winter Garden, Fla., echoed Higdon’s sentiment.
“Mason has been a big leader for us,” he said. “When things would get tough, he was there to pick us up. He’s always in the film room, and he's a guy you can definitely look up to.”
McDoom also talked about another veteran on the team who played a large role in convincing him to come to Michigan.
“[Fifth-year senior quarterback] John O’Korn,” he revealed. “John talked to me a lot about coming here [while McDoom was in high school]. I took a visit here a few years ago and he was my host, and he gave me the details as to what this program is about. He’s one of the big reasons why I’m here.
“Now that I’ve been here for two years, I see things I need to work on heading into this offseason. I need to get better every day and take pride in my craft, and make sure I’m better next year.”
Much of next season’s success will come down to the play of U-M’s quarterbacks, just like it often does.
Although it is obviously yet to be determined who the Wolverines’ primary signal-caller will be in 2018, redshirt freshman Brandon Peters will be squarely in the mix.
He started three games and appeared in two others for the Wolverines this year, and threw for 486 yards with four touchdowns and no interceptions.
Both O’Korn and McDoom have seen the young signal-caller make big strides.
“It’s night and day from the time he got here,” O’Korn said. “He’s grown up so much throughout this season and has really taken control of the offense and locker room — it’s been cool to see. He was pretty quiet and soft spoken when he got here, and [former passing game coordinator] Jedd [Fisch] would always try to get him to speak up in the huddle and at the line of scrimmage.
“Those issues are gone now, and I’m so proud of him. He’s capable of being our leader — it’s not his or my decision, though. He can put the work in to make sure it happens. The coaches will decide who gives this team the best chance to win.”
“He’s built his confidence,” McDoom added. “Brandon has really become more of a vocal leader. He’s talked to us about what he expects, and he’s just growing every day.”
Miscellaneous Notes
• Higdon was asked which young offensive players were standing out to him in bowl practices, and he mentioned two of his fellow ball carriers.
“The running backs are,” he said. “[Freshmen] O’maury Samuels and Kurt Taylor are coming along nicely — me and [sophomore running back] Chris [Evans] have done a nice job of coaching them up.
“I’m loving the transition they’re showing.”
• Michigan hasn’t taken the field since its heartbreaking 31-20 loss to Ohio State on Nov. 25, and O’Korn admitted the defeat took a while to get past. He notably broke down at the end of the postgame press conference after that defeat.
“It took a few days to get over that loss,” he said. “There were sleepless nights where I just kept running plays through my head.
“I reacted the way I did after that game because our senior class hadn’t ever beaten those guys, and because we had put in so much work toward that game.”
• According to The Michigan Daily’s Orion Sang, Devin Bush Sr., who has been working at U-M as a defensive analyst, was coaching on the field during bowl practices, and also has been on the road recruiting, to fill the void left by defensive backs coach Brian Smith, who is the new defensive coordinator at Rice.
Bush was a former star safety at Florida State, first-round NFL Draft pick and successful prep head coach at Flanagan (Fla.) High, where he led a team that featured his son, sophomore linebacker Devin Bush Jr., as well as U-M redshirt freshman linebacker Devin Gil and sophomore safety Josh Metellus, to the 2015 state championship.
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