New defensive line coach Shaun Nua joined today's 'Attack Each day' podcast for the first time, and opened up about both his background and the path that led him to Michigan.
Head coach Jim Harbaugh also gave his take on the Pago Pago, American Samoa native, and explained how excited he is to have him on board.
We have the highlights below:
Jim Harbaugh, on the Process of Hiring of Shaun Nua:
"We talked to a lot of defensive line coaches across the country. Fortunately, [Director of Player Personnel and Administration] Sean Magee worked with Shaun Nua at Navy for six years, and brought up his name to us.
"We had a staff meeting and looked at Shaun's track record and eventually spoke with him, and the first things that jumped out were his enthusiasm, ability, and hunger to make Michigan better.
"He also had a desire to be here, and his people skills were off the charts. Shaun was our first interview, and we didn't get to any others in person after that."
Shaun Nua, Discussing his Background:
"I was very honored to come here, because it's Michigan, Coach [Jim] Harbaugh and Coach [Don] Brown. It was an exciting phone call, and my jaw literally dropped when I got it.
"I walked on to play football at Eastern Arizona College, and [current BYU head coach] Kalani Sitake then led me to BYU.
"The islands I grew up on [in Pago Pago, American Samoa] weren't a bad place to be, but football was my only calling — I wasn't a smart kid who was good at business or anything like that.
"Football was my ticket out of there — the toughness part came easy to me, but the mental aspect was a bit harder.
"I knew I wouldn't last long in the NFL as a player, so that's when I realized I wanted to someday be a coach.
"[Current Virginia head coach and then-BYU head man] Bronco Mendenhall gave me a spot on his staff as an intern at BYU, and Navy was my next stop after that.
"It was amazing coaching at Navy. Coach [Ken] Niumatalolo had actually seen me working as a GA at BYU, and that's how I was offered a spot with the Midshipmen.
"Coaching those kind of kids there and what they all go through was the biggest honor I've had."
Jim Harbaugh, With More on Nua:
"I respected the fact that Shaun stayed at Navy for six years, because a lot of young coaches want to jump from place to place at that age. He dug in at Navy and really learned, and that's what Sean Magee had told us he was like.
"You sometimes meet someone and know you're going to hire them from the moment you shake their hand — [strength and conditioning coach] Ben Herbert was like that for us.
"The little hairs on your arm stand up and tell you this is right when you meet people like that. It's all about their presence, hand shake, look in their eye and the fact that they want to be here.
"After I offered the job to Shaun, he never asked what his title was going to be or the length of his contract.
"It's not about the title or the money — if someone comes here and they're great, there's no amount of money that can make them stay here.
"We'll give them the titles and the money once they're great at what they do — if Shaun isn't the right guy for us, then I'll wave the white flag."
Jack Harbaugh, Reflecting on the Importance of a Coaching Staff's Chemistry:
"When you're looking to hire coaches, you look for people who are humble and hungry — hungry to work ahead and be a part of the program.
"I asked Jerry Hanlon the other day about the magic of our coaching staff back in the '70s, and he said coming to work was about showing the staff how you could contribute and add something every single day — that's the humility part of it.
"It's also about connecting with people — you can just tell sometimes when people want to be somewhere, because they'll make eye contact with you and smile when you pass them in the hallway.
"I have a sense this coaching staff we have now is reflecting that."
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