Michigan’s Michael Onwenu didn’t start playing football until the eighth grade, so the Al Glick “Celebration of Football” youth camp offered insight into the kind of event he wasn’t able to be a part of growing up.
“It was a real good experience,” Onwenu said of the Jackson High School-hosted football camp. “I didn’t play football this early, [so] it just shows me what I missed out on. Having events like these, where you get to meet current and previous players, shows [the kids] what they can be.”
Although his football career got started later than most, Onwenu still benefitted from the lessons that the game can provide to young, impressionable kids.
“It definitely showed me how to work in a teammate manner, and how to be accountable,” the senior said. “Especially coming to college, you’re responsible for everything you do, whether it’s class, or workouts, or what-not. At a young age, it definitely teaches a lot and instills [values] at a young age.”
The starting right guard for the Wolverines, Onwenu spent the majority of the camp working with the young prospective offensive lineman.
“I was primarily with the O-line, of course,” he said. “But, outside of the dancing breaks and water breaks, I was trying to teach them some technique, stuff they can use early that other kids their age won’t really know. It’s not so much advanced, but it’s something you don’t think about at a young age.”
In addition to teaching the youngsters about the fundamentals of O-line play, Onwenu also had a chance to show Michigan’s latest additions to their football squad what it was like to give back to a community.
True freshmen Nolan Rumler, Trente Jones, Michael Morris, George Johnson and Anthony Solomon arrived in Ann Arbor at the beginning of June, and just a week later were participating as instruction volunteers in Jackson.
“This was probably their first event as a Michigan player,” Onwenu said. “Stuff like this hits home. It just shows you other people here pay attention to what you’re doing and really admire you.”
It won’t be the final lesson that Onwenu, one of the older players on Michigan’s roster, teaches the younger Wolverines, especially fellow offensive linemen in Rumler and Jones.
The responsibility that comes with being a college football player: being accountable, being a good teammate, and showing up to class and workout sessions, as Onwenu noted above, will be passed on as the next generation of Wolverines begin their college careers.
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