Shea Patterson: ‘I Knew Right Away This Is Where I Wanted To Be’
There are several reasons Michigan is 9-1 and 7-0 in Big Ten action, but the play of junior quarterback Shea Patterson has perhaps been the biggest key of all.
He came to Michigan with unbelievably high expectations, and has exceeded them by completing 67 percent of his passes and putting together a 17-3 touchdown-to-interception ratio.
Patterson has retold the story of his journey from Ole Miss to Ann Arbor many times, but revealed on Tuesday night how big of a role his bond with head coach Jim Harbaugh — whose “love and passion for the game is contagious” — played.
“I’m so proud to be a quarterback on his team,” Patterson exclaimed. “My knowledge of the game has come a long way since I’ve been here.
“I’ve seen some clips back from when he played, and you could see the fire in his eyes whenever he’d make a big play. He rekindled that passion for me in some ways.
“The first impressions I had of him were how he got straight to the point, and that he was a man of high character. I knew he was someone I’d want to play for right away.
“He made a great impression on me, and I just had a special feeling that I knew right away this is where I wanted to be.”
It’s been smooth sailing so far for Patterson in Ann Arbor, and it has a chance to get a whole lot better — if the Wolverines take down Indiana and Ohio State in their next two games, they’ll head to the Big Ten championship game to face Northwestern.
“I haven’t even thought about that or if this will be my last game in The Big House,” he responded when asked about potentially going pro early. “I’m just focusing on Indiana right now, and then we'll turn our attention to Ohio State.
“Actually, all our focus right now is on Wednesday’s practice, not even Indiana.”
Patterson caused a bit of a stir last week when it was reported that he had spoken with Ohio State redshirt sophomore quarterback Dwayne Haskins, and given him advice on how to attack the defense of Michigan State, who OSU faced this past weekend.
Unsurprisingly, it was much ado about nothing and yet another story the media blew completely out of proportion.
“We’ve known each other since sixth or seventh grade, and he just asked me a question,” Patterson said with a laugh. “It’s not like we sat down together and broke down film for 20 minutes.
“I didn’t even think anything of it beforehand. Maybe it’s not the best look, but it’s not a big deal when considering how small it actually was.”
Growing up in the Midwest, the junior quarterback said he was raised appreciating the rivalry with Ohio State and understands what it’s all about.
“Every year at school around Thanksgiving time, I was the only kid with a Michigan shirt on in Toledo and I would get made fun of by everyone in school,” he said with a laugh. “I fully understand the tradition and the meaning behind 'The Game.'”
Notes
• Michigan has only committed seven turnovers all year, which are tied for the third fewest in the nation. Patterson has played a large role, not having thrown a pick since the win against Maryland Oct. 6.
“It's about being disciplined,” he noted. “We take what the defense gives us and try to have a good balance with the run and the pass. Our field position is always great each game, and we almost never get too backed up.”
• The junior quarterback obviously wasn’t on the team last year, but still mentioned how much growth he has seen from several of the offensive position groups in the last two months alone.
"[Sophomore receiver] Nico [Collins], [sophomore wideout] Donovan [Peoples-Jones] and [redshirt junior tight end Zach] Gentry have been making plays all year, and been gaining more confidence each time they do,” Patterson explained. “As far as the offensive line, I don’t think I even got breathed on against Rutgers. Coach [Ed] Warinner has done such a great job with them.”
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