The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: http://read.uberflip.com/i/262939
Michigan basketball coach John Beilein never minds a certain strong lineage in his recruits, with perform- ers such as Glenn Robinson III and Tim Hardaway Jr. dotting recent ros- ters. New Michigan offensive line signee Juwann Bushell-Beatty might not have come from an NFL parent, but he certainly could have some room for growth — in all respects. Bushell-Beatty already stands a massive 6-5, 295, as a senior at Para- mus (N.J.) Catholic High School. He's just a growing young man, according to Michigan head coach Brady Hoke. "Juwann is a big old road grader as a right tackle," Hoke said. "We were really impressed with how he moves his feet. He was a basketball player to start with. He started playing foot- ball really his junior year, and got in the weight room. "His father is 6-9. His dad's a huge man. With Juwan, all of his best foot- ball is in front of him. I really believe that." On that fact, Hoke and Paramus head coach Chris Partridge com- pletely concur. Partridge guided the past two Paramus squads to NJ- SIAA/Atlantic Health Non-Public Group 4 state titles, featuring a name everybody knew — Bushell-Beatty's old and new teammate, Jabrill Pep- pers. But the less-hyped player can ab- solutely make a name for himself, according to his high school coach. B u s h e l l - B e a t t y c e r t a i n l y m a d e something of himself at Paramus, and earned the respect of all who watched him. He never played a down of foot- ball before his freshman year in high school. When the Paramus football coaches first noticed him, he was playing his ball indoors. "When we got him, he was lum- bering up and down the basketball court," Partridge recalled. "We con- vinced him to give football a shot. "Juwann has just shown his work ethic and character through that. His freshman year wasn't easy, learning the game, especially when you're COACHES LIKE JUWANN BUSHELL-BEATTY'S HIGH CEILING Bushell-Beatty, who never played a down of football before his freshman year, helped Paramus (N.J.) Catholic win a pair of state championships. PHOTO COURTESY RIVALS.COM