The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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INSIDE MICHIGAN ATHLETICS Sitting Down With Junior Running Back De'Veon Smith Michigan junior running back De'Veon Smith has had his ups and downs in the non-conference sea- son, but ask him if he believes he's U- M's No. 1 back and he gives a simple and unequivocal, "Yes." Smith talked recently about the early season and more. The Wolverine: You earned the right to be the No. 1 back over guys who were rated higher than you coming out of high school in Ty Isaac and Derrick Green. How much better did that competition make you? Smith: " That was the big thing [running backs] Coach [ Tyrone Wheatley] embedded on us. He made sure that we competed every day. "That was the main theme every day — compete, compete, compete. Like in spring ball, we raced each other midway through practice, ev- ery week." The Wolverine: Coach Wheatley was a great back here, obviously. What's his style when he's coaching you? Smith: "He's a very hands-on per- son. He shows us what to do if we mess up on a route … he goes out there and runs the route for us, catches the ball, throws us the ball. In the warm-ups [one day], he was being our quarterback for the run- ning backs so we could warm up. After three games, Smith led Michigan with 206 yards and three touchdowns on the ground. PHOTO BY PER KJEDLSEN