The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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WHERE ARE THEY NOW? a competitor, I would like to have played more," Groninger said. "But looking back on it, you have to accept responsibility. I take responsibility for my part. I think I got discouraged. One of the regrets was, instead of working harder, I lost confidence. "I should have put more work in." The Wolverines themselves put in the work to improve to 18-12 overall, and 12-6 and in third place in the Big Ten. Groninger averaged 12 minutes a game for the Wolverines, and looked forward to his first and only shot at the NCAA Tournament. But the hammer fell, and Michi- gan's self-imposed sanctions over the Steve Fisher-era NCAA infractions precluded a chance at the Big Dance. "It was tough," Groninger acknowl- edged. "When I signed on at Michi- gan, one of the things I thought for sure was that was a school that could not only get to the NCAA Tourna- ment, but compete in the tourna- ment. Finding out my senior year we weren't going to have that opportu- nity, after we'd put things together to be good enough to make the tourna- ment, it was obviously disappointing. "The next year, I watched a lot of my teammates go to the NIT and win it. That was a nice consolation, seeing a lot of those guys have success." He's seen plenty of Michigan bas- ketball success in recent years and likes the style of basketball John Beilein's teams play. He admits to a little wistfulness, witnessing the three-point show. Groninger (with, from left to right, daughter Charlee, wife Megan and son Henry) is in his sixth year as the physical education teacher at Bridgeport Elementary School in Wayne Township, Ind., and he also coaches the junior varsity squad at Plainfield (Ind.) High. PHOTO COURTESY GAVIN GRONINGER