The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1178918
24 THE WOLVERINE NOVEMBER 2019 certain their son stayed very active and involved, with friends who lived up to the label. "On all our kids, we're not over- protective, but we don't let them be friends with anyone we don't think are real good people," Haskins Sr. said. "They don't associate with any bad guys in the neighborhood. We kept them away from that. "We made sure they played sports. He ran track, played basketball, foot- ball. Year-round, he was active. It was keeping him away from all the negative influences." They also focused on the develop- ment of their youngest. Dad served as the silent enforcer, while mom em- ployed more vocal guidance. "My mom is my everything," Haskins said. "She's always been on me, from the start. Whatever I do, finish it. She's a hard lady. "She just stayed on me — don't do something stupid, don't do some- thing bad. She wanted her family to look good. She's always been on me like that. "I got plenty of whoopings that taught me not to do certain things, and what to do. That helped me, re- ally." "You know what?" Lynette said. "It was always me and his dad. His dad enforces it. I tell him, 'This is what you're not going to do. This is what you're going to do.' Dad, he doesn't have to tell him too much." Haskins Sr. ultimately proved as much encourager as enforcer. "I just enjoyed everything he tried," his dad offered. "When he was trying to do backward flips, he would be out there every day, trying to do a backflip. He did it until he could do a backflip and more than that." Haskins had onlookers doing men- tal backflips against the Illini, and dreaming of more. "He was really anxious to get out there and do some running back plays," Haskins Sr. said. "I just al- ways tell him, 'When you get an op- portunity, make the best of it.' "For him to get that chance to run the ball, he really showed what he could do. That was exciting." FRONT OF THE LINE When Michigan initially showed interest, it caught the immediate at- tention of Haskins and his football- playing older brother, if not their mom. "Michigan has always been good," Haskins noted. "Jim Harbaugh is an excellent coach. He coached in the NFL, so I know he has connections with a lot of guys. That's always good." Alexander knew it, too, prompting a call home with some urgency dur- ing the recruiting process. "I was asleep when he called," Ly- nette recalled. "He was like, 'Mom, you've got to get up. Jim is interested in Hassan.' I'm like, 'Huh, okay. I'm going to let him know.' "He says, 'No, mom. Wake up.' I'm like, 'Okay.' I got up and told my husband: 'This must be really im- portant. He's calling me and waking me up.'" Haskins awakened many in high school, beyond what his rankings might have declared. He rushed for 1,509 yards and 19 touchdowns his junior season, reeling off seven straight 100-yard games and nine overall. He dwarfed those numbers his se- nior season, rushing for 2,197 yards and 31 touchdowns, with five 200- yard games and at least 100 in 12 of 13. He scored two more touchdowns on 12 catches, returned a punt 50 yards for a score and played defense as well, racking up nine sacks and a pair of fumble recoveries. Had he been a bit more pushy, some might have been saying eureka sooner, his mother opined. She recalled taking her son to a Nike Camp, in which prep athletes always vie for recognition by recruit- ers. It's not a polite business either. "The school he went to, they were very organized," Lynette said. "When we went to the Nike Camp, they were really unorganized — the children. They were jumping out of line, just going for it. He wasn't used to that. "He was used to going in order — it's his turn, it's your turn. Those kids weren't doing that. I was so hot at him. I said, 'You see these kids do- ing all these things. You have to act like you want it as well!' And he did want it, but he didn't think he had to do all that. "They were really, really trying to get seen, really trying to get at it. He was just staying in line. Three or four would go past him, again and again. He's that type of kid — he's not go- ing to press the issue." Haskins didn't press the issue last Haskins racked up 3,706 rushing yards and 50 touchdowns during his final two years at Eureka (Mo.) High. PHOTO BY PER KJELDSEN