The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1340560
LONG JOURNEY TO THE USA Colson spent his very early years on a farm in Mirebalais, in central Haiti. His father passed when Colson was quite young, and the will left behind directed the toddler to be sent to an orphanage in Port-au-Prince, the Hai- tian capital. The child survived the deadly, 7.0-magnitude earthquake that shook the land in 2010, killing an estimated 250,000 people and injuring 300,000 more. Although unharmed by the quake, the Colson-to-be couldn't help but be affected by the misery and de- struction in its wake. Ironically, it may have altered his own course dramatically, for the good. Many relief workers eventually made their way to the devastated is- land. They included part of his future family. Born in Grand R a p i d s , M i c h . , M e l a n i e C o l s o n long considered adopting a child. She didn't fixate on a baby, like many adoption candi- dates. She wanted an older child. When life took her to Tennessee and she began hav- ing children of her own, adoption got put on hold. The Colsons did start fos- tering, pursuing that path for years. "At some point, the kids were like, 'Well, when do we get to adopt? Can we not ever give someone a for- ever home?'" Mrs. Colson recalled. "That's when the adoption journey became a family affair. Everyone was on board." Everyone except Mother Nature. The Colsons put together an applica- tion and a deposit, narrowed the list of lands from which to adopt and eventually looked to Haiti. Haiti looked back, and shook its head no. "We were disappointed, because here we had finally decided on a country," Mrs. Colson said. "Then the earthquake happened, and we were told Haiti was closed. There was no adoption. It was just impossible." Eventually, a mission trip to Haiti became available through the Col- sons' church, open to a youth and a parent. Mrs. Colson recalls her daughter, Amanda, blurting out in church, "This is my mission trip!" Mom wasn't sure about that. She felt it to still be dangerous. Plus, she dealt with medical concerns of her own. Amanda pushed on, raising funds for the trip, despite her generally re- served nature. "She did it," Mrs. Colson said. "It was airfare and everything. She raised it all herself. She's very shy and quiet, so we didn't expect her to raise the money." So mother and daughter set off for Haiti. They took different paths once there. Amanda helped on vari- ous restoration projects in the city. Mrs. Colson, an accountant with a medical background, worked at the orphanage where Junior lived, feed- ing infants, taking temperatures and vital signs. She barely en- countered Junior. "He was older," she noted. "I didn't really see him or spend a lot of time with him. I re- member him, spe- cifically. I journal rarely ever in my life, but I did this trip, and he was one I journaled about. I prayed …" She paused, overcome by emotion. "I prayed for him, and I prayed for the family who would adopt him," she said. "But he was older. Who wants to adopt older children? It was going to require a special family." She finally met the 7-year-old and snapped a picture of him and Amanda before they left Haiti. But they didn't interact during the trip, and there wasn't any adoption im- minent. At least none involving the Col- sons. Junior had been referred to an- other family. She later contacted the orphanage director on behalf of a friend inter- ested in adoption and made a stun- ning discovery. Junior's family refer- ral no longer existed. Mrs. Colson recalled: "The family emailed the director and said, 'We do not believe that he's our son. We know we will lose our deposit. We know we'll lose our money. We know we'll lose our reputation with you, but we believe with all our hearts he is not our son. He belongs to someone else.' 2021 FOOTBALL RECRUITING ISSUE MARCH 2021 THE WOLVERINE 31 STATISTICS Year Tackles TFL Sacks 2020 59 7.5 3.5 2019 175 30 14 HONORS • Named a semifinalist for the 2020 Butkus Award, handed out to the nation's top high school linebacker. • Selected to participate in the 2020 All-American Bowl. • Tennessee Sports Writers' Class 6A All-State first-team pick in 2020. • Tabbed to the Tennessean's All- Midstate second team in 2019 and the first team in 2020. RECRUITMENT • Committed on May 24, 2020. • Also held offers from Michigan State, Penn State, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas A&M, USC and others. • Recruited by linebackers coach Brian Jean-Mary. THEY SAID IT • Colson's mother, Melanie: "He made this decision on his own. It was organic. We couldn't have painted a better recruiting picture for him or ourselves. He's such an amazing kid with a great future ahead of him. He made this sound decision based on relationships, the program and what fit for him. Yes, we are Michigan fans, but most im- portantly, it fits for him, and that's what feels the best." • Michigan head coach Jim Har- baugh: "He's one of those lineback- ers that can cover, come downhill in the gap, rush the quarterback extremely well and has high energy pursuing the football. He's never out of a play, one of the real things about a linebacker I love is showing up in the picture when you look at film. "You always see Junior running, and he's got really great size, too. He's 6-2, 230 [pounds], makes tack- les for loss, sacks, is always near the football, covering the ball or caus- ing fumbles. He's a tremendous player. "He also had a 90-yard kickoff return for TD and blocked a punt, does so many things to contribute to his team's success." JUNIOR COLSON LINEBACKER 6-2 • 230 RAVENWOOD H.S. BRENTWOOD, TENN. RANKINGS STARS NAT. POS. STATE ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ 82 5* 3 ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ 101 7* 3 ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ 144 16* 3 * Ranked at outside linebacker