The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1503142
92 ■ THE WOLVERINE 2023 FOOTBALL PREVIEW day to be that guy — weight room, extra work, film. It's coming in every day with the mentality that I've got to be the best guy. If somebody's doing better than me, I've got to keep pushing. If somebody's pushing me, I've got to keep working. I definitely think this is my year, and I should be that guy." McGregor harkened back to a conversa- tion with his dad. The two were on their way back to Port Huron after receiving McGregor's first college scholarship offer, from Central Michigan in Mt. Pleasant. S t e v e M c G r e g o r asked: "If you could get one offer from anyone in the country right now, would you commit to any of them?" His prep sophomore so n re s p o n d e d , " I f Michigan offered, I'd commit there right now." The younger McGregor then noted: "Thirty offers down the road, it changed up a little bit. I love Michigan, it's close to home, I grew up watching them. Obviously, I wanted to go there. But I had to make sure this is the place. There are a lot of great programs out there, a lot of people that wanted me. "There was the cool, shiny stuff. You've got Alabama, who said, 'Yeah, you're going to come here and win a national champion- ship.' But when it came down to it, I knew Michigan was home, before I even got offers from other schools. I love the people here. Every year, they just bring in great people. "This was home from the beginning. Michigan was always it." Now, Michigan has the chance to be it in every way, including the cool, shiny stuff. Collision In Columbus, And Dreams Of Getting It All McGregor wound up starting three games as a junior last year, recording 16 tackles, 5 for loss, and a pair of pass break- ups in 14 games. Nothing, he reiterated, compares to the final regular-season game — at least for now. He recalled: "Standing on the field before the game started, and all of them talking to us from Ohio State: 'Oh, it's not happening. It was a fluke last year.' "Then seeing some of them walking off the field, crying, that were talking before the game — that's the greatest feeling you can have as a Michigan football player, be- sides the national championship." McGregor's 2 pass breakups against the Buckeyes were significant. At the same time, they left some meat on the bone, meat to be gnawed off this season by a hun- gry senior edge. "The second quarter, we called a play where I was supposed to drop into the flat," McGregor recounted. "I saw the way the wide receiver was split out wide, so I knew a slant was coming in, and I knew it was going to be an RPO, and I knew it was going to be a quick pass, because we were bring- ing pressure. "I'm thinking, I'm going to be right there to make a play. By the time I got my head around, I was able to get my hand up and tip the ball to force a fourth down. That will stick out, being able to make an impact on that play. "I wish I would have picked that off, because I would have been free into the end zone." Déjà vu arrived shortly thereafter. "The other tipped pass, I hit it with my right hand, hit it with my left hand, and it fell in front of me. That's another one where I had a clean shot to the end zone. "It's like, 'Wow, that was awesome.' But I wish I would have been able to catch one of those and score, in the Ohio State 'Shoe. Those will stick with me forever." So would winning a national champi- onship. McGregor intends to do his part — continue honing his ability to detect between run and pass, playing lower like he did later in the season, getting to the quarterback. He doesn't spend much time anymore ruminating on last year's playoff exit, other than to understand how "the little details" McGregor secured a tackle for loss and got his hands on a pair of Ohio State quarterback C.J. Stroud passes in Michigan's 45-23 takeover of "The Shoe" in Columbus last November. PHOTO BY LON HORWEDEL "I think he has a chance to be a dominant player. And the challenge for him is, he does it in spurts, and he knows this — it's to take over a game and he has that capability. So, I'm excited to see that happen." DEFENSIVE COORDINATOR JESSE MINTER ON McGREGOR