The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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back, a 6-3, 210-pound pro-style performer out of West Lawn, Pa. Michigan beat out Penn State and many others in a heated recruiting battle for the star signal-caller, who many expected to become one of the Wolverines' greatest quarterbacks ever. Henne certainly didn't disappoint as a true freshman, stepping in for an in- jured Matt Gutierrez and starting all 12 Michigan games. He threw for 2,743 yards that first year, becoming the first Big Ten true freshman quarterback to ever lead a team to the conference title and the Rose Bowl. Henne went on to throw for more than 9,700 yards and 87 touchdowns as a Wolverine, before moving on to the NFL. In six years with the Miami Dolphins and Jacksonville Jaguars, he's connected for 12,439 yards and 55 touchdowns through the air. 3. Sam McGuffie — A video of a front-flip over a teammate characterized the kind of overflow attention that McGuffie, a 6-1, 188-pound running back, brought with him from Cypress, Texas. A four-star with purported 4.3 speed, he was to be the first running back to add rocket fuel to Rodriguez's offense. Life and Big Ten reality stepped in to divert that path. Family issues back in Texas divided McGuffie's attention, and he wound up in Ann Arbor only one season, rushing for 486 yards and three touchdowns. After transferring to Rice back in his home state, McGuffie rushed for more than 1,000 yards (883 as a sophomore) and racked up more than 1,000 yards receiving in three seasons. He has been unable to catch on in the NFL after signing various free agent contracts. 4. LaMarr Woodley — Woodley arrived from nearby Saginaw as a Rivals. com five-star linebacker, at 6-3 and 245 pounds. Michigan fended off several contenders to secure Woodley's signature on a National Letter of Intent. Once he signed, he didn't disappoint. Woodley became a stalwart All-Big Ten defender for the Wolverines, posting 24 sacks and 52.5 tackles for loss over the course of his career. He factored in as a key cog in Michigan's dominant 2006 defense, earning first-team All-America honors as a senior. In seven years with the Pittsburgh Steelers, Woodley recorded 213 tackles, 57 sacks and five interceptions. He recently made the move to the West Coast, signing with the Oakland Raiders. 5. Kevin Grady — Grady was a Rivals.com five-star running back out of East Grand Rapids, Mich. Grady's arrival with the 2005 class produced ripples of excitement about Michigan supplementing Mike Hart with additional ground game firepower. Grady's results didn't match the previews of coming attractions. He rushed for 783 yards and 10 touchdowns over the course of four seasons, remaining in Hart's shadow his first two years and disappearing in the spread look. — John Borton