As a sports reporter, one of the first
things you're taught is to distance
yourself from the athlete. It's hard to
be objective if you get too close, and
though the affiliation is clear (we are
The Wolverine, covering only Uni-
versity of Michigan sports, after all),
that's the goal.
Every once in a while, though, a kid
you just can't help but root for comes
along. There are the obvious ones like
former quarterback Denard Robinson,
whose engaging personality matched
the ridiculous talent. Then there were
the under-the-radar kids who just had
the "it" factor, and you knew they
were destined for success.
Two of them arrived at Michigan
around the same time in 2007, both
with the same amount of fanfare —
absolutely none.
Defensive lineman Will Heininger
INSIDE MICHIGAN
CHRIS BALAS
Two To Remember
And Cherish
Former defensive lineman Will Heininger has helped develop AthletesConnected.umich.edu, a
tool for the mental well being of student-athletes.
PHOTO BY LON HORWEDEL
