The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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16 THE WOLVERINE DECEMBER 2016 INSIDE MICHIGAN ATHLETICS Getting To Know Senior Tight End Jake Butt After an All-American season last year as a junior, Jake Butt decided to return to Michigan and is putting together another stellar campaign. Through 10 games, Butt has 38 receptions for 460 yards and four touchdowns. He's a big part of Michigan's diverse offense and is still being billed as a top draft pick at his posi- tion. Get to know Michigan's star tight end: Nickname: "Booty. J-Booty maybe, but that's it. My family has some fun with it on their jerseys too." Favorite restaurant in Ann Arbor: "I like Knight's Steakhouse a lot. If I can scrounge up some money, I like The Black Pearl too." Best meal he can cook by himself: "I'm a big grill guy. I can cook a really good steak, some potatoes and asparagus — a big hearty, meaty dinner." Sports he plays besides football: "I played just about everything [as a kid]. I took tennis and golf lessons. I played a lot of soccer growing up. I played basket- ball all the way through [high school]. I'm not a big baseball fan and didn't play that much. I played just about everything else though." Hobbies: "Hanging with my friends is what I like to do. My brothers are at the house with me so we all hang out there. We watch movies. We went on a couple of trips this summer and saw some concerts. We hiked a big mountain. I like to play video games with the guys too." Favorite TV show: "I really got into 'Narcos.' It's not child- friendly, but it's a good show. I don't watch many shows, but I got into that one." Favorite movie: "'Dazed and Confused' is a classic. More recently, 'Interstellar ' and 'The Martian.'" Dream vacation: "I really want to see all of the Wonders of the World. That's a bucket list thing for me. Someday I really want to go to Italy too." Favo r i t e n o n - M i c h i g a n Stadium sports venue he's been to: "I've never been to an NFL or NBA game. I've been to a Reds game and an Indians game when I was little. I went to a Reds game more recently with one of my best friends, so I'll say that by default." Favorite professional athlete: "I've got to go with LeBron [James]. I'm an Ohio guy, and I'm a little bit biased, but he does everything at the highest level." Role model: "It's definitely my dad, Rob. He's a do-it-right, hard-working man. Nothing was ever handed to him, and he's a very, very smart guy." Why he chose football over other sports: "I had some chances to go to some smaller schools for basketball, and I think if I had stuck with soccer I could've had a chance there too. The big stage of playing at a school like Michigan really attracted me to football. It gave me the best chance to push me as a person and an athlete. I think I definitely got it right." His overall U-M experience: "It's been everything I asked for and everything I dreamed of. There have been some ups and downs since I've been here, but I go back to why I came back this year. I wanted to win and enjoy my last year with my friends and cement myself as one of the best tight ends to come through here. It's been perfect." — Brandon Brown Butt holds Michigan's career records for catches (130) and receiving yards (1,560) by a tight end. PHOTO BY PER KJELDSEN JIM HARBAUGH WEIGHS IN ON WILTON SPEIGHT'S INJURY Some outlets reported Nov. 14 that redshirt sophomore Wilton Speight would be lost for the remainder of the season following a broken collarbone suffered at Iowa Nov. 12. Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh said dur- ing his Monday night, Nov. 14 radio show that any report claiming his quarterback was out for the year was erroneous. "We'll see this week," Harbaugh said of Speight's status for games with In- diana Nov. 19 and Ohio State Nov. 26. "The doctors will give us input on that. The report you're referring to that he's out for the season, I have not heard that from the doctors. So that's incorrect. "The other thing would be how he feels, if he's able to function. It may be something that takes all the way up to game time [against Indiana to determine], or maybe we'll be able to determine that during the week. He'll be out of practice for a couple days at least, and then we'll see." The shoulder seemed to bother Spei- ght following a hit on a scramble in the fourth quarter of a 14-13 loss at Iowa. He then took a bigger blow on the last offensive play, an incomplete pass to fifth-year senior Amara Darboh, and left the field holding his left arm. He looked fine in the postgame and wasn't favoring or icing his shoulder. Redshirt juniors John O'Korn and Shane Morris both took reps in practice Nov. 14, Harbaugh said. "Both those quarterbacks looked extremely good today," Harbaugh said. "Someone asked earlier how the team is handling things … it was a great sign today. We came back and had one of the best Monday practices we've ever had. "Both quarterbacks [played well]." Harbaugh may have to work his quarterback magic on a new pupil after redshirt sopho- more Wilton Speight was hurt at Iowa. PHOTO BY PER KJELDSEN