The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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INSIDE MICHIGAN ATHLETICS Student-Athlete Of The Month Hockey Senior Forward Jeff Rohrkemper Jeff Rohrkemper will admit it took a while to get back into the swing of academics when he first set foot in Ann Arbor. After high school, Rohrkemper played with the Sioux Fall Stampede, a junior-level team where he tallied eight goals in two seasons. But that was also two years in which Rohrkemper wasn't in school. To ease the transition into college hockey, Rohrkemper came to Michigan in the summer of 2009 — before his freshman year — and signed up for a history class to get a feel for collegiate academics. "I've always had an interest BOTH SWIMMING PROGRAMS MIKE BOTTOM IN CHARGE OF in history — and when I took that class, I really enjoyed it," said Rohrkemper, now a senior. "Coming in as a freshman, I didn't really know what I wanted my major to be. But I enjoyed that class so much, I kind of rolled with it, picked up a few more history classes. "I really like how the university sets its requirements for history. They want you to learn about a lot of different time periods, across all the continents, so it's very wide ranging. I enjoyed that a lot, because I've learned so much about countries I didn't know much about. Rohrkemper, a double major in history and political science, was named Academic All-Big Ten for the spring semester. PHOTO COURTESY MICHIGAN ATHLETIC MEDIA RELATIONS "You learn a lot about how the political system works and how it has been shaped and changed over the last century or so. And you learn about the civil rights move- ment and how that changed a lot of things. It's very interesting. Rohrkemper has excelled in both by judicially managing his time and leaning on the support he gets from the Michigan hockey staff. "Coach Red Berenson really emphasizes school and academics, Although it has, at times, been tough to juggle two difficult majors and hockey, " "He always has. Since the first day on campus, he has stressed that he wants people to take pride in their schoolwork. And, obviously, if you're ineligible, you can't play. Having the coaching staff right there, you know what's expected. " Rohrkemper said. ing into graduate schools to apply to once his Maize and Blue career comes to a close. He's most interested in law schools. Continuing his education is important to Rohrkemper — and he doesn't have to To combine his two majors and further his academic studies, Rohrkemper is look- " look far for inspiration. Although Berenson was an NHL star after his time at Michi- gan, he made it a point to go back to school and get his master's degree in business. "The guy is a lot more than just an iconic hockey coach, achieved a lot on his life, and he's a great role model for us. He's the prime goal of what I'm trying to achieve. " 18 THE WOLVERINE SEPTEMBER 2012 — Andy Reid eating a steady academic diet of history and political science — which eventually became his two majors. Rohrkemper was named Academic All-Big Ten for the spring semester. "Political science drew me in early, too," Rohrkemper said. Before long, Rohrkemper was " and diving program has been outperforming its women's pro- gram consistently during Mike Bottom's four-year tenure in Ann Arbor, winning three Big Ten titles with four top-10 finishes nation- ally. During the past four seasons, the women's team placed fourth, third, sixth and eighth at the con- ference meet, and had not finished higher than 15th nationally (2010). With Jim Richardson retiring Michigan's men's swimming from his post as the women's head coach following 27 seasons at U-M, Bottom emerged as an intrigu- ing prospect to lead the women's team. Michigan athletics director David Brandon made the decision final Aug. 10, introducing Bottom as the joint head coach for both programs — a first for the Maize and Blue, but a practice common in college swimming circles. "I can think of no better person to lead our swimming and div- ing programs than Mike Bottom," Brandon said. "Mike brings a wealth of experience at the col- legiate, international and Olympic levels. He has led our men's pro- gram to a championship level and will work to return our women's program to that same level. "Our aquatic programs have a rich history and tradition at all levels, and high expectations will continue under Mike's leader- ship." A three-time Big Ten Coach of the Year, Bottom is outlining a new approach to the joint venture, pre- paring to hire two associate head coaches and two assistant coaches. "This is really a great opportu- " Rohrkemper said. "He has nity and advantage for both of our programs, and the student-ath- letes should be the ultimate benefi- ciary," Bottom said. "We will have the opportunity to add excellent coaches to our current staff. We can combine the administrative work that has been done by both the men's and women's staffs and allow the coaches to focus more on the training, coaching and mentor- ing of the student-athletes."