The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/901162
44 THE WOLVERINE DECEMBER 2017 "Why not?" he said. "It's an op- portunity to play for a great coach — learn under Coach Beilein, learn his offense that's been so successful over the years. He's a winner. The tradition here is great. The coaching here is great. Why not?" Simmons stands as one of Michi- gan's most-traveled performers in the history of the program. He spent a season at the University of Hous- ton in 2013-14, before the Dayton, Ohio native headed back to his home state. He sat out the following year, due to NCAA transfer rules, then logged two very strong seasons for Ohio, starting all 66 games played by the Bobcats in that span. He scored 1,034 points in those two seasons, before taking advantage of the graduate transfer rule allowing him to make the move to Michigan. After checking out a possible jump to the NBA, Simmons focused on becoming a Wolverine. He wasn't a complete stranger to the program, having watched a former Ohio prep standout excel in Ann Arbor. "I always had dreams of playing in the Final Four, like Trey Burke," Sim- mons said. "Watching Michigan in 2013, Trey Burke won the Bob Cousy Award. He actually got that award on my birthday. I felt like this was the spot for me." Simmons definitely liked what he saw during Michigan's run to the national title game in the spring of 2013. He witnessed what appeared to be a flexible, fun system, even though he wasn't looking at Michi- gan as a potential destination. He revisited those thoughts when looking around in earnest last spring. "They score. They win," Simmons said, describing Beilein's teams. "I like winning, and that was a big thing for me coming here. He gives his players more freedom than what people actually think, and that's what I'm trying to learn right now — the spots where I can be me and play my game, and also the spots where I have to run the team and run his offense and do what I'm supposed to do." Understanding and walking that fine line, Simmons acknowledged, takes some time. So does taking charge of an offense. "It's more of a patience thing," he cautioned. "You can't really come Simmons ranked third nationally with 7.9 assists per contest during the 2015-16 season (275 total), and then finished eighth nationally with 6.5 per game (200 total) last season at Ohio. PHOTO BY LON HORWEDEL