The Wolverine

February 2018

The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports

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FEBRUARY 2018 THE WOLVERINE 11   INSIDE MICHIGAN ATHLETICS Student-Athlete Of The Month Wrestling Redshirt Sophomore 133-Pounder Stevan Micic It only takes a brief glance at redshirt sophomore 133-pound wrestler Ste- van Micic's Wolverine biography to see how important academics are to him. Before arriving at Michigan prior to the 2015-16 season, Micic spent one year at one of the country's most pres- tigious academic institutions — North- western. Classroom success has always been a part of the grappling standout's life. "I actually got a 4.0 GPA in high school," he recalled. "My school [Ha- nover Central in Cedar Lake, Ind.] was pretty small, but I was named salutato- rian of my class. "Doing well academically here at Michigan has been a big accomplish- ment of mine as well — I've main- tained a strong GPA the whole time I've been here. "I'm a sociology major. I was actually unsure of what I wanted to major in when I came here, but I knew sociol- ogy was something I'd be good at. I'm glad I chose it, because I'm liking it a lot. "I make sure I put aside time each day to study. I schedule things around my practice and workout schedules, and that seems to work pretty well. When I do have a little free time, I make sure I'm doing my studies and getting them done." Just like academics, strong athletic performance has always been a part of Micic's life as well. He revealed how his love for wrestling began, and the achievements that en- sued because of it. "I actually just brought home a wrestling flyer one day from school when I was little," he recalled. "My dad got pretty excited, because he had done jiu jitsu and was into that sort of thing. "I thought wrestling would be a pretty cool thing to do at the time — I was 8 years old then and have been doing it ever since." The redshirt sophomore went on to say that the highlight of his wrestling ca- reer was in 2015, when he captured a bronze medal in freestyle at 55 kilograms (121 pounds) at the Junior World Championships in Salvador, Brazil. However, he knows an academic degree from Michigan would trump his ath- letic accomplishments. "It's very important to me," he affirmed. "I see the value in it and how huge it would be — just going to this school is kind of nostalgic." Micic doesn't want his wrestling career to end upon graduation, though. "I want to continue wrestling freestyle," he revealed. "I probably won't use my Michigan degree right away, but it's something I'd like to take advantage of down the road." Being just a redshirt sophomore, the Indiana native still has the remainder of this season and then potentially two more years at Michigan to wrestle. Last year, he placed third at the Big Ten Championships and then finished fourth at the NCAA Championships to earn his first All-America honor. This year, he has set his goals high for the rest of the campaign after a 13-2 start that earned him a No. 6 national ranking. "I want to win the rest of my matchups," he said without hesitation. "I want to be a Big Ten champ and a national champ. Those are my goals." — Austin Fox Last year, Micic earned All-America acco- lades with a fourth-place finish at the NCAA Championships. PHOTO COURTESY MICHIGAN ATHLETIC MEDIA RELATIONS Michigan Sportula $ 14 95 SALE! (Reg $24.95) Plus $6.50 S&H NC, IN & MI Residents add sales tax THE WOLVERINE PO BOX 2331 DURHAM, NC 27702 1-800- 421-7751 Visit our online store: TheWolverineOnDemand.com Only A Few Remaining! Item #1220

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