Tag: Semaj Morgan

J.B. Brown thinks Semaj Morgan ‘could be one of the best in the league’ as returner

He’s absolutely electric at the position. #GoBlue

In just his first year of college football, Michigan football fans got to see the truly excellent in Semaj Morgan as a returner. And in the very next game, the potentially catastrophic.

Against Iowa in the Big Ten Championship Game, Morgan nearly housed a punt, going almost the whole distance from the 10-yard line. But the very next game, on the biggest stage, the Rose Bowl against Alabama, Morgan muffed his first return, giving the ball back to the Crimson Tide.

Michigan still went on to win the game, but his new special teams coordinator, J.B. Brown, wants to see more of the former and less of the latter.

He spoke with Jon Jansen on the ‘In the Trenches’ podcast on Wednesday, and noted where Morgan has an opportunity to improve and just how good he might be in the future.

“The next step for him is just consistency, right?” Brown said. “We saw the flash that can happen, good and bad. But also the consistency of when he learns how to catch consistently. He’s going to be one of the best in the league, I think he’s gonna have a real shot. So for him, it’s just catching, seeing the ball, getting different situations and us doing a better job as coaches of putting him in those situations before we get to the game.”

Morgan won’t be the only player who will return kicks and punts, of course. So who are the others that Brown is looking at?

One we’ve seen before, quite a bit, but he mentioned two others that should be in play this season. Ultimately, he notes, he’d like seven total return men, but the ones he mentions are tantalizing options.

“Tyler Morris is the guy that’s done it for us, who can also do it for us,” Brown said. “We’re going to try to build up to try to create seven different guys. Fred Mo, he’s gonna be able to do it — Fredrick Moore. Brandyn Hillman — all those type of guys that had the skill set in the past and our high school tape, we’re going to try to work out this summer to make sure that they could do it.”

Michigan football WR Semaj Morgan changes jersey number

Absolutely fitting. #GoBlue

You could have predicted this the moment the previous owner of the jersey transferred out of Ann Arbor.

Michigan football sophomore wide receiver Semaj Morgan is full of personality and has quickly become a fan favorite. Having arrived from West Bloomfield (Michigan) as an early enrollee during the Wolverines’ preparation for the 2022 College Football Playoff, Morgan initially donned No. 12 before switching to No. 82 during the season. But with former No. 0 Darrius Clemons transferring to Oregon State this offseason, Morgan had the opportunity to claim that number for himself.

Morgan made the announcement on Saturday during his now-annual Father’s Day camp.

It’s only been a few years since the No. 0 has been allowed in the college football ranks. Giles Jackson was the first to wear it in 2020, but he transferred to Washington shortly after. Clemons was the last wide receiver to wear it. On the defensive side, Mike Sainristil was the first to truly popularize the number in maize and blue.

Semaj Morgan hears pundits saying Michigan will take a step back, using it as fuel

The media expects Ohio State and Oregon to be ahead of Michigan football in 2024. Wolverines WR Semaj Morgan doesn’t believe they will.

DETROIT — Usually when a team wins big, the expectations go through the roof. It doesn’t take a team winning a national championship for pundits and plaudits across college football to suddenly crown a new media darling.

Take Penn State in 2016. After winning the Big Ten — despite losing 49-10 to Michigan earlier in the year — the Nittany Lions became perennially ‘on the verge’ according to many in the media. Yet, they haven’t won the Big Ten again since and have yet to make it to the College Football Playoff.

So, when Michigan football won the national championship this past year, the media jumped on board and started to expect the Wolverines to repeat, right?

Wrong.

The excuse is that Michigan has to replace a lot, but Georgia lost the bulk of its team after winning back-to-back championships, and the Bulldogs were the favorites last year and will likely be the favorite again this year. Ohio State hasn’t won the conference since 2020, but it’s the favorite to win this year — much like it’s been the past three years.

Yes, Michigan has a new head coach in Sherrone Moore, but the expectation is that he’ll run the team like Jim Harbaugh and make the same decisions. However, the Wolverines have not gotten that same respect entering 2024, as many put them on the same level as the aforementioned Penn State Nittany Lions.

And if you think that has gone unnoticed within Schembechler Hall, think again.

“We feel it, but I don’t care for it. I ain’t never care what nobody says,” sophomore wide receiver Semaj Morgan told WolverinesWire. “But I really feel that we use it as fuel because we know everything that’s happening on the outside really don’t matter. Everything we do, everything we do every day, everything we put in, is what we gonna get out of it. So whatever they saying, they can keep saying it because we’re the ones actually there, doing the work, putting it in. believing in ourselves. That’s all it really takes — us believing in ourselves.”

There are two knocks on these Wolverines entering 2024, besides Sherrone Moore taking over for Jim Harbaugh — the unknowns at quarterback and wide receiver.

Though there is a lot of optimism surrounding Alex Orji as the potential starter this upcoming season, with Jack Tuttle and Davis Warren also being in the mix, there are more unknowns at wide receiver with Roman Wilson and Cornelius Johnson gone. But Morgan is confident in what he, Tyler Morris, Fred Moore, Amorion Walker, and C.J. Charleston bring to the table.

Fans might not be able to see it, nor the media, because they don’t get to see practice. But Morgan is sure that once the season comes, the passing game will be sure to impress.

“I believe in us, man. Everybody in the room is hungry, we all want to get better, we all want to win,” Morgan said. “We all got one goal, we all on one track. There’s nowhere else for us to go but up. I feel like it’s going to be special seeing what we can do this year and I love our room because we all hungry.”

It does make sense to doubt in the face of uncertainty, as the national media has. But Michigan was doubted all three years that it won the Big Ten and made the College Football Playoff. And while there may be faces who weren’t starters previously, they were (mostly) a part of the team that did end up just winning a national championship. And that does count for something.

Second-year receivers stepping up for Michigan football in spring

These guys are gonna need to really step up in 2024. #GoBlue

ANN ARBOR, Mich. — While most eyes in Ann Arbor are set on the quarterback room in spring practice, perhaps the biggest question should be: who is the quarterback going to be throwing to?

Michigan football has very little experience at the wide receiver position. Though tight end Colston Loveland could (and should) be a primary target, there are only four touchdowns in the careers of those who remain at pass catcher. Sophomore Semaj Morgan (2), junior Tyler Morris (1), and senior Peyton O’Leary (1) are the only ones who have experience of getting into the end zone.

For Morris, as someone who’s seen more time on task than the others with the starting offense, he’s emerging as a leader this spring. And he’s seeing some of the second-year players stepping up to the plate, and calling on all — himself, included — to take their games to the next level in 2024.

“I would say Fred and Semaj — really it’s everybody,” Morris said. “Fred and Semaj, I feel like just being like young guys — they were the freshmen last year — and this year they’ve shown that they can they can step up.

“And Semaj I feel like last year had a lot of the quick game stuff. And this year, I mean — I’ve told him that was nice, but we need you to do more. And that’s kind of and that’s just kind of the expectation. We’re going to need everybody to step up.

“Fred — we’re gonna need him to really be one of those deep-ball receivers. Peyton — I mean, he ain’t played a lot — we talked about it, too. We just we need everybody to step up and just give it everything.”

While Semaj Morgan and Fredrick Moore are young, we usually see second-year receivers take a big step forward from year one to year two. Why is that?

The same could be said for Morris, though he was just the seventh-most prolific receiver in 2023. Still, it’s a trend we see, especially in the pro-style system that Michigan runs. Why do receivers tend to make that jump once they become sophomores?

“Honestly, I think it’s just there’s a lot of stuff that you learn with playing football at the receiver position,” Morris said. “So, sometimes it can be hard just to come in right away and just really understand football. So I feel like the more reps they get against the starting defense and just in practice, and more opportunities are given, everybody’s gonna step up and make more plays than they did.”

Michigan is about midway through spring ball with the annual spring game taking place on April 20 at The Big House at noon.

Never recruited by Alabama, Semaj Morgan ready to show out against his childhood favorite team

This is an absolute must watch from a national treasure. #GoBlue

PASADENA, Calif. — Semaj Morgan became a Michigan football fan favorite just about as quickly as someone pointed a camera at him. It elevated the first time the freshman from West Bloomfield got the ball in his hands.

The first-year wide receiver went viral after his postgame interview with Fox following the Big Ten Championship Game, but he’s hoping to have a much bigger moment when facing the Crimson Tide in the Rose Bowl on Monday.

WolverinesWire caught up with Morgan at Rose Bowl media day and he divulged a little secret: Alabama was his favorite team growing up.

“I ain’t gonna lie to you, growing up, Alabama, me and my dad, that was our favorite team,” Morgan said. “But when the time came, the time came. Michigan they a great team. But we gotta respect them, they gotta respect us. To be able to play this in my freshman year is just a blessing. It’s a dream come true. I feel like my team is ready. Come game time, we’re gonna be ready.”

Alabama did not recruit Morgan, and while that could be added motivation for the enigmatic freshman, he says that it doesn’t really matter, because he’s got plenty of motivation to go around, regardless of opponent.

“I had a chip on my shoulder anyway,” Morgan said. “I don’t really care about that. I have a chip on my shoulder anyway. Anybody out there.”

See the rest of the interview which features Morgan discussing his outspoken nature, why he’s a superior route runner than anyone knows about, and more.

Semaj Morgan recounts B1G Championship punt return, postgame interview

PROTECT HIM AT ALL COSTS!!! #GoBlue

TROY, Mich. — Michigan football fans had become familiar with freshman wide receiver Semaj Morgan over the course of the season, starting with his electric 18-yard touchdown against Rutgers, his first career score at the college level. But fans across college football came to know the former West Bloomfield (Mich.) standout in the Big Ten Championship Game.

Morgan hadn’t returned punts all year, with Tyler Morris and Jake Thaw each getting their turns throughout the season. But Jim Harbaugh made a gambit in the championship game, inserting the first-year player deep, and it paid off. Morgan nearly housed the punt, taking it 84 yards, just shy of the end zone.

In the aftermath, Morgan has found himself going from an obscure fan favorite to a full-on celebrity overnight, with everyone wanting to know about that one play.

“It’s intense, a lot of face-to-face people, people asking me about it, a lot of things like that,” Morgan said. “It was a pretty good play though! Pretty good play, pretty good play. I wish I would’ve scored, for sure — you know, made it easier for Blake! Made it easier for our offense!

“So I liked it, helped my team out, best way. Contribute! And that’s the best part — being able to contribute as a young guy!”

The reason that Morgan didn’t score was Iowa safety Koen Entringer, who went to Walled Lake (Mich.) Western before ending up in Iowa City. Entringer whiffed on the initial tackle of Morgan but got back up and hustled to make the touchdown-saving play.

Morgan is well familiar with Entringer’s game, and while he wasn’t surprised that he made the play in the aftermath, he was shocked he was run down in the moment.

“I played with Koen at SoundMind SoundBody,” Morgan said. “I was like, ‘Whoa!’ He really was always there, though. You look at the film, I’m still making cuts, he’s still running!”

It’s not just the play that’s made Morgan an instant sensation.

Known for being outspoken in his early Michigan tenure, the freshman was thrust into the national spotlight in the aftermath of the Big Ten Championship Game when head coach Jim Harbaugh did his usual bait-and-switch with the sideline reporter in the postgame interview. Morgan’s eccentricity didn’t quite catch Jenny Taft off-guard, but his interview did fully cement his newfound status as a fan favorite in a video that went viral after the game.

On Saturday, WolverinesWire asked Morgan about that moment and while it wasn’t his first time doing a live postgame interview, it was easily his biggest moment in the spotlight.

“I’d say probably my third or second time — but that was way bigger though! That was way bigger than high school!” Morgan said. “I was prepared but I didn’t know he was going to bring me up there. But I was prepared. I know I can talk, know what I’m saying? Questions (were) easy, so I just answered them and then kept it moving!”

Turning point: When did Michigan pull away from Purdue?

The moment the game changed. #GoBlue

Though the final score may have been 41-13, Purdue stuck around Saturday’s game longer than expected. It never challenged for a lead, per se, but a couple of fumbles deep in Michigan territory set it up to stay in the game until the third quarter.

That’s when Semaj Morgan struck.

The true freshman has been teasing at a breakout game all season, but on Saturday he made it clear he was on the scene to stay. He totaled 71 yards on three touches and produced a long touchdown that serves as this week’s turning point.

With 3:20 remaining in the third quarter, Michigan was ahead 20-6. The Wolverines were driving and had the ball at the Purdue 44 after a Roman Wilson third down conversion.

Michigan trotted out a heavy formation. Six offensive linemen, Bredeson at tight end, Corum in the backfield, plus CoJo and Morgan split to either side. It was clear to the defense that this was a run all the way, and Purdue stacked the box with eight defenders ready to get violent up front.

But Sherrone Moore has something slightly different in mind. Instead of running into the teeth of the Boilermaker defense, he called a changeup. Moore sent true freshman Semaj Morgan in motion across the formation before the snap and handed him the ball on a jet sweep. The Purdue defense was caught flat-footed. The linebacker in the charge of setting the edge crashed down instantly, hoping to stuff Corum three yards in the backfield. He only realized Morgan had the ball about three yards too late. Duped.

From there, it was all lightning. The flashy freshman turned upfield once he hit the numbers and accelerated, leaving two defensive backs doing nothing more than cardio. Morgan’s white towel flapping in the wind served as a fitting metaphor for Purdue’s emotional surrender following the touchdown.

Morgan didn’t go untouched, however. Purdue’s deep safety, standing 15-20 yards off the ball, was able to shove Morgan in the back as he crossed the plane. Morgan was so quick that even a player with a 20-yard head start was reading the name “Morgan” as he crossed the goal line for six.

Look for Morgan to get more touches as the season goes on. He has looked the part of a legitimate college receiver thus far and may have a role carved out next week against Penn State.

How the offseason prepared Michigan WR Semaj Morgan for an early role

Can’t wait to see more of how #Michigan uses him! #GoBlue

ANN ARBOR, Mich. — All offseason, we heard about how the two freshman wide receivers who arrived early had an inside track to see the field early.

Sometimes that’s just bluster, but on Saturday, when first-year wideout Semaj Morgan hauled in a long pass while tangling with a Rutgers cornerback one-on-one, it became evident that the stories of the freshmen were true.

Despite only having played in four games in his college career, Morgan appears to be a bit more seasoned than the average first-year player. While he says he’s still working on ‘the little details’ and insists that he has a lot more to his game to unveil, Morgan says that his dedication to his craft and the playbook, along with divine favor has helped him see the field early and often.

“I feel like my work ethic is second to none,” Morgan said. “And God graced me with some talent I definitely can put to use. I just feel like hard work — cream always gonna rise to the top. And I feel like with me just working how I work, I feel like God’s favor. I got ‘favor’ tatted on my neck! I feel like I got favor from God. So if I’m working hard, do what I’m supposed to do, it’s all gonna play out. That’s how I feel.”

But was it that simple? Did Morgan just have to show up and work hard?

Well, it was a bit more challenging than that.

Morgan was one of a handful of freshmen who not only enrolled early but also participated in bowl game preparation and practice with the team as the Wolverines traveled to Phoenix to face TCU in the College Football Playoff. Fresh out of high school, Morgan’s head was spinning — with newfound freedom as well as learning everything that being a college player entailed. He wasn’t anticipating the 6 a.m. workouts, the level of detail necessary, the physical, grueling grind. Once he got through bowl prep and then spring ball — which was a different animal, he says — his head started getting screwed on straight.

Looking back, Morgan is thankful that he got those experiences because he’s certain that without them, he wouldn’t be ready to see the field as he is now.

“I feel like that was very beneficial because when we first got here, it was like we was deer in headlights when we first got here,” Morgan said. “Like, you know how fast everything went and I feel like if I would have came in the summer, I don’t know how fast I would have picked up on the offense. But, being here in the spring and being here in the wintertime, bowl prep, I feel like it helped me because — I wouldn’t say I’m a slower learner but it takes a little bit more for me to grasp certain things. So I feel like it was really big for me to be here back in bowl prep.”

While that’s his own experience, that’s not the impression that one of the leaders on the Wolverines had of Morgan.

Fifth-year nickel back and team captain Mike Sainristil has known the former West Bloomfield (Mich.) product for five years now, and he’s always seen a burgeoning wideout who was more mature than his age perhaps indicated.

“I would have never known if you didn’t say he said that,” Sainristil said of Morgan’s insistence that he was in a little over his head. “I thought Semaj came in and looked pretty good. I’ve known Semaj since I was a freshman. I used to work out with him when I was a receiver and he’s always looked like a really good receiver to me. I guess you could say it’s good to finally see him coming along and growing and becoming more of a team player. But I feel like if he stays consistent, stays on the path he is right now, he’s gonna be very special here.”

Fans will get another opportunity to see Morgan in action on Saturday when Michigan football travels to Nebraska. Kickoff will be at 3:30 p.m. EDT and the game will be broadcast on Fox.

Social media reactions to Michigan’s win over Rutgers

Great win for #Michigan! #GoBlue

Michigan took care of business at home to kick off the conference schedule, beating the Rutgers Scarlet Knights 31-7.

Though the defense gave up a long touchdown early in the game, they locked in and were able to hold Rutgers scoreless for the rest of the day. Michigan’s coaching staff once again showed their ability to make in-game adjustments, boding well for their chances as the schedule heats up.

Relive Semaj Morgan’s first career touchdown, Mike Sainristil’s electric interception returned for a touchdown, and more exciting moments from Michigans conference opener.

See what Michigan fans, media members, and more are saying about the win.

Five Takeaways: Michigan football wins Big Ten opener vs. Rutgers

Good, dominant game from #Michigan! #GoBlue

Michigan opened conference play with a 31-7 win over the Rutgers Scarlet Knights.

Rutgers opened the game with a long touchdown pass, but that was about all its offense could muster. The UM defense locked them down for the remainder of the game and even managed to get a score of their own on a massive pick-six courtesy of Mike Sainristil.

Jim Harbaugh made his return to the sideline, and while there were some hiccups, it was clear Michigan’s head coach was missed. Expect things to trend up from here as the Wolverines get into the heavy part of their schedule.

As the Wolverines advance to 4-0 on the season, here are some takeaways from the game: