ANN ARBOR -- He spent his freshman season lined up against the likes of Jourdan Lewis and Channing Stribbling.
When he realized he could compete, Nate Schoenle doubled-down on his studying of the playbook and started showing up early for practice.
Then it paid off. It was 6 o'clock in the morning over the winter and the walk-on receiver, in the midst of another grueling off-season workout, got a pat on the back. It was Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh.
"Hey, you're really doing a great job," Schoenle (pronounced Shane-lee) recalls Harbaugh telling him.
"To be acknowledged from the head coach or any coach, when you feel like you're not in as high of a position as some of the other guys, that just motivates you to do more.