When it comes to freshman hype, Michigan football running back Savion Hiter isn’t spoken of as a first-year player — he’s spoken of as a player who’s been around for a lot longer and already has a track record. That’s because he’s already built as someone who has been going through strength and conditioning much longer than he has, and has the innate traits that many do not.
Hiter is expected to see the field early and often, already discussed by offensive coordinator Jason Beck as being worthwhile to not just split time with Jordan Marshall, but perhaps be on the field at the same time.
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Assistant running backs coach Fred Jackson has been in Ann Arbor for quite some time, as this will be his 28th season with the program. And, with that, he’s seen quite a few talented tailbacks, whether recruited or inherited, from Tyrone Wheatley, Tim Biakabatuka, Chris Perry, Mike Hart, or Blake Corum. And as he sees it, Hiter stands above them all.
Jackson spoke to Jon Jansen on the In the Trenches podcast, and shared a little more insight on what Hiter brings to the table.
“Talent-wise, and I told him this yesterday, I brought in a lot of good football players over the years, but as a freshman, he’s probably the most talented guy I’ve seen that I brought in here as a true freshman,” Jackson said. “He’s already beyond what I think a freshman is capable of doing, and the guys that I have history of bringing in. He is such a tremendous competitor, a worker, a tremendous talent, can run, can catch, can block. I mean he’s got it all at a young age. I’ve had to develop guys to get him there, maybe in his sophomore year. He’s there now and that’s very unique to me. And I wanted him to know that because he really knows a lot of the guys who played before him here and he understands where they ended up someone’s first round, some the second. However, you look at NFL drafts and for me to say that to him, I was just saying it to let him know, ‘Son your expectation level gonna be very high here and you’ve got some shoes of the try to fill that has gone before you (that) have been highly, highly successful. But here’s — hey, here’s the things you got to do to get better even now.’
“So but as a talent, he’s special — as a talent very special.”
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But just because there are high expectations for Hiter doesn’t mean that Jackson wants him to rest on his laurels. In fact, he’s always working to ensure that he’s improving daily, and with that comes honing different traits or working on different elements of his game.
“You’ve gotta daily have a plan for what you expect him to do,” Jackson said. “The things that he may think he’s good at, you always got to find something. And sometimes it’s hard. You got to find something to say, man. ‘You’re not doing this. You can do this better. If you do this, you will be better at that,’ kind of deal. You got to always, every day, find something because you can’t let his mind wander and think, ‘Hey, man, I’ve arrived. I would never as a football coach, let a kid think he’s arrived as a back — even the guys in the senior year. I’m still trying to find things daily to make them better, and I think that’s what you do with a guy like him.”
Michigan is currently in summer conditioning and will start fall camp on August 1 with eyes on the season opener on September 5.
This article originally appeared on Wolverines Wire: Why Michigan coach is high on freshman Savion Hiter
