Michigan Wolverines College Football Pregame Quote, 12/29/2022

I’m sure you like the culture here. Is there something else about the offense that you thought to yourself, yeah, I want to come here.

OLUSEGUN OLUWATIMI: For sure. Michigan also prides themselves on being a defensive team. Being an offensive lineman, there’s not a better team you want to play in, coaches you want to play for to develop you and give you an opportunity to showcase your talent.

Being here, being at Michigan and being with this team, things they ask you to do, they’re going to give you opportunities to showcase your abilities.

Talk to us about the coaches.

OLUSEGUN OLUWATIMI: I love all the line coaches. In particular Coach [Sherrone] Moore. He’s a young coach, he’s hungry, he’s very detailed, and he played the position not too long ago at Oklahoma. So he played at a high level.

When we got bumps and bruises and we kind of get tired and things of that nature, he also knows where to press us. That’s what makes Coach Moore special.

Centers tend to often be a leadership role. You’re kind of in the middle there. But when you’re a new guy coming into a well-established group, how did you sort of find your voice as a leader?

OLUSEGUN OLUWATIMI: Initially, I didn’t say much because I didn’t want to step on anybody’s toes. So this is already a group that performed very well. So I just kind of put my head down and worked. I wanted them to see I’m a hard worker and committed. Eventually, when they gave me the blessing to open my mouth and start talking, I did just that.

Very early on, you went against Mazi [Smith] and he went to the coaches and said, yeah, we’re good.

OLUSEGUN OLUWATIMI: Those day-to-day battles ‚Äì I believe Mazi is one of the best noses in the country. What he does for our defense, he always takes double-teams and doesn’t give up much ground. He eats up blocks.

Going against that every day definitely made me much, much better. I hope he says the same thing, that I make him better as well.

Is that the way you build credibility? The first time you get a chance to show yourself on the field, showing that you belong?

OLUSEGUN OLUWATIMI: You build credibility by everything you do in the building, how you manage yourself, how you attack workouts, meetings, everything. It’s not just what you do on the football field. What you do on the football field matters the most, but you build credibility through everything.

What does it mean to you that you were able to step into this group this year, and then be a part of what’s now awarded the best offensive line in the country?

OLUSEGUN OLUWATIMI: It means the world. During spring ball, Coach [Sherrone] Moore, every day he would put up our goals. And we were reminded every day before we went out to practice. So there will be no slack or no letup. Just being able to check off those goals that we had throughout the season so far.

Even though we still got some more goals left. It just means the world. We put in the work. We don’t take anything for granted. We have a talented team. But now we want to take it to the next level.