Second Wave's Jeff Barr talked to three professional athletes who call Michigan home about how where they're from has shaped who they are and their careers.
Tom Izzo
If you think Tom Izzo's athletic achievements began as a legendary head coach for the Michigan State men's basketball team, think again. His athletic roots go back further than that--and they take a northern turn.
Izzo, 59, was born and raised in Iron Mountain, where he attended Iron Mountain High. His best friend today--former NFL coach and current broadcaster for the NFL Network Steve Mariucci--was a teammate on the football, basketball, and track teams at Iron Mountain High.
Both went on to Northern Michigan University, where they were roommates, and Izzo played guard for the men's basketball team from 1973 to 1977. In his senior season, he set a school record for minutes played and was named a
Division II All-American.
Of course, Izzo has now become nationally known for leading Michigan State to a national championship and six Final Four appearances during his 19-year tenure at MSU-- the longest tenured coach in the Big Ten Conference.
But he has never forgotten his roots.
"You never forget where you come from," he says. "That's where you learn your values, what you're all about. You learn other lessons along the way, of course, but home is where it all began."
Izzo isn't just talkin' the talk. The scout team on his MSU squad is called the "Iron Mountain Guys." The scout team is the hard-working bench players who simulate the upcoming opposing team in practice before the next Spartan game, see little game playing time and little glory, but still work as hard as anyone on the team. It's the hard work, and doing their part for the team that leads Izzo to call them the Iron Mountain Guys.
In an interview before the 2014 NCAA Tournament, Izzo spoke of his Iron Mountain Guys.
"I was a walk-on, Mariucci was a walk-on," he said. "That's what we were. We were walk-ons. We were our own Iron Mountain group. Life turned out pretty good for both of us."
Indeed it has. Izzo is one of the most well-respected coaches in sports, not only in college basketball, but in all of sports. He has had offers to leave Michigan State, but he is content where he is, and he has built nothing short of a dynasty in East Lansing. He calls himself a "Spartan for life."
But, he never forgets where it all started for him. In the Upper Peninsula, where he was one of the original Iron Mountain Guys.
LaMarr Woodley
Former Saginaw High School star and current NFL defensive end LaMarr Woodley may be going through a lot of new experiences in his life these days, but that doesn't mean he has forgotten about his roots, and those he has continued to help throughout his pro football career.
You see, Woodley, 29, just signed a new contract with a new team, and he has a lot to prove. After wrapping up stellar careers at Saginaw High and the University of Michigan, he went on to be drafted by the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2007, where he made one Pro Bowl and earned one Super Bowl ring.
But, injuries have limited his playing time the past three seasons, and he has now signed a two-year deal with the
Oakland Raiders, ready to prove that he still has what it takes to help his new team. He wants to show he can get back to being the player who set a career-high in tackles with 65 in 2009 and had three straight seasons of double-digit sacks.
Just because Woodley has a lot on his professional plate, however, doesn't mean he has forgotten about his numerous charitable commitments, many of which have a profound effect on kids in Saginaw.
"Saginaw is where it all started for me," he says. "You can't forget where you came from, and more important than that, you can't forget about those in need. I've been very fortunate, and I want to prove that I'm still a solid contributor in the NFL, and I still want to prove that I care about people."
One event near and dear to Woodley's heart was the "1st Impression" Back to School Event that he held last summer at Saginaw High for students in grades K-8.
"The event sent kids back to school in style with free haircuts for boys, manicures for the girls, book bags, school supplies and t-shirts," Woodley says. "It's a small way to give back to the community, to let people know that I don't forget where I came from and to let those kids to know that I care."
Woodley has numerous other, behind-the-scenes charitable activities on his plate, and he plans to continue the work. Some of it centers in Pittsburgh, some in Saginaw, and he no doubt will start some in his new city, Oakland.
Oh, yeah, and there's that other thing: Football.
"I'm ready to get going, you can count on that," he says.
Dan Majerle
At the onset of the 1980s, when Traverse City Central High School was known simply as Traverse City High, little did anyone know there was a young man traversing the hallways (and the gymnasium) who would soon put the school on the map.
That young man was Daniel Lewis Majerle, who would soon become known as "Thunder Dan" for his thunderous dunks in his collegiate days and early part of his NBA career. Perhaps sports fans around the country were unaware of Dan Majerle back then, but they soon would find out all about him.
Thunder Dan--and the way he played basketball--had a way of capturing a sports fan's attention.
After starring at Central Michigan University, he went on to play 14 years in the NBA, primarily for the Phoenix Suns, with briefer stints with the Miami Heat and the Cleveland Cavaliers. He was named to three All-Star teams, he was on the 1988 U.S. Olympics team that won a bronze medal, and won a gold medal on the 1994 International Basketball Federation team.
Not bad for a kid from Traverse City High.
Not quite as well known is that in 2013, Majerle, 48, was named head coach of
Grand Canyon University, the first year it competed in Division 1 and became part of the Western Athletic Conference. His team finished 15-15, very respectable for a first-year Division I program.
He has been the assistant head coach of the Suns, and he was named to their ring of honor after his retirement from playing in 2002. Safe to say, Majerle was one of the most popular players in Phoenix history.
As his time with the Suns was drawing near an end in 2002, Majerle had no sadness.
"Sad? No, I'm not sad at all," Majerle said. "After all that I've done? What's there to be sad about? I've had an incredible run. Just incredible."
Even though Majerle has enjoyed more success than he could have hoped for in the world of basketball, he doesn't forget his days growing up on Seventh Street in Traverse City.
But he had to seek out help from his father and from Tom Kozelko, a 1969 Traverse City grad who helped him with his game. Kozelko played three seasons with Washington in the early 1970s.
"Coming from Traverse City, there's just not a lot of guys around who've played in the NBA," Majerle said. "So having someone there every day who knows what it takes to make it that far helped a lot."
And, so did all that practice at Traverse City High.
Jeff Barr is a freelance writer who has lived in Michigan for 46 years. You can reach him via email and @JeffBarr88.