8A — Wednesday, September 16, 2015
Sports
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com

Bunting’s father lives on in his memory

Tight end’s 

pregame song helps 

him remember

 his father

By MAX BULTMAN

Daily Sports Editor

Ian Bunting’s musical tastes 

are diverse, ranging from reggae 
to rap to classic rock. But when 
it comes to his pregame routine, 
his final song is a constant, just 
like the man it represents.

Before 
each 
game, 
the 

redshirt freshman tight end 
plays “Wild Horses” by the 

Rolling Stones. Its somber tones 
and 
slow-strummed 
guitar 

aren’t the typical hype-up music 
for a college football player, but 
that’s exactly the point. “Wild 
Horses” is the song that was 
playing when his father, Stephen 
Bunting, passed away.

Ian was 19 on February 18, 

2015, when his father died after 
a yearlong battle with brain 
cancer. Stephen was a far-too-
young 59.

“He was and still is my 

inspiration,” Bunting said.

The song goes:
“Faith has been broken, tears 

must be cried.

Let’s do some living after we 

die.

Wild Horses couldn’t drag me 

away.

Wild, wild horses, we’ll ride 

them some day.”

In this context, the lyrics to 

Wild Horses are both touching 
and 
heart-wrenching. 
To 

Bunting, though, they aren’t a 
source of pain.

“It’s just soothing,” Bunting 

said. “It calms me down, makes 
me think of my dad, which 
is awesome. That’s all I need 
before the game.”

It’s remarkable in its own 

right that Bunting is composed 
when opening up about the 
feelings associated with his 
father’s passing.

Bunting 
was 
emotional, 

of course, but he was also 
reflective. He has come to terms 
with the loss about as well as 
anyone possibly could in such a 
short span of time.

“It’s definitely been tough, 

but 
everyone 
goes 
through 

stuff, everyone’s got a story, 
everyone’s 
got 
(adversity),” 

Bunting said. “(Mark) Naylor, 
one of our strength coaches, he 
helped me a lot through that. 
He told me, ‘Everyone’s got 
(adversity), you can either make 
it your excuse or you can make 
it your story. I try to make it my 
story and not an excuse.’ ”

At the time of his father’s 

passing, Bunting was already 
dealing 
with 
all 
kinds 
of 

change on the football team. 
Jim Harbaugh had just been 
brought in as coach, and he 
had to balance staying afloat 
personally while also juggling a 
coaching transition and school.

But rather than sinking under 

the pressure and uncertainty, 
Bunting learned to use the 
football 
team 
for 
recovery 

instead of letting it become 
another source of stress.

“It was a lot. At times it was — 

sometimes you’ve just to put the 
blinders on,” Bunting said. “You 
go out to practice and that’s time 
you can forget about everything. 

It’s like an outlet. You can just 
go take out whatever anger you 
have and just 
forget 
about 

things for a 
while.

“Hardest 

thing 
that’s 

ever happened 
to 
me 
in 

life. But I’ve 
learned 
from 

it. 
And 
I’m 

stronger 
because of it.”

Stephen Bunting played high 

school football, but it was in 
Bunting’s other sports that his 
father coached him growing up. 
Bunting was much younger at 
the time, so doesn’t remember 
everything, but he does recall 

playing for his dad on his 
childhood 
basketball, 
soccer 

and 
baseball 

teams.

The 

parent-coach 
relationship 
can 
be 
a 

difficult 
one 

to 
navigate, 

but as Bunting 
remembers it, 
his 
dad 
had 

a 
knack 
for 

balancing the 

two.

“He knew how to work me 

hard and not be overly critical,” 
Bunting recalled. “But he was 
definitely critical, and gave me 
pointers and let me know when 
I needed to do better.”

Now, 
those 
memories, 

however faint, are part of what 
Bunting has to remember his 
father by.

There 
was 
an 
especially 

poignant 
moment 
before 

Michigan’s 
season 
opener 

against Utah. Stephen’s brother 
had played for the Utes, creating 
a fitting way for Bunting to play 
his first game after losing his 
dad. He played “Wild Horses,” 
and in his first-ever college 
game, Bunting had a 12-yard 
reception.

Stephen was able to see the 

Wolverines play a few times 
when he was sick, but his son 
was redshirting. He never got to 
see Ian play college football.

“He’s got the best seat in the 

house now,” Bunting said.

RUBY WALLAU/Daily

Ian Bunting dealt with the loss of his father during Michigan’s offseason.

RUBY WALLAU/Daily

Redshirt freshman tight end Ian Bunting caught two passes for 33 yards in Michigan’s win against Oregon State.

“Hardest thing 

that’s ever 

happened to me 

in life.”

Consistency key for Michigan

By KEVIN SANTO 

Daily Sports Writer

For the past few years, the 

Michigan men’s soccer team has 
been plagued by inconsistency.

Consider the 2013 campaign, 

when 
the 

Wolverines 
tied 
teams 

like 
Bowling 

Green 
and 

Oakland, 
yet 

defeated No. 12 
Creighton.

Or just last 

year, 
when 

Michigan 
earned 
wins 

against No. 6 
Notre 
Dame 

and 
No. 
12 

Michigan 
State but suffered losses against 
Bowling Green and Western 
Michigan.

Now, as the Wolverines (2-1-

1) prepare to face Detroit on 

Wednesday, a familiar task is 
looming over them: defeating 
a respectable team in the wake 
of 
impressive 
performances 

against national powerhouses.

But 
for 
fifth-year 
senior 

forward Colin McAtee, the 2-1 
overtime victory against Niagara 
on Sept. 6 convinced him this 
team is different from those of 
his past.

“Last year, we struggled in 

these 
games,” 
McAtee 
said. 

“(But against Niagara) we were 
relentless — we kept going and 
we didn’t disrespect them. We 
found a way to win. That was a 
big turning point, because that 
gives us the confidence that we 
can go into those games with 
the same mentality, and I don’t 
expect anything different this 
Wednesday against Detroit.”

The Titans (2-2-2) graduated 

just four players in 2014 after 
battling Michigan to a 0-0 tie 
in their matchup at U-M Soccer 
Stadium last year.

Defensively, the Wolverines 

will be forced to handle Detroit’s 
balanced attack, led by forward 
Tyler Moorman and midfielder 
Spiro Pliakos.

Moorman and Pliakos lead the 

team with three goals and three 
assists, respectively, but there is 
plenty of firepower behind them 
as well. Aside from the duo, the 

Titans have seven players who 
have contributed either an assist 
or goal this season.

Though sophomore defender 

Billy Stevens is a game-time 
decision after suffering a face 
injury at Maryland, the back 
line should still be capable of 
containing 
Detroit’s 
threats. 

Michigan has allowed just three 
goals this season, and sophomore 
Evan Louro will continue to 
anchor the Wolverines in net. 
The goalkeeper boasts a .718 save 
percentage and two clean sheets.

If necessary, Stevens would 

likely be replaced with freshman 
Marcello Borges.

On the opposite end of the 

pitch, Michigan is averaging 
more than one goal per game, led 
by freshman Francis Atuahene. 
After his hat trick against West 
Virginia, he leads the Big Ten 
in goals scored and is poised to 
wreak havoc against the Titans’ 
defense with his on-ball skill.

Though Atuahene has looked 

unstoppable 
when 
taking 

defenders one on one this year, 
Nathan Steinwascher — the 2014 
Horizon 
League 
Goalkeeper 

of the Year — will be waiting 
for him when he finds scoring 
opportunities.

Of 
the 
obstacles 
the 

Wolverines have to overcome, 
Michigan coach Chaka Daley 

feels 
the 
greatest 
is 
their 

mindset.

“If we want to be a consistent 

program nationally, (we can’t) 
take any days off in preparation 
or approach,” Daley said. “Detroit 
is a tough team to play against. 
They have a different style and 
they have the personality of 
grinders. We have to dictate the 
game more than them.”

Following their game against 

Detroit, the Wolverines will 
host Northwestern for their Big 
Ten home opener on Sunday, at 
which there will be a ceremony 
commemorating 
125 
years 

of Michigan athletics. As a 
comparatively young program 
of 16 years, the ceremony will 
have a unique meaning for the 
Wolverines.

“Only being 16 years old, you 

get to look at it and dream of 
what you could be in 20, 30, 40 
years when these guys come back 
and I’m a retired old man,” Daley 
said. “What you’re creating is 
that legacy. And certainly other 
sports have done that, with 
softball almost 40 years and 
football has 135 years.

“From that standpoint, it’s 

something you look at and try to 
emulate, and hope that you can 
bring that kind of prominence or 
recognition to your program one 
day.”

Detroit at 
Michigan

Matchup: 
Detroit 2-2-2; 
Michigan 2-1-1

When: 
Wednesday 
7:30 P.M.

Where: 
U-M Soccer 
Stadium

TV: BTN Plus

AMANDA ALLEN/Daily

Fifth-year senior Colin McAtee (center) believes this is the year Michigan can correct its struggles against lesser foes.

