The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
Sports
Wednesday, November 11, 2015 — 7A
Hard-headed Houma a man of many talents
By MAX BULTMAN
Daily Sports Editor
Sione Houma is sometimes a
man of few words, but he’s not a
man of few talents.
For most of his career, the
senior fullback from Salt Lake
City has flown relatively under
the radar as a fullback on the
Michigan football team. Prior
to the 2015 season, Houma had
caught two passes, returned
two kickoffs and recorded a
smattering of tackles.
Most of his work went unseen,
be it blocking as a fullback or
contributing on special teams.
But when Jim Harbaugh was
signed to coach the Wolverines
this past winter, that all changed
for Houma, who already has 22
carries for 114 yards and three
touchdowns in 2015, as well as
five catches for 53 yards.
Suddenly, the player who was
hadn’t recorded a carry before
this season is now eighth on the
team
in
all-
purpose yards
with 167. Last
week, Houma
took snaps as a
running back,
a development
that originated
from
his
successes
running
fullback dives
earlier in the
season. And while he never would
have expected it, he’s embracing
his expanding role.
“I got caught (off guard) when
they (asked) me if I wanted to try
out at running back,” Houma said.
“Everything
happens
for
a reason, and I’m put in this
position right now for a reason: to
help the team out. … That’s what
I’m here for.”
Houma
is
still
playing
fullback,
too,
but his skills
are
more
visible
now
than they ever
were
in
the
past.
Against
Rutgers,
Houma found
himself
wide
open on a wheel route after a fake
to Jabrill Peppers drew defenders
off him.
The play went for a 32-yard
gain, and were it not for a throw
that was slightly behind him,
Houma might have scored.
“Right after that, my little
brother came and talked to me,”
Houma said. “He said, ‘You’ve
gotta high-knee it! High-knee
it!’ Just critiquing me. He said
if I high-kneed it, I would have
scored, because I got shoelace
tackled.
“I just gotta work on my speed.
There’s a lot of things I’ve gotta
work on, and speed is one of
them.”
Among the things he has
down, his power run game comes
to mind as a definitive strength.
His 5.2 yards per carry are the
second most of any Wolverine
with at least 10 carries, trailing
only junior running back Ty
Isaac.
And while he often has to
absorb
cringe-worthy
hits,
Houma is predisposed to the
power style.
“I’m
just
hard-headed,”
Houma said. “Hard-headed, like,
football wise. Coming down, if it’s
me and the linebacker, I’m pretty
much using all head. I know that’s
wrong, but it doesn’t really phase
me as much.
“I think the first couple years I
was here, a lot of people would be
having concussions, and — knock
on wood — I haven’t had one yet.
So, I’ve just been using that to my
advantage.”
When
he
isn’t
taking
a
pounding on the field, Houma
likes the same things most
college kids do. He likes playing
Super Smash Bros on Nintendo
64 with junior running back
Drake Johnson, and he and
sophomore
defensive
tackle
Bryan
Mone
enjoy
making
music together. Houma plays the
ukulele, and Mone provides the
vocals. Houma’s favorite song
to play is “Somewhere over the
Rainbow.”
But don’t let Houma’s musical
taste fool you into thinking he
has gotten away from his roots
doing the dirty work. Even after
getting a taste of carrying the ball
and scoring touchdowns, he still
enjoys blocking for his teammates
first and foremost.
“That’s my number one deal,
right there,” Houma said. “It’s
always protecting the running
back and quarterback.”
So yes, blocking is still his
number-one job, but as his role in
the offense continues to expand,
it’s far from his only one.
“It’s always
protecting the
running back and
quarterback.”
FOOTBALL