Former Lowndes Viking Reflects on High School Playing Days, Winning CFP National Championship With Michigan as He Takes Next Steps in Football Career
Michael Barrett’s college football career has ended with what many players only dream of: a national championship. Now, Barrett will try to realize yet another dream, which is to play in the NFL.
I had a chance to catch up with Barrett as he prepares for the upcoming NFL draft, and the former Lowndes High School and University of Michigan great reflected on the path that has brought him to this place in his life and his football career.
I also spoke with the coaches who mentored Barrett in middle school and high school, and none are surprised that he has landed on the doorstep of a possible professional career.
Micheal Barrett on High School and College Football Rivalry Games
Barrett said his fondest memories of playing at Lowndes High School were the games against two of the Vikings’ biggest rivals.
“Of course, there is nothing like the Winnersville Classic against Valdosta,” Barrett said. “But playing Colquitt County for the region championship (in 2017), that was one of the craziest games I have ever been a part of.”
He even compared those games to what is perhaps the biggest rivalry in college football.
“Coming up to Michigan and playing versus Ohio State is the best way to compare playing in those (high school) games, but as big as that (Michigan-Ohio State) game is, it’s hard to beat the games against Colquitt and the Winnersville Classic,” Barrett said. “That’s as good as it gets.”
How Playing Multiple Positions in High School Prepared Michael Barrett for College Football
Barrett played linebacker and quarterback at Lowndes, and he excelled on both sides of the ball.
“That (playing multiple positions) gave me a lot of confidence in high school, and that helped me when I got to Michigan because they did the same thing with letting me play multiple positions,” Barrett said. “They put me everywhere when I got to Michigan: slot, LB viper, wildcat QB, and back to receiver.”
Barrett said that as he began to get settled at Michigan and the coaches became more familiar with his strengths and comfort level, he made the move to the defensive side of the ball.
“I kept moving around a lot, and I went to playing at nickel and dime,” Barrett said.
He also saw a good bit of time on special teams before settling in at LB during his final two seasons at Michigan.
High School Football Coaches Recall Michael Barrett’s Career at Lowndes
The coaches who mentored Barrett in middle school and through his years as a Lowndes High standout all remember Barrett fondly for the obvious talent that he displayed, but former Lowndes head football coach Randy McPherson said it was much more than talent when it came to what made Michael Barrett special.
“Everybody knows what a great player Micheal Barrett was and still is, but I will tell you what I first noticed about him that set him apart, and that was his mindset,” McPherson said. “I saw it the first time I met Michael and saw him play. I have seen a lot of great players, but Micheal was different. His mindset was that he was going to be the best he can be, and wherever we (coaches) wanted him to play, he was going to be the best at that position – better than anyone else – and he was.”
The now retired and longtime head coach at Lowndes said that Barrett’s will to be the best he could be came from qualities he learned from his parents.
“It all started with how Mike was raised by his mother and father,” McPherson said.
“He learned great qualities like character and loyalty from his parents, and Micheal did not want to let his family, his coaches, his teammates, and his community down,” McPherson said. “That’s what really drives Mike, and that’s what is going to make somebody take a shot on Mike in the NFL. He will find a way to get on the field.”
“I Want to Move Micheal to QB”
Former Lowndes assistant coach Jim Henry recalled the day when McPherson wanted to move Barrett to QB.
“Coach Mac (McPherson) had just hired me as the QB coach, and he came up to me and said, ‘I want to move Mike to QB,’” Henry said. “I thought, ‘Well, this is a unique situation, taking our best defensive player and making him your top player on offense.’”
But McPherson was adamant about the move.
“We are moving Mike to QB, and we are not looking back,” McPherson said.
It was a rough start for Barrett.
“Mike had a terrible spring game at QB,” Henry said.
Barrett then made himself a student of the game.
“Michael began to sleep and breathe everything about the QB position,” Henry said. “He started from ground zero and became one of the best we have ever had at Lowndes.”
How good?
The offense enjoyed their two highest scoring seasons (2016 and 2017) in Lowndes football history when Barrett played QB his junior and senior years, said Josh Akers, a Lowndes associate athletic director and assistant coach who served as an offensive coach during those two seasons.
Steve Holley, who coached Barrett in middle school, said he remembers thinking even at that point in Barrett’s young career that he was different.
“I could tell even then that Mike was going to be a generational-type player, and that’s exactly what he has become,” Holley said.
Michael Barrett on Preparing for the Next Step of His Football Career: The NFL
Barrett said that he is currently in South Florida working out and preparing for the NFL Draft, and while he considered coming out for the draft a year ago, he is glad he stayed at Michigan – for more than one reason.
“Of course, I got a chance to play for and win a national championship, but the extra year has helped me a lot,” Barrett said.
He said that he would have likely gone in as an undrafted free agent had he declared for the draft last year, but the additional experience that came with waiting another season to finish out his college career helps him now. However, he said his future mostly depends on how well he impresses the scouts at the 2024 NFL Combine.
“It’s game time for me,” Barrett said.
Barrett said he credits his coaches at Lowndes who helped him get to this point.
“Coach Terry Quinn, Coach Mitchell, Steve Holley, Jim Henry, Coach Akers, and Coach Mac, they all kept me on the right path and are a big reason why I am where I am,” Barrett said.
