money Remember the name Peyton O’Leary — Michigan football spring standout
ANN ARBOR, Mich. — Redshirt sophomore wide receiver Peyton O’Leary was originally committed to UMass Amherst to play lacrosse with his brother.
However, his dad was his high school coach after playing quarterback in college, and those family ties led the younger O’Leary back to the sport he loves. In 2021, O’Leary walked onto the Michigan football team where he played in one game.
“My senior year in high school was canceled due to COVID,” O’Leary told reporters after the Michigan spring game. “So my dad’s my coach. And I was originally gonna play lacrosse with my brother who’s there right now. So committed sophomore year high school. And then my dad played Division I quarterback at Northeastern University. So we’re kind of a football family. He’s the coach. So I didn’t want to give up on my dream yet and took a chance.”
There has been intrigue surrounding the 6-foot-3 wide receiver since last spring. Last year, his teammates told various reporters that O’Leary would be a potential surprise back in 2022. While he did appear in six games last season, O’Leary caught just one pass for four yards.
On Saturday, even though it was a spring game, O’Leary shined and fans finally got to see what his teammates have been seeing. The Massachusetts native had a game-high six catches for 126 yards and O’Leary caught the game-winning two-point conversion. J.J. McCarthy appeared to have great confidence in the crisp route runner and Davis Warren — a close friend of O’Leary — had the same connection in the second half. O’Leary told the media after the game it felt good to go out there and perform well in The Big House.
“Yeah, I mean, I’ve been playing well recently,” O’Leary said. “Just stick to my coaching and my everything. Just luckily the ball found me today. And Davis and I have a great connection. So it’s fun to put on display today.”
Michigan lost Ronnie Bell to the NFL and Andrel Anthony transferred away from the program. But the Wolverines return starters Cornelius Johnson and Roman Wilson. A.J. Henning figures to slot into significant playing time, but after those three — who knows? O’Leary has been biding his time for a couple of years now, but he believes his patience and preparation can lead to success.
“I feel like I’ve always played well in practice, and I’m just waiting for my chance,” O’Leary admitted. “Be patient, wait for my time to be coming in. That’s really it.”
O’Leary was put on scholarship a few months ago. Teammates have been talking about the wide receiver, and after hearing him talk and watching his play do the talking, it’s going to be hard for fans not to root for him going forward.
