Just two years ago, Amani Toomer, a Wolverine senior receiver at the time, was preparing for football Saturdays and teaching the underclassman the ropes of the college game. During his four seasons with the Wolverines, Toomer stacked up 143 receptions, leaving him second all-time, behind only the 161 grabs by Anthony Carter (1979-1982). During his time at Michigan, Toomer returned punts for the Wolverines as well - taking two in for scores.
Toomer is still making receptions and returning punts for touchdowns, but now he is doing it on Sundays as a member of the New York Giants. And in only his second year in the league, Toomer is now on the learning end as he is taught by the veterans on his team. One of his best teachers is Giants receiver and Michigan alum, Chris Calloway (1987-1989). Now the two former Wolverines, along with a third Michigan player, Tyrone Wheatley, lead the NFC East champion Giants.
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Daily: Coming back to the metro Detroit area to play the Lions, did you and teammates Tyrone Wheatley and Chris Calloway have any extra incentive to play hard?
Toomer: We definitely wanted to up our play. We talked about it during the week, and we wanted something to happen. It just worked out that everything fell in our favor. People in Detroit and from U of M don't get to see all of the Giants games, so this was an opportunity for all of my friends that are still in Ann Arbor to see us play. It's a good feeling coming back here. I not originally from around here, so I don't really have family coming to the game, but I know that there are people from the University that came here to see us play.
D: How important is it for every Michigan football team to get to the Rose Bowl?
T: It is definitely the ultimate goal every year. Every Wolverine wants to get to Pasadena no matter what.
D: It sounds like you're pretty familiar with the Wolverine schedule. Have you followed Michigan football since leaving?
T: I always catch the games on Saturdays. Any chance I get, I sit down and watch Michigan play. It's fun to watch them play because they play with such emotion and with such fire under them. I haven't been back at all, but I'm really looking forward to seeing everyone again.
D: Here with the Giants, you have a couple teammates that played at Michigan. What about the other guys who you played with in school - do you still see them or speak with them?
T: Well we played against Derrick Alexander and the Ravens and it was good to see him. He is still doing his thing, and he'll going well down there. It's always fun to see those people and to play against them. I'm planning on going over to the Lions lockeroom to see Coach (Gary) Moeller in a few minutes. As far as the guys we have here, I've really learned a lot from Calloway. He's old school at this point, and he really knows so much about the game. I always ask him questions, and he's always willing to help me. It's definitely a good relationship between us here. I couldn't get to the endzone fast enough after his touchdown to grab him and celebrate.
D: You may have heard there is a lot of controversy surrounding the Michigan basketball program as well as the Athletic Director's office. What are your feelings about the whole situation, and what was your experience as a student athlete at the University?
T: I never ever experienced any type of booster donations when I was in school. I really feel that a big part of that is isolated to the basketball program. Any of the minor allegations when I was in school tended to be from the basketball program. I really feel that the University of Michigan is a class school, and I think that it is unfortunate that students are put in the situation that there are and it's unfortunate that things did happen. But I'm sure the program will be able to handle the problems and move on.
D: What are you best memories as a student-athlete at the University?
T: Probably beating Notre Dame my junior year on the last-second field goal by Remy Hamilton, beating Penn State in Penn State the first time we visited Happy Valley. There were so many good memories and so many things that I am thankful for that came from being a student at U of M.
D: Would you say you still have important ties to the Michigan football program?
T: Well, you're always a part of it. I watch every game, try to keep an eye out for anyone else from the University. Everyone on this team knows I went to Michigan and every time something happens there, people rub it in and tease me, but we haven't lost a game yet, so no one is on my case yet.
D: We've talked about Michigan and the NFL, but what I really want to know about is what was your experience acting in your first movie, "Jerry Maguire?"
T: I can't believe you recognized me. It was a lot of waiting. We waited for hours, and I wasn't even in it for that long. I hate to have to see how long the real actors wait. I was in the hotel room for almost two days just watching TV. I don't see how they do it, because it was really boring sitting around. Actors must have a lot of hobbies. It was fun though. To see my face on the screen, it was just a quiet thing, but it was fun.
- For questions or suggestions about future or past Q&A's, Jordan Field can be reached via e-mail at jmfield@umich.edu
01-12-98
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