Why Donaven McCulley switched from quarterback to Michigan football wide receiver

USA Today

14-05-2025

Why Donaven McCulley switched from quarterback to Michigan football wide receiver
Michigan football has a new No. 1 receiver, both literally and figuratively. This offseason, the Wolverines brought in former Indiana quarterback and wideout Donaven McCulley, who made the switch to receiver full time two years ago while still in Bloomington. Now that he's in Ann Arbor, the 6-foot-5 pass catcher isn't just expected to be the top target for the maize and blue offense, but he also switched from wearing No. 13 to No. 1 after the spring game.
But usually, players yearn to be the man under center, with the ball in their hands every play. However, for McCulley, it made sense for him to make that switch to receiver in 2023, and he hasn't looked back.
"I grew up playing quarterback, and that was just how I was raised wanting to be the quarterback," McCulley told Jon Jansen on the In the Trenches Podcast. "But as I got older, I started to grow a little more, get taller, and stuff. And I just noticed I had like really good hands and that was just something that I really wanted to do, play receiver."
Though McCulley isn't looking back in terms of wanting to throw darts around The Big House (he already did that as the IU starting QB in 2021), he is grateful that he had the opportunity. Not just because that was part of his childhood dream, but also because it helps him as a receiver.
He explained that knowing what the quarterback wants to do, how he reads the wide receiver routes, ball placement, and more, that it's helped him become better once he made the switch to pass catcher.
"It helped me a lot like with understanding where the quarterback wants me to be," McCulley said. "Coming to college, I feel like I didn't really get to experience that next level of the quarterback position because I switched so early. But just playing it like really my whole life, I just kind of understand like how the quarterback is going to throw this football or where he's going to be looking like when he scrambles out or something like that. And I think that just kind of helps build chemistry."
Fans will get an opportunity to see more of McCulley than they did in the spring game (where he had one catch on one target) come August 30 when the Wolverines host New Mexico for the season opener.