Deion Burks made Michigan regret its decision to never give him a chance

Deion Burks grew up playing in a maize and blue uniform as a Michigan fan born and raised, but on Saturday night, there was nothing he wanted more than for the Wolverines to lose while having a hand in their demise. 

Burks, from Inkster, Michigan, was the No. 18 Sooners’ leading receiver in their 24-13 win over No. 15 Michigan on Saturday night at Gaylord Family-Oklahoma Memorial Stadium. 

While most college football players pretend and try to downplay personal situations ahead of big games, Burks never even tried to hide what that meeting meant for him.  

“Michigan did not recruit me,” Burks said leading up to the game. “It’s definitely personal.”

Deion Burks turned his Michigan snub into a statement Sooners win

Now a redshirt senior and top receiver for a blue blood program in a different time zone, Burks didn’t even get a chance to play for the blue blood just minutes from his hometown. He was undersized at 5-foot-9, but was still a three-star recruit with a handful of Power Four offers, but not from Michigan. Burks ultimately signed with Purdue, where he became the Boilermakers’ best receiver before transferring to OU last year. 

“They have a saying that pretty much the best players stay in Michigan,” Burks said last week. “So I guess I’m not one of those best players they were shooting for, but I’m just excited next week to go play them.”

When Oklahoma and Michigan met in the only meeting of Week 2 between two ranked squads, against a team full of other Michigan men, Burks was one of the best players on the field. 

Read more: Sooners prove they belong at the top of the SEC

Burks caught a game-high seven passes for 101 yards. Michigan had only 142 passing yards altogether. And the Wolverines’ freshman phenom at quarterback, Bryce Underwood, came from the same high school as Burks, just four years later. 

The first drive of the game ended with Burks taking a jet sweep around the corner for a nine-yard touchdown for the first points of the game. The Wolverines certainly noticed him then. 

Burks then caught a 22-yard pass with 34 seconds left in the first half to set up the Sooners’ second touchdown to go into the locker room with a 14-0 lead. At one point, Burks even caught a deep 34-yard pass right by the sideline in front of Michigan coach Sherrone Moore, who was an assistant on the offensive staff during Burks’ recruitment. 

“It just felt great,” Burks said postgame. “Great win. I’m from Michigan, so that definitely felt good to get off my chest. Now it’s just onto the next one.” 

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