Coach 'sick' over Dennis Norfleet situation at U-M

Detroit King football coach Dale Harvel said he won't let former player Dennis Norfleet be a victim.

"He's too good of a kid for us to let anything bad happen to him,'' Harvel said today. "I'm not concerned about football. If Michigan isn't going to put him in a position to get a degree, then he'll have to go somewhere else. This whole thing makes me sick. I've talked to (Jim) Harbaugh, and if he isn't going to let him have an opportunity to get a degree, we have nothing to really talk about.''

Harvel said that Norfleet was kicked off the U-M football team this week, after he didn't appear for a final exam and missed some classes. Norfleet, a kick returner and wide receiver, was heading into his senior season this fall.

According to Harvel, he met with Norfleet over the weekend and went over his transcripts. He was disturbed by what he saw.

"Dennis had a 3.0 average and he had 90 credits, but they weren't toward any major,'' Harvel said. "No psych courses, no math. He wants to be a special education teacher and help kids. My problem was the credits he had weren't toward a major.''

Harvel said he saw a disastrous situation coming from the start. Michigan recruited Norfleet at the last minute, after he was prepared to commit to Cincinnati. Former Michigan coach Brady Hoke and running backs coach Fred Jackson swooped in late in the recruiting process to sign Norfleet. After being an outstanding running back at King, his career, basically, has been spent returning kickoffs and punts.

"He really hasn't had a chance to compete for a starting position,'' Harvel said. "I talked to Fred Jackson for an hour after he signed. I asked him, 'What changed, because you told me he wasn't good enough to play at Michigan?'

"This isn't a Jim Harbaugh issue, it's a Brady Hoke issue.''

U-M football spokesman David Ablauf told the Free Press on Tuesday that "this is an internal matter." When specifically asked whether Norfleet was still part of the team or suspended, Ablauf said, "That is all we are providing."

Attempts by the Free Press to reach Norfleet have been unsuccessful.

"Dennis is a grown man, he's 22 years old,'' Harvel said. "He has some tough decisions to make, and we're going to help him and his family. He may have a redshirt and a year of eligibility left somewhere else, but I'm concerned about the degree. He's 5-foot-7 and 175 pounds, and I know Harbaugh likes playing bigger players.''

Norfleet was praised by the coaching staff this spring. He had played some nickel back during U-M spring practice, leading Harbaugh to suggest that Norfleet could be a "three-way player" this fall.

Harvel said schools such as Tennessee might be willing to offer Norfleet a chance to play for a year, but there also could be ulterior motives for schools to court Norfleet.

"We've got kids like Donnie Corley and Martell Pettaway and Levert Hill, so I know what that's all about,'' he said. Those three are all highly sought Division I recruits.

"Like I said, we're not going to let Dennis be a victim,'' Harvel said. "We want him to be a productive young man, contributing to our community. We've talked, and he realizes he has some big decisions to make.''

Norfleet holds U-M records for kick returns (90) and kick-return yardage (2,203). His career average is 23.4 yards per return. He's third in total return yardage (2,293) when including his punt-return yardage (90 yards on 15 returns). He returned eight kicks for 177 yards in his first game, the 2012 season opener against Alabama.

Norfleet also has seen time at receiver while playing in 37 games — including four starts — in his first three seasons. He switched from running back to receiver before the 2013 season. He had 15 catches for 111 yards in 11 games last season. He had six catches for 46 yards in 2013. He has 15 career rushing attempts for 130 yards.

Contact Perry A. Farrell: 313-222-2555 or pafarrell@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @farrellperry.