Senior Michael Pittman Jr. has been making the USC football team a scrappy force, leading the wide receivers with 938 yards and 71 receptions. Pittman Jr. is leaving it all on the field this season, putting his best foot forward in the final chapter of his college career.
“That’s what’s driven me to take that next step—working harder than I’ve ever worked before—just knowing that I don’t get another shot at this,” Pittman Jr. said. “This is my last chance, so I’m trying to check every box.”
His best performance this season was during the Trojan’s 30-23 victory over the Utah Runnin’ Utes. Pittman Jr. made 232 receiving yards. The Woodland Hills native believes he has the potential to compete in the pro level.
“I have a lot of stuff to work on, but I feel like I got what it takes,” Pittman Jr. said. “I’m willing to work, there’s no job that’s too small.”
While he thinks highly of his playing ability, Pittman Jr. does not take for granted the opportunity that he was given. He feels blessed to be a student athlete on the college level.
“It’s special because it’s something that most people don’t get a chance to do,” he said. “I would say that it’s just an honor and it’s a blessing to be put in this spot because it could have been anybody else.”
A favorite class of Pittman Jr. was a ballroom dancing class he took during his freshman year at USC. Pittman Jr. noted how it was the most amusing class he took at USC.
“We did salsa, the tango, just classical,” Pittman Jr. said. “We were tested on those, so I wouldn’t say that I was still good at it, but I used to be good at it.”
USC has ways to aid student athletes to become well-round individuals. He mentioned how the staff invited speakers to talk to the Trojans football team about a myriad of different topics. They talked about financial literacy and had a sexual assault awareness training to teach the student athletes on how to protect victims.
“Then also we have a thing called SAAS which is a group of people who help us as student athletes with our classes, like tutoring and helping us get work done,” Pittman Jr. said.
In his spare time, he enjoys to fish and be at sea.
“I like to spear fish, I like to go kayaking,” he said. “I like to be in the ocean, so anything that I can do in the water is always good.
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