Michigan football fans held their collective breath on Jan. 3 as highly touted recruit Will Campbell picked which school he'd attend on national television during the Army All-American Bowl. Late in the third quarter, the Detroit native was ready to announce his choice.

Sitting before him were three hats — one from Miami (Fla.), one from Louisiana State and one from Michigan. The hat Campbell put on would be his school of choice. As Campbell uttered the words “My school is,” he reached for the LSU hat with his right hand but snagged the Michigan cap with his left.

Michigan fans were relieved that day, but it wasn’t the first time Campbell had them on the edge of their seats.

At a summer camp before his junior year at Detroit Cass Technical High School, Campbell committed to play at Michigan for then-coach Lloyd Carr. But last September, Campbell announced that he'd decided to reopen his recruitment.

Six days before the Army All-American Bowl, Campbell essentially said Michigan was no longer in the running. The announcement was devastating to the Wolverines, who were losing defensive tackles Will Johnson and Terrance Taylor to graduation — the two had combined for 64 tackles and 3.5 sacks last season. Michigan had just three defensive tackles left on its spring roster. But now it has four.

Campbell is one of seven early-enrolled freshmen participating in spring practice, which concludes with the spring game on April 11. Rodriguez sees his presence as an opportunity.

"He’s got to get in our type of shape and learn some techniques and fundamentals that are relevant to our defense,” Rodriguez said on Mar. 21. “I think being here early certainly helps him. If he has a great summer, particularly because we’re thin there, he’s going to be able to help us.”

Aside from addressing a huge hole in Michigan’s defense, what makes Campbell such an appealing player is his combination of size (6-foot-5, 330 pounds), speed (five-second 40-yard dash) and strength (515-pound squat and 395-pound bench press). Campbell was a five-star recruit, the No. 5 rated defensive tackle by rivals.com and the top-rated recruit of the 22 Rodriguez pulled in for next season.

Campbell is Michigan’s highest-rated defensive tackle since Marques Slocum in 2005.

The rising freshman is happy with the decision he made to graduate early from Cass Tech, where he played with Michigan rising sophomore cornerback Boubacar Cissoko and incoming recruits Teric Jones and Thomas Gordon. But his first few workouts weren’t easy.

"Because I haven't ran in a long time because of (business) and everything, just eating, eating and no workouts," Campbell said at signing day on Feb. 4. "The first day we ran like eight gassers and eight forties, that was just killing me."

As the NBC reporter spoke with Campbell before he selected his school, Campbell playfully flexed his muscles and pointed to the crowd. His fun and outgoing nature combined with a successful first season could make Campbell a popular character at Michigan.

And for now, Michigan fans shouldn’t have to worry about Campbell wearing anything other than maize and blue.