Last May, then-redshirt junior Dan Harmsen stood atop the podium at the Big Ten Outdoor Championships to accept his award for his first individual Big Ten title.

It was the first Big Ten title the Wolverines had won in the 400-meter hurdles since 1997. Harmsen had proven himself to be an elite hurdler among the other runners.

Yet four years before that moment, Harmsen — a preferred walk-on — was discouraged about any opportunity to wear the maize and blue, much less compete at the grandest stage of collegiate track and field.

In his senior year of high school, Harmsen placed third in the 300-meter hurdles and fourth in the 4x400-meter relay at the state championships. But the efforts weren’t enough to secure him any offers from Big Ten schools.

He considered going to North Carolina to continue his athletic endeavors. But Harmsen knew he belonged in Ann Arbor, where his father, Mark Harmsen, had competed for the Michigan track and cross country teams.

Once at the University, Harmsen struggled to compete as a freshman. With an ample number of 400-meter hurdlers, Michigan's then-associate head coach Fred LaPlante decided to redshirt Harmsen, allowing him to ease into the atmosphere of Big Ten competition.

"I can’t say we had high expectations for him," LaPlante said.

But Harmsen's talent showed through at the U.S. Junior Championships in 2005, a meet that spurred his recent success.

Although Harmsen was redshirted for the outdoor season as well, the meet gave him something to strive toward as he worked to improve his 400-meter dash time.

"The big thing was he improved so much in his 400 because his hurdling technique was really pretty good before he got here," LaPlante said.

Harmsen found himself in an unfamiliar position at the marquee meet. The freshman ran well enough in the preliminaries of the 400-meter hurdles to secure a spot in the event final. He crossed the finish line eighth but took home something he had been lacking up to that point: confidence.

"That was sort of my first taste of the big leagues," Harmsen said. "That was good to get my feet wet for the years to come."

And as he matured, Harmsen garnered accolades from All-American to Big Ten Outdoor Champion.

But Harmsen's leadership has been his greatest contribution to the Wolverines.

Last year at the Big Ten Outdoor Championships, Michigan was in fifth place after the second day of competition. Harmsen led Michigan with a victory in the 400-meter hurdles and as the third leg of the winning 4x400-meter relay team.

The efforts were enough to give Michigan its first Big Ten title in 25 years. After the results were announced, the team gathered in a circle while Harmsen led them in the fight song.

This season, Harmsen was named a co-captain, taking sophomore Carl Buchanon under his wing. The two have been trading first and second-place finishes all year long in the 400-meter hurdles and share a friendly rivalry.

"Back in high school, I didn't have anyone to run with," Buchanon said. "Coming in, I didn't know how to run the 400 hurdles and just by watching him, it has given me a better understanding of how to run (hurdles) even though we run them in different ways."

But it was Buchanon, Harmsen's own protégé, who spoiled Harmsen's chances of defending his Big Ten title as the sophomore just edged the fifth-year senior for first place.

Both Harmsen and Buchanon qualified for the NCAA Championships in Fayetteville, Ark., and Harmsen will look to add to his collection of awards.

"I didn’t even think to do as much as I’ve done in the Big Ten," Harmsen said. "To do that on a national scale, far exceeded my expectations."