If you've been watching Alan Branch this season, chances are you've already formed some opinions.

You've probably noticed the way the defensive lineman has terrorized quarterbacks John Stocco, Drew Stanton and Bryan Cupito in Big Ten play. Seen him leap over fallen offensive lineman on his way to devastating tackles in the backfield. Maybe even clapped and cheered as he's forced fumbles, hustled downfield in pursuit and dragged down some of the nation's most talented running backs.

It would seem likely that Branch has been schooled since childhood in the nuances of playing on the defensive line. After all, for a sophomore to become a regular starter at both the tackle and end positions, pass-rushing and run-stuffing must have gone hand-in-hand with learning the alphabet and memorizing multiplication tables in Branch's education, right? And certainly he's a mean, nasty, no-nonsense type of guy, just what you'd expect from his style of play. It seems logical, no doubt.

But if you subscribed to these views concerning the Rio Rancho, N.M., native, you'd be pretty far off the mark. Because when it comes to Alan Branch, appearances can be deceiving.

Just a short five-minute drive from the Rio Grande, in Albuquerque, N.M., stands Cibola High School, home of the Cougars. Ben Shultz, the head football coach at Cibola, knew Branch was something special as early as the seventh grade. By the time Shultz became his coach, Branch had already grown to 6-foot-6 and well over 300 pounds. In addition to football, he has played soccer, baseball and basketball

"He was just a once-in-a-lifetime athlete," Shultz says. "With his size and strength and speed and agility and footwork, he could do it all."

And that's exactly what Shultz pushed Branch to do. Everything. Simply playing on the line wouldn't be enough. By the time Branch left Cibola for Ann Arbor, he had contributed from a dizzying array of positions. Sure, the gargantuan teenager played defensive end. But the laundry list of Branch's responsibilities included roles most athletes his size would never dream of playing: linebacker; tight end; wide receiver; running back; kickoff and punt returner; even quarterback.

"He was so versatile, we could do anything with him," Shultz says. "It really created problems for other teams. We (put Alan in unusual situations) just to mess with the other teams' heads. They just didn't know how to deal with him. We would put him back on punt returns and kickoff returns on purpose. You know, 'Go ahead and try to bring this kid down.' "

For the most part, the other teams couldn't. Branch returned five punts for touchdowns during his high school career. He accumulated nearly 600 combined rushing and receiving yards as a senior alone. When he lined up in the backfield, Branch promised his coach five yards a carry.

"I told (Shultz) I could give him a guaranteed five yards every time," Branch says. "Even if I got hit in the backfield, I just fell forward and got at least four."

For his part, Shultz - now in his 13th season at Cibola - was thrilled to have such certainty in short-yardage situations. The Cougars already had a speed back, but Branch provided a change of pace. The bruiser was a smashing success, except for one memorable instance.

"In the state semifinal against Carlsbad his senior year, he went exactly four yards and about 11 1/2 inches," Shultz said. "He was about a half-inch short of a first down that would've probably tied the ball game."

Michigan coach Lloyd Carr remembers watching Branch's recruiting tape. Carr stared in utter disbelief as the oversized running back sprinted down the field for a score.

"He is a very, very talented athlete," Carr says. "I will never forget turning the film on of one of Alan's high school games, and he was in the backfield. They gave him the ball, and I think he ran 65 yards."

From the outset, it was clear to Carr that Alan Branch was a different type of football player.

Naturally, a high school running back the size of an NFL lineman caught the attention of college scouts around the country. Branch visited Michigan and Arizona State, where current Wolverines defensive backs coach Ron English had recently left his position mentoring the Sun Devils' cornerbacks. He got offers from Colorado, Tennessee, Washington State and Texas Tech. Texas A&M even used a private plane on a recruiting trip to see the budding star. English worked hard to persuade Alan to come play for Michigan. He even sat down with the prospect during his junior year at Cibola to warn him of the importance of good grades.