The Best Michigan Player From: California

It's the GOAT, but Tom Brady is not the only Wolverine from the state of California that has made a major impact at Michigan.

We're looking at the best player at Michigan to hail from 48 states and Canada (there is no Alaska and Hawaii), and we continue our series by going out West to California where there is no doubt who the greatest is - Tom Brady. 

There is probably nothing we can add about the San Mateo native that you don't already know, but I always found the class he came in with fascinating. In addition to, arguably, the greatest NFL player of all time (Brady), the class also included Michigan's GOAT - Charles Woodson - and then had: DE David Bowens, DE James Hall, DT Rob Renes, FB/TE Aaron Shea, WR Tai Streets, S Daydrion Taylor, RB Clarence Williams, DT Josh Williams and OL Chris Ziemann. 

Perhaps the most hyped player to ever hail from the Golden Gate State was actually running back Justin Fargas. An arrival from Encino, Fargas was a five-star ranked the No. 1 running back in the 1998 class (and a Top-10 player overall). However, injuries at Michigan largely derailed him, as Fargas rushed for only 362 yards in three seasons before transferring to USC. 

There was also great excitement for QB Matt Gutierrez, from famed high school juggernaut De La Salle in Concord. Gutierrez was slated to take over for John Navarre in 2004, but a preseason shoulder injury knocked him out of the competition. True freshman Chad Henne would start four seasons under center, leading Gutierrez to transfer to Idaho State. 

Among the success stories from California are defensive backs DeWayne Patmon (San Diego), Leon Hall (Vista), Donovan Warren (Long Beach) and David Long (Los Angeles). 

At wide receiver, Russell Shaw remains one of the only JUCOs Michigan has ever taken. The Los Angeles native arrived in time to start opposite Tai Streets on the 1997 national championship team, catching 27 balls, including three touchdowns, that year, and 46 balls during his two seasons in Ann Arbor. 

Originally from Berkeley, and another De La Salle grad, Amani Toomer (1992-95) is one of the best wide receivers to ever play at Michigan. He ranks ninth all time among Wolverine pass catchers in receptions (138), fourth in yards (2,522) and 10th in touchdowns (16). 

However, after Brady, the second-best player to come out of California has to be Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh. While father Jack coached at Michigan from 1973-79, Jim lived in Ann Arbor, but for his high school days, the family moved to Palo Alto while Jack coached at Stanford, thus Harbaugh is officially listed as from Palo Alto according to U-M's all-time roster database.

Harbaugh started 30 games at quarterback for Michigan from 1983-86, leading the Wolverines to two Top-10 finishes (No. 2 in 1985 and No. 8 in 1986). He completed 62.4 percent of his passes for 5,449 yards with 31 touchdowns. 

He then spent 14 years in the NFL, including 10 as a starter for the Chicago Bears, Indianapolis Colts, Baltimore Ravens and San Diego Chargers. 

In total, Michigan has had 37 scholarship players from the state of California, including 21 starters (at least 12 games). 

Check out our lists from Alabama, Arkansas and Arizona. Up next: Colorado.