Kornacki: Karan Higdon's Many Purposes in Life
9/14/2018 10:05:00 AM | Football, Features
By Steve Kornacki
Note: The following feature appeared in the Sept. 8 edition of the Michigan Football Program.
Karan Higdon has given new meaning to the term "all-purpose running back."
Higdon, an accomplished senior and team captain from Sarasota, Florida, has purposes that go above and beyond leading the University of Michigan football team in rushing, while also catching passes and executing pass-protection blocks.
He's the founder, vice president and co-CEO of Empire For the Youth -- with a mission statement to "empower disadvantaged youth to grow and flourish" -- based in Ann Arbor.
He also has another foundation, Who Next, which over the past three summers has placed somewhat undiscovered, but talented, high school football players with college teams. Camps run in both Sarasota and the Detroit suburb of Sterling Heights, Michigan, open avenues by connecting prospects to recruiting web sites for exposure.
Higdon, as well, sews the seeds of entrepreneurship with Fly Stylez, a clothing apparel company dealing in athletic wear and custom T-shirts that currently deals on-line at www.flystylez.org.
In addition, he squeezed in a summer internship at BlitzPrep, an Ann Arbor venture run by former Michigan academic counselor and mentorship director Shari Acho, which helps players exiting pro football transition and network into new careers and challenges.
And if that and being a full-time student aspiring to become a nurse anesthetist while striving to win a national championship and Heisman Trophy are not enough, he is also the father of Kiyah, the 3-year-old daughter he adores.
To count the purposes in the life of Higdon, who turned 22 on Sept. 8, would require the fingers on both hands and some toes.
He was asked about finding enough hours to accomplish what would seem to be more than enough for any two young men to handle.
"I don't know if I can tell you," Higdon said, "but I feel I create more time in a day and more time in a week than there is, honestly."
He chuckled and added, "But I have the platform and resources here where I can do all these wonderful things to give back and make a difference in the world. So, why not capitalize on it? Why not use it while I'm hot?"
Higdon rushed for 994 yards (6.1 per carry) and 11 touchdowns in 2017, and has 34 attempts for 228 yards and two touchdowns after two games this season, but "carries the ball" in so many ways in life.
Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh says Higdon is a "high-character guy" at every turn.
"It shows up in all phases of your life," Harbaugh said. "It shows up in the classroom. It shows up on the football field. It shows up in the community. Karan's got a great track record of being a do-stuff-right guy."
His mother, Samantha Christian, added, "He has a heart of gold, and I call him my golden child, he's Mr. Do-Right. I instilled in him that you always give back and help the next person. Karan has always been blessed with a great support system inside and outside of the family. I told him to spread that blessing to other children. You get blessed by providing a blessing."
It all seems to come back to his name, too. When asked about the unique moniker, he noted it was first given by his great-aunt to his father, who works in construction and also is part of his life, and has its origins in India.
Higdon read the meaning of his name from an Internet search on his smartphone:
"Karan is lively and sociable, extroverted and extremely communicative. He is a likeable character, gentle, peaceful, sensitive and loves humanity." It goes onto say Karan is "courageous and determined," and if anyone lives up to the meaning of his name, it is Higdon.
"That's me," he said with a big smile.
Sarasota Middle School welcomed special guest Karan for a day of fun and education.
Karan mostly credits his mother, who moved from Florida and is now a staffing coordinator and scheduler at Heartland of Sterling Heights Comprehensive Rehabilitation Skilled Nursing Services. His grandmother, whom he lovingly refers to as "Nana," also played a big role.
"It was my upbringing and the environment I grew up around," said Higdon. "I look back at the trials and tribulations I went through and they went through. The difference in me being where I am, and my friends and former friends ending up where they did, a lot of that is because of family investment, and spending time with them and getting their support.
"I had that from my mom and my grandmother, and so that propelled me to be at the level where I'm at. A lot of kids I grew up around lacked that."
Mom also is the treasurer for Empire for the Youth, which he runs with former Michigan teammate Wayne Lyons, the vice president and co-CEO who earned a master's degree in social work at Michigan after transferring from Stanford. Lyons' mother, Gwen Bush, is the foundation's secretary. Claiborne Green, the Wolverines' director of football academic services, serves as foundation president and focuses on mentoring aspects.
"We all work together and look at what can make us better, make us different, and make us stick out as an organization" said Higdon. "We worked with Erickson Elementary in Ypsilanti last year and they want us to come back. We've also had other schools reaching out to us from Detroit, and it's really starting to pick up.
"Having our moms working with us is key. When you're working with kids that may be underprivileged or disadvantaged, a lot of them only have their moms. They don't have father figures in their life. So, it's important having moms connecting with other moms."
Higdon said they are hoping to partner with an area apartment complex to utilize its community center for outreach programs that will include mentoring, life skills seminars, guest speakers, projects and weekly focuses on topics such as time management, respect, history, overcoming adversity and relationships.
"The greatest thing is seeing the impact I have on the kids when I go into the classroom," said Higdon. "Some days, we go off script and don't even do the curriculum. Some days, we just talk and they pick my brain for advice.
"Those moments where I can share my knowledge and my inspiration with those kids, and have them tell me about how they reflect on that or something great that happened at home. Those are the best moments. I get excited. I feel their confidence, and that means I'm doing my job and making an impact.
"I may not change all of the 30-35 kids I work with, but if I can touch one, two or three kids, I'm fine with that."
He has a purpose in working with youth, and in everything he does in a day that, for all he touches, seems to have 26 hours, maybe more.
