A native of Curtice, Ohio, Jordan Kovacs' goal was to walk-on the football team at the University of Michigan where his father had played as a walk-on. He participated in a fall 2008 tryout as a freshman and made the cut. During his physical with the medical staff, however, at which time he revealed he'd had knee surgery in high school, the doctors found torn meniscus. His dream seemed to be derailed, but he decided to go through another surgery and rehabilitation on the affected knee. Jordan came back for the spring 2009 tryout and this time, he made the team. He went through spring drills with the Wolverines and continued to improve with every practice. Heading into fall camp, Jordan wanted to make a special teams unit. He achieved his mission in the 2009 season-opener, suiting up on the kickoff and kick return teams. Jordan saw his first career action at safety during almost the entire second half against Notre Dame (Sept. 12). He continued to push for a starting role and gained it for good in the primetime game at 11th-ranked Iowa and he never looked back. Jordan started the final eight games of the season for the Wolverines and finished second on the team with 75 tackles. When asked during a press conference if his coaches and teammates know his name now, Jordan modestly smiled and said he thought so.