Semaj Morgan has never shied away from expectations, and he won't start now.

A rising sophomore on the Michigan football team, Morgan was at his high school alma mater — West Bloomfield — where he served as host to a football camp: "Camp with the Champ" for three hours on Saturday afternoon.

More than 100 young athletes went through various drills and stations, organized by the U-M wide receiver and members of his friends and family. Most of those at the camp tried at some point to make sure they stopped for a picture or got an autograph from the defending national champion.

Standing on his old field under the hot sun, Morgan spoke with the Free Press about the upcoming season.

He talked about everything from realizing his dreams to getting back to work this offseason, but it was when he was asked about what's not coming back — Michigan lost 10 of 11 offensive starters from last year, including both receivers, the quarterback, the entire offensive line and the starting running back — that the ever-confident slot receiver rolled his eyes and responded with his chest.

[ MUST LISTEN: Make "Hail Yes!" your go-to Michigan Wolverines podcast, available anywhere you listen to podcasts (Apple, Spotify) ]

"Don’t nobody on the outside of Schembechler Hall know (expletive) anyways, so whatever you’re hearing, it is what it is," Morgan told the Free Press. "In Schembechler Hall, we’ve got some stars, and you’re going to see when the season pops off."

Morgan may be one of those rising stars, and though his numbers last year weren't eye-popping, the tape told a different story. As a true freshman, the 5-foot-10, 175-pound pass catcher worked his way into the rotation by the middle of the season and became known for making acrobatic catches down the field as well as making defenders miss.

By the time the year was all said and done, Morgan had 22 catches for 204 receiving yards, four rushes for 67 yards, a Big Ten championship game-record 89-yard punt return, as well as three total touchdowns.

It was highlighted by a 35-yard grab against UNLV, a leaping 18-yard touchdown against Rutgers, a 7-yard touchdown reception against Indiana, a 44-yard rush against Purdue and a 13-yard touchdown run against Maryland. But to use Morgan's words, he "didn't even scratch the surface."

Morgan played just 145 snaps on offense last season — 119 times he lined up in the slot and 26 times he was out wide according to Pro Football Focus data — and was on the field for more than 20 in a game just twice.

"I feel like last year I was getting held back a little bit and not really getting to be me. … I don’t feel like I played how I played my whole life," he said. "On the field, I just want to be who I’ve been my whole life, that’s a straight dawg.

"I feel like I was pretty special last year and it’s going to be a rude awakening for some people this year."

BIG TIME WEAPON: Can Michigan football's leading receiver actually line up at TE? We'll find out in 2024.

Morgan knows he can't do it all on his own, which led to the next logical question: Who does he want throwing the ball to him? With a starter not yet named, Morgan wouldn't tip his hand on whether his chemistry with one signal-caller is better than the others.

The competition is one of the main storylines in college football as junior Alex Orji, junior Jayden Denegal, senior Davis Warren and graduate student Jack Tuttle all compete for the starting role. While Morgan said he doesn't favor one over the other, he knows exactly what the winner of the job will need to do.

"I vibe with all of them; they all throw great passes, they all make great reads," he said. "My main focus is catch the ball. Whoever’s back there, catch it. I wouldn’t say I got special chemistry with anybody, but they’re all working and we’re all working.

"Not trying to compare anybody to J.J. (McCarthy) but you know he was a great leader last year, we all knew we could follow him and he would do his job. That’s what we need out of the quarterback this year. I’m not saying we got a quarterback who don’t got none of that, but I’m saying whoever our No. 1 is, he’s going to have to show that we can follow him into the fire."

While that's a good starting point, Michigan will also need to prove there are pass catchers capable of playing a full-time role. The leading receiver who returns other than Morgan? Sophomore Fredrick Moore, who caught just four passes for 32 yards on the season.

But if anybody thinks Morgan is bullish on his own prospects, just listen to how he talks about Moore, someone who he's worked alongside with since arriving on campus.

"Me and Fred, we came in together, we do literally everything together since we been here," he said. "We work out, we talk; one thing that’s big, me and Fred, we critique each other’s game. We really love this football and want to get better so we will be at practice and critique each other.

U-M FOOTBALL DEPTH CHART: What the two-deep looks like heading into summer

"It’s like ‘Bro, you did this on that last route, try to do this’ Like I feel like me and Fred, we’re going to be something special."

Moore is a 6-foot-1, 185-pound wideout from St. Louis and is widely projected to start at the X alongside Morgan. The most dangerous pass-catching weapon will likely be projected first-round tight end Colston Loveland, but other players could emerge as well.

Amorion Walker returned after transferring to Ole Miss and is back on the offensive side of the ball, Payton O'Leary caught a touchdown last year and was a name to watch in the spring, while this spring Kendrick Bell turned heads in the Maize & Blue scrimmage when he caught a deep touchdown from Warren.

"I’m confident in everybody in our room," Morgan implored.

Upon reflection, Morgan realized last year was largely about "getting his feet wet," and doing his best to get acclimated to the collegiate level. He was trying to break into a national championship roster, all while learning to manage the rigors of college classes and living away from home for the first time.

It's all easier said than done, he said, but now he knows exactly what is required on and off the field. If becoming a household name comes along with it, that's cool. But that's not what Morgan is about. He just wants to prove the haters wrong.

"I don’t really care if people know who I am, I don’t care for all that," he said. "When the season comes, you’re going to see, man. People think they know based off who they see left and all that.

"They don’t know (expletive)."

Contact Tony Garcia: apgarcia@freepress.com. Follow him at @realtonygarcia.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michigan football WR Semaj Morgan not expecting fall off after title