The Wolverine

March 2013 - Signing Day Edition

The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports

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������ michigan football Al Borges Says He���s Open To Using Multiple Running Backs F rom the moment he first stepped foot in Ann Arbor in January 2011, offensive coordinator Al Borges announced that he preferred to run an offense with a single, go-to No. 1 ball carrier, citing the success he enjoyed with Ronnie Hillman in 2010 ��� the freshman tailback rushed for 1,532 yards in earning 59.7 percent of San Diego State���s carries. With the departure of quarterback Denard Robinson, and with fifth-year senior running back Fitzgerald Toussaint coming off both a disappointing season and a severe leg injury, Michigan may not have that reliable 20- to 25-carry-per-game runner on its roster next fall. That may not be a bad thing, Sports�� Illustrated.com writer Andy Staples wrote. He pointed to the success Alabama had last season in a platoon system that utilized the talents of Eddie Lacy (204 carries for 1,322 yards) and T.J. Yeldon (175 carries for 1,108 yards). ���According to the NFL Players Association, the average career of an NFL tailback lasts 2.57 years. The more pounding a player takes for free (in high school) or for a scholarship (in college), the less he can take for big money in the NFL,��� Staples penned. ���Because backs absorb the hardest hits whether they���re carrying or blocking, they are the most at risk to suffer a career-ending injury on a given play. That has made tailback the most expendable position in the NFL, and it has forced Nick Saban and other Borges has said in the past that he prefers to run an offense with a single, go-to No. 1 ball carrier, but noted that U-M will do what it needs to do based on the personnel it has. photo by per kjeldsen coaches to change how they use and recruit tailbacks. ���If high school tailbacks are smart, it should change how they choose a college program. The schools that can divide the workload should have the advantage.��� In 2012, Robinson had 177 carries and Toussaint had 130, and the two each had more than 150 totes in 2011 (221 and 187, respectively). Michigan hasn���t seen two running backs have 150

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