The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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2021 FOOTBALL RECRUITING ISSUE players, we thought he was going to stick to his word and believed in him. It was no surprise to me or any of my other teammates." Harbaugh may be back at Michi- gan, but the offseason did not come without movement on the coaching staff. Assistant Jay Harbaugh moved from coaching running backs to tight ends, which opened the door for the Wolverines to bring home Mike Hart, the program's all-time leading rusher. Edwards admitted that he thought Jay Harbaugh would be his position coach at Michigan, but he was elated when he found out Hart was the new man in charge. He and Hart already knew each other. "I'm a little bit surprised, but at the same time, we already have a relation- ship," Edwards said. "He recruited me my sophomore year [while Hart was at Indiana] and kept in contact with me throughout my senior year. "He's a great person. He's produced a lot of great running backs. He has a great knowledge of the game. I'm re- ally interested in learning from him. I know he was a great running back at Michigan." Now, officially ready to begin his college career after winning his state championship ring, Edwards is ready to do what he does best — compete. Michigan struggled to find a feel for its running back room last season. The position group was marred by a lack of overall production. Not one back separated himself as the lead dog for the Wolverines, which means the starting job is ripe for the taking. Edwards established himself as a true three-down back at West Bloom- field. At 5-11, 190 pounds, he was a bruiser between the tackles and a bell cow on first and second downs. He also made plenty of plays catch- ing the ball and even spent a lot of third downs split out wide. "They have four talented running backs right now," Edwards said. "They all have different skill sets. It's kind of hard to utilize that and get all four in the games. One person didn't stand out. "I feel like they need me more. I feel like I can be an every-down guy there." Edwards helped lead a special skill position haul for the Michigan offense. The Wolverines also signed Rivals100 tight end Louis Hansen, Rivals100 wide re- ceiver Xavier Wor- thy, Rivals250 wide receiver Cristian Dixon and three-star wide receiver Andrel Anthony, who may be one of the hidden gems of the cycle. And, of course, there's Rivals100 quarterback J.J. McCarthy, who is considered by many as the 'savior ' of the program. Edwards and Mc- Carthy actually visited Michigan twice together and formed a strong friendship throughout the recruiting process. Now, the dynamic duo may start as true freshmen. "When I watch him, his throws are unique," Edwards said. "I can tell he works very hard as a quarterback. He wants it all the time. Having a quar- terback like him, I know I won't have to worry. "I feel like J.J. would get on other people like I would. That's amazing to have in a quarterback. J.J. wants to win and be great." So does Edwards. With that crazy first week of college and an unforgettable high school ca- reer behind him, Edwards is ready to accept his new challenge — changing the culture and winning champion- ships at the University of Michigan. "We're going to change this around," Edwards said. "For real." ❑ Longtime West Bloomfield (Mich.) High head coach Ron Bellamy, who is now Michigan's wide receivers coach "He's the most dominant player I've seen in the state in a very long time. Game plans are created to stop him. ... He's the best football player in the state of Michigan." Edwards was tabbed among the top 68 recruits in the land by all three major recruiting services, led by a five-star ranking and No. 32 national listing from 247Sports. PHOTO BY EJ HOLLAND MARCH 2021 THE WOLVERINE 29 THEY SAID IT • Former West Bloomfield head coach and current U-M wide receivers coach Ron Bellamy: "By some of the choices that he had, you can tell he's a highly coveted kid. But he de- cided to stay home. … It speaks volumes about the University of Michigan and about the University of Michigan football program. "He has a great relationship with Coach Harbaugh — Jim and Jay, both of them — and he just wanted to keep his tal- ents in state. He wants to leave his legacy here as one of the greatest to ever play in the state of Michigan — high school and college." • Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh: "Competitive, com- petitive, competitive. That's who he is. He comes from a highly successful, winning program. Donovan is a worker. … He wants to get in the weight room, wants to train, wants to run, wants to practice. He's a real example." • TheWolverine.com recruiting analyst EJ Holland: "He's an extremely hard worker that took the next step in his game from his junior to senior year, improving his strength, speed and explosiveness. Everything about him checked the elite box. I ranked him the best offensive signee in the class."