The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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OCTOBER 2021 THE WOLVERINE 37 MICHIGAN FOOTBALL BLAKE CORUM OFF TO A GREAT START WITH NEWFOUND PATIENCE Michigan second-year freshman run- ning back Blake Corum set career highs in rushing yards (171), all-purpose yards (231) and touchdowns (three) on 21 car- ries (8.14 average) in Michigan's 31-10 win over Washington Sept. 11, adding three catches for 11 yards to earn Big Ten Of- fensive Player of the Week honors. Corum also returned two kicks for 49 yards (24.5 average), having more than made up for Giles Jackson's transfer to Washington, and became the first Wol- verine to score three touchdowns in a game since Nico Collins at Indiana on Nov. 23, 2019. He then rushed for three scores for a second week in a row against Northern Illinois Sept. 18. Corum had totaled 407 yards and seven touchdowns on the ground in his first three contests, and his improved patience is the biggest reason for his success — in addition, of course, to the offensive line's play. "I think it's an ideal start for this team. I think it's what we needed — it's good to come out and run the ball," running backs coach Mike Hart said. "Obviously, the backs are playing hard, but the offensive line is doing a great job, and I think that's the most important thing." And the backs have done a great job following their lead. Corum has made an impact both as a runner and a receiver. "He's grown. He's not there yet, but I think he's a lot more patient than he was last year," Hart continued. "I think he gets settled into the game a little bit more. "Sometimes he's too fast, still, because he's a fast, quick kid, but I think he under- stands the need to let those plays develop, give those linemen a chance to get to their blocks, get to the second level. When those guys do their job up front — which they've been doing a great job of — and he's one on one with the safety, he's hard to tackle in the open field." Hart then paid him the ultimate com- pliment when asked if Corum was the fastest back he'd ever coached. "He's the quickest, most explosive," Hart said. "In the 100-meter dash, prob- ably not, but he is fast, now. He can go. But think of all those tools. There's long speed, 100-meter guys. I've coached some guys that were 10.6, 10.7 from that standpoint. But what he brings, he can make a move full speed and burst. "He gets from zero to 10 really, really fast. That's what I think makes him so dangerous. When there is a crease, a hole, he gets through it really fast and gets on the safety quick. I think it surprises the safeties." There are bigger tests to come against better defenses, but he's off to a great start. — Chris Balas COACHES WANT TO SEE MORE OF RUNNING BACK DONOVAN EDWARDS Freshman running back Donovan Ed- wards showed flashes of what he could be as a collegiate back when he ran for 27 yards on six carries in the second half of a win over Western Michigan. After that game, a 47-14 U-M victory, head coach Jim Harbaugh predicted fans would see more of the freshman, even as the other backs (redshirt sophomore Hassan Haskins, second-year frosh Blake Corum) were dominating on the ground. "He just had the feel that the way he was running the ball, breaking tackles, driving through — he was doing a really good job of going north and south," Har- baugh said. "That's been a big coaching emphasis. 2021 MICHIGAN SCHEDULE Date Opponent (TV) Time (ET) Sept. 4 Western Michigan (ESPN) W, 47-14 Sept. 11 Washington (ABC) W, 31-10 Sept. 18 Northern Illinois (BTN) W, 63-10 Sept. 25 Rutgers (ABC) 3:30 p.m. Oct. 2 at Wisconsin (FOX) 12 p.m. Oct. 9 at Nebraska TBA Oct. 23 Northwestern TBA Oct. 30 at Michigan State TBA Nov. 6 Indiana TBA Nov. 13 at Penn State TBA Nov. 20 at Maryland TBA Nov. 27 Ohio State (FOX) 12 p.m. OFFENSE Pos. No. Name Ht. Wt. Yr. WR 14 Roman Wilson 6-0 180 Fr. OR 85 Daylen Baldwin 6-2 219 R-Jr. LT 76 Ryan Hayes 6-7 307 R-So. 52 Karsen Barnhart 6-4 307 R-Fr. LG 77 Trevor Keegan 6-6 324 R-Fr. 66 Chuck Filiaga 6-6 337 R-Jr. C 68 Andrew Vastardis 6-3 294 6th-Sr. 51 Greg Crippen 6-4 290 Fr. RG 65 Zak Zinter 6-6 320 Fr. 66 Chuck Filiaga 6-6 337 R-Jr. RT 71 Andrew Stueber 6-7 338 R-Jr. 53 Trente Jones 6-4 307 R-So. TE 83 Erick All 6-4 245 So. 86 Luke Schoonmaker 6-5 250 R-So. WR 6 Cornelius Johnson 6-3 211 So. 1 Andrel Anthony 6-2 185 Fr. WR 5 Mike Sainristil 5-10 185 So. 3 A.J. Henning 5-10 185 Fr. QB 12 Cade McNamara 6-1 212 R-Fr. 9 J.J. McCarthy 6-3 197 Fr. RB 25 Hassan Haskins 6-1 220 R-So. 2 Blake Corum 5-8 200 Fr. DEFENSE Pos. No. Name Ht. Wt. Yr. DE 97 Aidan Hutchinson 6-6 265 Jr. 91 Taylor Upshaw 6-4 262 R-So. DT 15 Chris Hinton 6-4 310 So. 95 Donovan Jeter 6-3 325 R-Jr. NT 58 Mazi Smith 6-3 326 R-Fr. 95 Donovan Jeter 6-3 325 R-Jr. DE 94 Kris Jenkins 6-3 275 Fr. OR 90 Mike Morris 6-6 278 R-Fr. SAM 55 David Ojabo 6-5 250 R-Fr. 32 Jaylen Harrell 6-4 242 Fr. WILL 41 Nikhai Hill-Green 6-1 220 Fr. 25 Junior Colson 6-2 225 Fr. MIKE 12 Josh Ross 6-2 224 R-Jr. 20 Kalel Mullings 6-1 236 Fr. CB 4 Vincent Gray 6-2 192 R-So. 5 DJ Turner 6-0 181 R-Fr. FS 30 Daxton Hill 6-0 192 So. 6 R.J. Moten 6-0 221 Fr. SS 2 Brad Hawkins 6-1 221 5th-Sr. 19 Rod Moore 6-0 173 Fr. CB 22 Gemon Green 6-2 181 R-So. 5 DJ Turner 6-0 181 R-Fr. MICHIGAN'S UNOFFICIAL DEPTH CHART Pos. No. Name Ht. Wt. Yr. PK 13 Jake Moody 6-1 211 Jr. 19 Tommy Doman 6-5 190 Fr. P 91 Brad Robbins 6-1 203 R-Jr. 19 Tommy Doman 6-5 190 Fr. Pos. No. Name Ht. Wt. Yr. LS 49 William Wagner 6-1 247 R-Fr. 45 Greg Tarr 6-2 207 Fr. KR 2 Blake Corum 5-8 200 Fr. 5 Mike Sainristil 5-10 185 So. PR 3 A.J. Henning 5-10 185 Fr. 35 Caden Kolesar 5-10 196 R-So. SPECIAL TEAMS