The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1473191
[ S P E C I A L T E A M S ] 114 ■ THE WOLVERINE 2022 FOOTBALL PREVIEW over the past year, and he's in that same place moving into this season." Robbins, who also handles the team's place-holding duties, was an honorable mention All-Big Ten performer last sea- son with 45 punts for a 46.3-yard average, which was good for the No. 2 single-season mark in team history. He also placed 17 at- tempts inside the 20-yard line. Opponents only returned nine punts against Michigan for a total of 35 yards last season, and Foot- ball Outsiders ranked U-M's punt efficiency as No. 4 in the nation. With the returns of Moody and Robbins to the lineup, sophomore Tommy Doman has to stay in line and wait for his turn to handle either the kicking or punting duties. He is capable of both and could be primed to be Michigan's first player to take on a dual role in 2023. Kornblue believes an ex- tra development year will be beneficial to him. "I think that's extremely helpful," he said. "As good as Robbins was when he first came in, it's just so tough to play right away. That hurt the perception of how good Robbins was when he arrived because he had to step right in right away. You're see- ing a whole different level of performance with him now than when he was a true freshman. "For Doman to be able to just sit a little longer and improve his consistency will help him." Kornblue noted that the Michigan staff is happy with Doman's development. "I know he still has a way to go," Korn- blue said. "But he's looking more and more like he's going to be able to just step right in when his time comes. You never know when that's going to happen, and you have to be ready. "I've seen him mature off the field just in the last year. Physically, I know that's happen- ing as well. It's good that he's not being rushed into having to play yet." Junior wide receiver AJ Henning could get the first crack at kickoff and punt re- turns after improving throughout the 2021 campaign. He finished with a 9.4-yard clip on 29 punt runbacks and had seven kickoff returns for a 25.3-yard average. Junior running back Blake Corum also took kickoffs, though that role was scaled back after he suffered an injury midseason. He still led the team with 12 kickoff returns for 304 yards, an average of 25.3 yards per try, just like Henning. Someone who could make the competi- tion interesting is graduate wide receiver Ronnie Bell, who began last season as the team's starting punt returner. He tore his ACL on a return in the season opener against Western Michigan but appears on track for a full recovery and claims to have no reservations about returning to that role. Harbaugh took criticism for having one of his better players participating on special teams when the injury occurred. "People were criticizing Coach Harbaugh for having me on punt return," Bell said in the summer of 2022. "Throughout camp, I was the one that forced the issue to play punt return. "I made sure that I went out there and won the job. That was something that I wanted to do. It was something that I felt I was always good at. I went out of my way to make sure I was returning punts." As a whole, Michigan has the pieces in place to bring another elite special teams unit into the 2022 campaign. Based on NFL potential alone, it could wind up being one of the most talented and productive kicking groups in college football. "It's going to be interesting to see next year at Michigan's pro day," Kornblue said. "It's certainly possible that you could have three NFL-level guys there at that pro day, which would be pretty rare. It would be quite the testament to the special teams suc- cess the program has had." ❏ X-FACTOR X-FACTOR Sophomore kicker/punter TOMMY DOMAN is someone to keep an eye on long-term. The former Max- Preps All-American was thought to be in line to replace either Moody, Robbins or both in 2022 before they elected to come back for one more season. U-M has not had a player handle both duties since Kenny Allen in 2016. Doman might be on ice for one more season, but an injury could always open the door for him to find a more immediate role. Graduate punter Brad Robbins was an honorable mention All-Big Ten pick in 2021. He had the second-best season for a U-M punter with a 46.3-yard av- erage last fall. PHOTO BY LON HORWEDEL