The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1473191
THE WOLVERINE 2022 FOOTBALL PREVIEW ■ 51 For some, it's a different story when it's midsummer, and the workouts keep grinding away. Nobody's cheering then, and the sweat flows even more freely. Corum clearly embraces that aspect of it. He's been hailed as a workout warrior by head coach Jim Har- baugh, as well as by Hart and many of his teammates. The transformation of his body to ready it for down-by- down contact became one of the big offseason stories in the months leading up to the 2021 campaign. Corum didn't disap- point. In fact, had he not missed a pair of games with an ankle injury, the Wolver- ines would have fea- tured a pair of 1,000- yard backs. Yes, Corum admits, the breakthrough 2021 season did wonders for the Wolverines and for his own confidence. After all, U-M took down Ohio State, won the Big Ten and landed a first- ever College Football Playoff appearance. Last year isn't what it's all about now, he quickly admonished. He sees a team moving on — and up. "A lot of confidence comes from last year, but this is a new year," Corum emphasized. "That was last year's team, Team 142. Now, our confidence comes from the way we did our workouts, the way we attacked spring ball, and the way we're attacking workouts right now. "That's where this team's confidence is coming from. It's easy to reflect on last year. We had a great year — offensively, defen- sively and special teams. But coming into this new year, it's a new team. We lost guys, and we gained guys. "It comes from the work we've been put- ting in." Glow From OSU Win Only Spurs More Hunger Corum acknowledges the smiles from re- membering the Wolverines' 42-27 victory over Ohio State "will always be nice and wide." That said, he wasn't shocked by it. He won't be fooled by it. He will not rest on it, he claimed. "We were confident," Corum pointed out. "Going into the game, we believed we were With an eye-popping average of 6.7 yards per carry (143 for 952 yards and 11 TDs), Corum earned a rushing grade of 91.1 from Pro Football Focus in 2021 — the highest mark among all Big Ten running backs. PHOTO BY LON HORWEDEL