The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1473191
THE WOLVERINE 2022 FOOTBALL PREVIEW ■ 53 great seeing kids who can't afford camps be able to participate and learn the game of football. "I have more things I plan on do- ing in the community — just bring- ing the community together, because that's important. It's awesome. I love sharing. Just putting a smile on someone else's face is priceless to me." Corum speaks with great passion about those still on their way up. He remembers when he made that climb and who helped him along the way. To the extent he can serve as inspiration to others — whether it's his head coach now or a young football player back home — he's all in. "Just seeing my impact there, how it has impacted the kids from my hometown, means so much," Corum said. "When I went back home, it's seeing how many kids from my little town — about 1,200 people, one stop- light — are looking up to me and believing they can do it, too. "It makes me want to go even harder. I believe in them. All they need is a chance, and that's all I needed. Seeing what I'm doing at Michigan impacting the kids back home means the most." Small Frame, Sizable Impact Corum's impact, from Ann Arbor to Mar- shall, could be incalculable come September. He could break the 1,000-yard barrier, al- though he's not as moved by that as becoming a big-play threat. Not that he'd turn down a grand achieve- ment, along with the explosive snaps. "Those are always in the back of your mind," Corum mused. "But at the end of the day, it's all about pro- duction. How many yards are you getting per carry, things like that. I'm all about producing. I'm not really worried about the stats too much. "When I'm in, I want to produce. I wanted to get 6 yards per carry last season. This year, I want to get 8 to 10 yards per carry. Every time I'm in there, I want people to think, he could take it to the house. That's my goal. I want to be that type of guy, where every third touch I get goes for 20 or 30 yards, or maybe to the house." Corum wants team production as well, with a why-not attitude heading into a title defense. "We know the target is on our back," he said. "Everyone wants to beat Michigan. We're the reigning champs, so we have to defend that thing. We've really got to go and win it again." ❏ Michigan junior tailback Blake Corum looks ready to join the list of elite U-M runners in a 2022 season filled with promise. He could become part of a re- surgent run game under head coach Jim Harbaugh in a couple different ways. The Wolverines could very well feature Michigan's third 1,000-yard running back under Harbaugh, after seeing just one from 2007 — running backs coach Mike Hart's last year in a Michigan uniform — to Harbaugh's arrival in 2015. Fitzgerald Toussaint ground out 1,041 yards for Michigan's Sugar Bowl- winning squad in 2011. He was the only tailback for the Wolverines to top the 1,000-yard mark, although quarterback Denard Robinson put up three 1,000- yard rushing campaigns, from 2010-2012. Under Harbaugh, tailback Karan Higdon was a near miss in 2017, garnering 994 yards on the ground. He broke through as a senior in 2018, posting 1,178. Senior Hassan Haskins became the second 1,000-yard running back under Harbaugh, going for 1,327 yards last year, with Corum coming close at 952. Corum and sophomore Donovan Edwards are both 1,000-yard threats in 2022, given Michigan's strong returning offensive line and tight ends. Last 10 Michigan 1,000-Yard Running Backs Yr. Player Yards 1999 Anthony Thomas 1,297 2000 Anthony Thomas 1,733 2002 Chris Perry 1,110 2003 Chris Perry 1,674 2004 Mike Hart 1,445 2006 Mike Hart 1,562 2007 Mike Hart 1,361 2011 Fitzgerald Toussaint 1,041 2018 Karan Higdon 1,178 2021 Hassan Haskins 1,327 Corum actually led the Wolverine running backs (50 carries or more) in aver- age gain per carry last season. While Haskins paced the pack with 1,327 yards, he rushed almost twice as often as Corum, 270-143. Haskins averaged a strong 4.9 yards per carry, while Corum fashioned a striking 6.7 per-carry average. In fact, the argument could be made that Corum represents Michigan's most explosive running back of the last quarter century. Going by the numbers, only one back has averaged more than Corum's 6.7 per carry in 2021 since Tyrone Wheatley posted a modern Michigan-record 7.3-yard average in 1992. Chris Evans notched 7.0 per carry for Harbaugh's second Michigan squad, back in 2016, going for 614 yards on 88 tries. Corum's mark involved 143 carries and his 952 yards. Last 10 Michigan Running Backs With 6.0-Plus Yards-Per-Carry Averages* Yr. Player Avg. 1994 Tshimanga Biakabutuka 6.2 1995 Tshimanga Biakabutuka 6.2 2011 Vincent Smith 6.0 2014 Drake Johnson 6.0 2016 Chris Evans 7.0 2017 Karan Higdon 6.1 2017 Ty Issac 6.2 2020 Hassan Haskins 6.1 2020 Zach Charbonnet 6.5 2021 Blake Corum 6.7 * with a minimum of 50 carries Michigan's other top running back for 2022, sophomore Donovan Edwards, averaged a strong 5.0 yards per carry as a true freshman last fall. He's one who could challenge to put up 6-plus yards per carry this year and will certainly earn more than the 35 rushing attempts he saw last season. Harbaugh has also discussed using junior wide receiver A.J. Henning even more as a multiple-threat performer in Michigan's offense. Henning already possesses more runs than receptions as a Wolverine. Last year, Henning caught 10 passes for 79 yards in a winged helmet. But he rushed 9 times for 162 yards, including a huge touchdown bolt against Ohio State. Henning averaged 18 yards per carry on a variety of end-around runs. Wheatley's 7.3 yards per carry in 1992 bolstered an undefeated (three-tie) Michigan squad that won a shootout in the 1993 Rose Bowl. Wheatley rushed 185 times that season, garnering 1,357 yards and scoring 13 rushing touch- downs. He capped his performance on the year with a 15-carry, 235-yard explosion in the Wolverines' 38-31 win over Washington in the Rose Bowl. Wheatley's effort included touchdown runs of 56, 88 and 24 yards on the afternoon. — John Borton The Numbers Figure To Add Up For Corum "We will be better than last year's offense, due to the fact that Cade [McNamara] has become smarter, and I personally have become smarter. Every- one's IQ for the game has gotten better." CORUM