The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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20 THE WOLVERINE NOVEMBER 2022 The child enjoyed plenty of play time, because those days involved some long waits. His dad built and thrived in his business, working almost nonstop. Before long, his son began to grasp the concept. "I believe it was second grade when I started playing football," Corum said. "I always wanted to put my pads on and my helmet on at the house. I would run in my backyard. That started the hard work. "In the third or fourth grade, I really realized how hard my dad and my mom worked for me and my sisters. "That's when it really kicked in. No one's going to out-work me. I'm going to get up early. Every night I'll do push- ups and sit-ups. It was a change in my mind, like, nothing's going to stop me. My friends say I can't get it, but I'm going to think bigger than everyone." Corum thought big, and his parents drove long, when he hit high school. His first two years, he attended St. Vincent Pallotti High in Laurel, Md., an hour and 18 minutes away from his home. "The first two years, the drive was un- real," James Corum told BTN. "My wife, Christina, she would drive. They would leave here at 4:30, 5 o'clock. "I would leave here in the afternoons, and sometimes we wouldn't get back here until 8:30, 9 o'clock." "I hated those mornings," Christina Corum admitted, with a laugh. "I dreaded them. But he never once complained. I never had to tell him to wake up." As a junior, Corum switched to St. Frances Academy, coached by Biff Poggi, father of a former Wolverine and now part of Harbaugh's extended staff. Corum blossomed into an elite recruit, armed not only with football talent but infused with his dad's dedication to the mission. "Even though my dad worked con- stantly, he always found time for the fam- ily," Corum recalled. "That was hard for him. He told me a story of when our pas- tor had to sit him down and say, 'Dude, you have a family. You can't work 24/7. We know you like to work, but you also have a family. They need you. They want to see you.' "He actually had the same problem I have, but I don't have a family. I can do that. But after my pastor told him that, he said, 'You know, you're right. I'm going to work hard, but I'm only going to work so many hours, and I'm going to spend the rest of my time with my family.'" That led to beach trips to Ocean City, Md., an outing to Disney World, and some balance to the relentless landscaping la- bors. "They always found time to do things their parents weren't able to do for them, and they did it for us," Corum said. By then, work habits were well estab- lished in their eldest child, Corum as- sured. He once called his mom from Michigan and told her of his frustration at getting locked out of the weight room in Ann Arbor. He just might live there, if given the chance. Hart insists he's learned to relax a bit, although that's more challenging than a defender taking him down one-on-one in the open field. "It's tough," Corum admitted. "I'm not going to lie. First of all, I'm used to seeing my dad work, work, work. He's finally to the level where the business is that he can relax. And I don't even know if he likes re- laxing. He wants to find ways to get more jobs. "I've tried, and I've definitely gotten better. And when I am relaxing, I'm like, I could be getting better right now. I've found ways to get better. Instead of just watching TV, I watch film. So, I'm relax- ing, but I'm also getting better at the same time. Mike Hart, Others Insist Corum Is Special Blake Corum stood shocked and teary-eyed at the sight of his position coach, Mike Hart, getting carted off the field following a sideline medical emergency at Indiana. Just days earlier, Hart spoke at length about the relationship between coach and player. The former standout running back for the Wolverines noted the pres- ent star shines as brightly off the field as on. "You want your daughters to marry who you are, and that's Blake Corum," Hart said. "I love the kid. We have a special relationship. I don't want anyone touching my daughters or talking to my daughters. But Blake Corum? He can do what he wants. "My 4-year-old says, 'When's Bwake coming?' The kid is special. He acts like me, he is me. He just eats better than I did when I was younger." Corum returns the sentiment, citing Hart as a forever friend far beyond the football field. He's enjoyed Thanksgiving dinner with the Harts, received off-field advice and inspirational texts from Mike, and can't imagine a better mentor dur- ing his sojourn in Ann Arbor. "I love that guy, man," Corum said. "He's helped my game tremendously. He's helped me off the field. I couldn't say enough nice things about him. I'm just so glad I'm here, and that we've formed the relationship that we have. It's going to last forever. "That's my guy, man. I love him, for sure." Corum acknowledges his offensive linemen as well, never failing to mention them as the gateway to his open fields. They appreciate every acknowledgment. "Blake is a super special back," junior guard Zak Zinter noted. "You can see it, we can see it. We know if we do our jobs up front, get the down linemen and get to the linebackers, Blake's got the ability, almost every time, to make that secondary miss. It's super special to be able to block for him. "It's awesome. It means a lot to us that he knows the work that we put in. We love to do it. It's awesome that he gives us the credit. We're doing our jobs up front, of trying to make those holes for him, and when he wants to celebrate with us, it's awesome. He's recognizing what we're trying to do to help him out." "We want to do our best, but the line's not perfect on every play," grad tackle Ryan Hayes added. "It's nice to have Blake back there, because he definitely cov- ers up the mistakes we make from time to time. He'll do a little cut and get out there. "We may have missed a block, but he just does a great job of covering up our mistakes." Make no mistake — together, they plan on getting even better down the stretch. — John Borton