The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/998636
THE WOLVERINE 2018 FOOTBALL PREVIEW ■ 67 RUNNING BACKS THE WOLVERINE 2018 FOOTBALL PREVIEW ■ 67 RUNNING BACKS Prep: Attended Newtown High School … Carried the ball 80 times for 719 yards and 11 touchdowns during his senior year … Named the Connecticut Gatorade Player of the Year … Won three South-West Conference titles and advanced to the playoffs four straight years during his high school career. Personal: Born on May 25, 1999 … Enrolled in the College of Literature, Science and the Arts. O'MAURY SAMUELS • RB So. • Los Lunas, N.M. Ht. 5-10 • Wt. 192 Career Highlights: Saw action in nine games in his first season at Michigan … Carried the ball eight times for 13 yards. Prep: Rushed 160 times for 1,376 yards and 14 touchdowns as a senior … Garnered USA Today All-USA New Mexico first-team honors in 2016 … First-team New Mexico High School Coaches As- sociation 5A All-State selection as a senior and junior … Notched 185 carries for 1,468 yards and 21 touchdowns, plus eight receptions for 92 yards and two scores, his junior season … USA Today All- USA New Mexico second-team selection in 2015 … Ranked as a four-star recruit and the No. 21 running back nationally by Rivals.com. Personal: Born June 18, 1999 … Enrolled in the College of Literature, Science and the Arts. KURT TAYLOR • RB R-Fr. • Covington, Ga. Ht. 5-8 • Wt. 194 Career Highlights: Did not play in 2017. Prep: Had 193 carries for 994 yards and 14 touchdowns as a senior after transferring from Newton High to Gray- son High … Also had 21 catches for 332 yards and five scores his final year … At Newton, rushed the ball 240 times for 1,631 yards and 22 touchdowns during his junior season … Earned 6A first-team all- region honors in 2015 … Listed as a two-star recruit by Rivals.com. Personal: Born May 9, 1998 … Enrolled in the Col- lege of Literature, Science and the Arts. JARED WANGLER • FB 5th-Sr. • Royal Oak, Mich. Ht.: 6-2 • Wt.: 240 Career Highlights: Made the switch from linebacker to fullback prior to the 2017 campaign … Saw action in all 13 games and made three solo tackles while playing primarily on special teams … Played in four games at linebacker in 2016 and notched three tackles … Did not see game ac- tion in 2015 … Earned Academic All-Big Ten honors in 2015, 2016 and 2017 … Redshirted in 2014. Prep: Attended Warren De La Salle High School … Tallied 46 stops, three tackles for loss, two intercep- tions, one forced fumble and one fumble recovery as a senior … Named to The Detroit Free Press All-State Dream Team as a senior … Pegged a three- star prospect and the No. 17 player in Michigan by Rivals.com. Personal: Born Dec. 20, 1995 … His father, John Wangler, was a quarterback at Michigan (1976- 80) … His brother Jack was a wide receiver for the Wolverines from 2013-17 … His sister Halle was a guard on the U-M women's basketball team from 2013-16 … Enrolled in the College of Literature, Sci- ence and the Arts. NEWCOMERS HASSAN HASKINS • RB Fr. • Eureka, Mo. Ht.: 6-1 • Wt.: 207 Prep: Ran the ball 255 times for 2,197 yards and 31 touchdowns during his senior season … Was named the Missouri Class 6 Offensive Player of the Year and first-team Class 6 All-State by the Missouri Football Coaches Association … Exceeded 100 rush- ing yards in 12 of 13 games, and added 165 yards and two scores receiving … Racked up 4,548 yards and 57 touchdowns over his prep career … Tabbed as a three-star prospect, the No. 12 player in Mis- souri and the No. 40 running back in the country. Personal: Born Nov. 26, 1999 … His brother Mau- rice Alexander was drafted as a safety by the St. Louis Rams in 2014, and played for the organization from 2014-17 (he is now with Seattle as of June 2018). CHRISTIAN TURNER • RB Fr. • Buford, Ga. Ht.: 5-11 • Wt.: 185 Prep: Ran the ball 115 times for 801 yards and 10 touchdowns despite being limited by injuries during his final year … Was selected to Georgia's All-Region 8-AAAAA team … As a junior, he registered 135 car- ries for 1,115 yards and 18 scores while helping lead his team to a 13-2 record and a state championship game appearance … Rated a three-star recruit and the nation's No. 18 running back by Rivals. Personal: Born Nov. 22, 1999. BEN VANSUMEREN • RB Fr. • Essexville, Mich. Ht.: 6-3 • Wt.: 232 Prep: Notched a state regular-season record with 85 receptions his senior year, which totaled 1,259 yards and included 13 touchdowns … Also racked up 387 rushing yards on 54 carries in his final season … Was selected as a first-team All-State wide receiver by USA Today following his final prep season … Honored as the 2017 Associated Press Division 5-6 high school football Player of the Year … Listed as a three-star recruit, the No. 15 player in Michigan and the No. 34 athlete in the country by Rivals. Personal: Born May 5, 2000 … Grew up a U-M fan, and will become the first player from his high school to play for the Wolverines. ROSTER No. Name Pos. Ht. Wt. Year Elig. Hometown (High School) 46 Matt Brown* FB 6-0 220 So. So. Solon, Ohio (Solon) 45 Peter Bush* FB 6-2 225 Jr. Jr. Newport Beach, Calif. (Corona Del Mar) 44 Jared Char* RB 5-10 192 Jr. Jr. Farmington Hills, Mich. (Harrison) 39 Spencer Dickow* FB 6-0 225 Sr. Sr. Bloomfield Hills, Mich. (Brother Rice) 12 Chris Evans RB 5-11 206 Jr. Jr. Indianapolis (Ben Davis) — Hassan Haskins RB 6-1 207 Fr. Fr. Eureka, Mo. (Eureka Senior) 27 Joe Hewlett* RB 6-0 196 5th. Sr. Novi, Mich. (Northville) 22 Karan Higdon RB 5-10 190 Sr. Sr. Sarasota, Fla. (Riverview) 42 Ben Mason FB 6-3 251 So. So. Newtown, Conn. (Newtown) 49 Tyler Plocki* FB 6-1 219 So. So. Saline, Mich. (Saline) 23 O'maury Samuels RB 5-10 192 So. So. Los Lunas, N.M. (Los Lunas) 5 Kurt Taylor RB 5-8 194 So. Fr. Covington, Ga. (Grayson) — Christian Turner RB 5-11 185 Fr. Fr. Buford, Ga. (Buford) — Ben VanSumeren FB 6-3 232 Fr. Fr. Essexville, Mich. (Garber) 5 Jared Wangler FB 6-2 240 5th Sr. Royal Oak, Mich. (De La Salle) 24 Tru Wilson* RB 5-10 200 Jr. Jr. Warren, Mich. (De La Salle) * Walk-on Sophomore O'maury Samuels was one of 15 true freshmen to see action last year, logging time in nine contests and rushing eight times for 13 yards. PHOTO BY PER KJELDSEN