ANN ARBOR, Mich. — One of the big reasons why Michigan football targeted Donovan Edwards as a recruit wasn’t just his ability as a running back as much as it was his versatility. And though we’ve seen him used in different ways, it’s appeared to wane over the past year.
Edwards was often spoken of as perhaps the best receiver that the Wolverines had, despite times when Roman Wilson or Ronnie Bell were on the roster. We saw Michigan roll him out at receiver in 2022, but he sustained a nagging injury on a long pass play in Week 2 against Hawaii, and it took him some time to get back to full capability. Still, he had receiving touchdowns in Week 5 against Iowa and later in the year at Rutgers that year — showcasing his ability to run routes and reel it in with his hands.
Now Michigan has a new offensive coordinator in former quarterbacks coach Kirk Campbell. Campbell says that the best offenses are ones that look at their players’ capabilities and work that way, rather than forcing players to adapt to the offensive system.
Thus, Edwards could be a big beneficiary in 2024.
“I’ve been on record saying this, I think any offensive coordinator tailors their offense to their players,” Campbell said. “Donovan Edwards, different running style than Blake Corum. He’s still going to be asked to do the same things but we also gotta get him in open field, get him in space one-on-one with linebackers, that’s what he does really well. Kalel Mullings is a really good downhill runner. We have to tailor the run game around what our offensive line does well and what our running backs do well as well. It could be a little bit different but it could be the same at some point in time.”
Of course, Edwards had a tough 2023 campaign. Asked either to run between the tackles or in slow-developing outside zone schemes, it appeared last year as if he had lost his luster. His frustration boiled over until the final game of the year, when he ran for two 40-plus yard touchdowns in the national championship game.
Now that Edwards is no longer behind Blake Corum on the depth chart, Campbell sees a player renewed, back to possessing the swagger he once had when he arrived in Ann Arbor as a five-star recruit.
“I think he has a lot more confidence walking around right now,” Campbell said. “He knows that a lot of guys in the program are looking up to him now where in the past it might’ve been Blake and him. Now, it’s like, hey, the guys are looking at him to have a leadership role. I think the confidence that he exudes is a big difference. He’s had a really good summer. He looks healthy, running around well, has cut some weight again. I think the confidence thing is a huge factor. As a freshman, you guys probably remember, he had that swagger, that Donovan swagger where it was like, man, when he touched the ball it was going to be electric. That’s the look in the eyes he has right now and he has the confidence he’s walking around with.”
If Michigan is to make another deep run into the postseason, coming off of three consecutive Big Ten titles and three College Football Playoff berths, it will need not only a confident Edwards to provide ample production on the ground, it could also benefit from deploying him in unexpected ways.
After all, that’s what he has the skillset for.