Donovan Edwards' trick-play moment was weeks in the making

Michigan hit on some big plays during Saturday's Big Ten Championship game against Iowa. Perhaps, none bigger than the halfback pass from Donovan Edwards to a wide-open Roman Wilson to break the Wolverines' early lead wide open in the first quarter.

It was a play that was flawless from the start. From the pre-snap execution to Edwards delivering the perfect pass to hit Wilson in stride for the touchdown, it certainly seemed as if the Wolverines had that play saved in the back pocket.

Funnily enough, the play certainly worked out when it counted.

"He threw a beautiful pass," Wilson told reporters on Sunday. "Funny story, we were doing a walk-through the night before the game. He was like, 'Yo, Roman, let's practice it.' He overthrew me by like 20 yards. I think it was pretty funny when we got into the game he threw the perfect pass. It just looked perfect, too."

According to U-M head coach Jim Harbaugh, he confirmed that the play has been in the works for a while. All season long, the offensive coaching staff had been searching for ways to take advantage of Edwards' athleticism to work alongside the likes of Hassan Haskins and Blake Corum.

It just so happens that Edwards can throw the ball, too.

"We knew first of all Donovan Edwards, we had that play," Harbaugh said. "That was ready for primetime. It’s been ready for primetime for about seven weeks. First, put it in before he hurt his ankle. And then when he came back, started greasing it up again and knew that that one was going to work. We had it planned early. As soon as we got into the left hash after the fourth play, we were going to run that.

"He’s never missed on that throw. Sometimes he throws it off his left, his right foot. He’s always on the move running when he throws it. And every time it’s a dime. And Roman did a great job tracking it down. And that was big. So we hit some big plays."

His big-play ability even caught the attention of the quarterback, too. While Cade McNamara isn't worried about Edwards taking over the quarterback depth chart by any means, the beauty of the pass he delivered to Wilson had to be appreciated.

"He dropped dimes," McNamara said. "I was shocked. He hasn't thrown a ball like that in practice, let me tell you, or else I might be second string. But -- but, yeah, he's just an extremely athletic player and, you know, he contributes to the offense in his unique way. Yeah. He's a gamer, I guess, with the arm"

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