When fifth-year senior running back Ty Isaac transferred to Michigan from USC after the 2013 season, expectations were sky-high for the former five-star out of high school.
Unfortunately, Isaac has not lived up to the hype so far in Ann Arbor, only compiling 622 rushing yards over the last two seasons.
Seeing as how 2017 will be his final chance to shine in college, has Isaac finally turned a corner?
“I feel like I’ve been more consistent,” he said. “I’ve been better at everything — playing physical, blocking, catching the ball, running well. I haven’t done as well as I’d hoped in the past, and it’s been on my mind. I thought about that, and wanted to nip it in the bud.”
Isaac realizes this is his last go-round in the winged helmet, but isn’t getting emotional or sappy about it.
“I haven’t dwelled on it,” he explained. “It’s a factor, but it’s not an overbearing thought for me.”
Although he isn’t getting too sentimental about this being his last season in Ann Arbor, he did admit there is a new sense of urgency with it being so close to game week.
“There definitely is,” he exclaimed. “It’s excitement, but at the same time you can feel people getting more focused because they realize there’s only a few practices left before the game. We can’t be making mistakes anymore — we have to be dialed in because Florida is doing the same thing, and they want to beat us bad.”
Part of that increased focus obviously involves holding onto the football, and Isaac said ball security has been a major strength of the unit.
“I’d say we’re the best position group on the field when it comes to ball security,” he said. “We’re very strict about it. We understand that if we don’t have the ball, then we can’t score, and we can’t win if we don’t score.”
Fumbling hasn’t been a major issue for Michigan’s running backs in a long time, and Isaac explained that the youngsters have been solid in that aspect, along with other areas.
“You can tell [sophomore] Chris [Evans] has really been in the playbook,” Isaac revealed. “[Redshirt freshman] Kareem [Walker] just seems more focused — he’s a lot more engaged.
“I’ve never been on a team where running back is just dominated by one guy — it’s always been a rotation, and that’s the nature of the position. We’re doing so much for everyone else on the team — we block just as much as the linemen or tight ends, so it’s hard to be selfish at this position.”
Last year’s running backs coach, Tyrone Wheatley, left for the NFL after the season ended, and was replaced by Jay Harbaugh. Isaac touched on what he has brought to the table so far.
“He’s a little bit different from Coach Wheatley,” Isaac said. “He makes us talk through our own mistakes, and he’ll ask us questions as to why we did something. It helps a lot, and it helps him make his coaching points.”
There has been plenty of hype around Isaac the last few years, but none of it has come to fruition. It’s officially now or never for the fifth-year senior from Joliet, Ill.
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