Who will lead Michigan Wolverines football in rushing in the 2020 season? There's plenty of options in a loaded running back room. The Wolverines return 79.6 percent of its rushing snaps from last season, and also adds a familiar face back to the team in redshirt senior Chris Evans.
Here, we rank the top candidates to notch the most yards in the run game.
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1. Zach Charbonnet: The sophomore back was the team's leading rusher last year as a freshman, as he accumulated 726 yards on 149 carries and scored 11 touchdowns. He started the first six games of the year for the Wolverines, and played in all 13 contests, despite reportedly battling minor injuries throughout the year. Being healthy this offseason will benefit him going forward, running backs coach Jay Harbaugh told Jon Jansen on the In The Trenches podcast recently.
"It’s going to be really special how he improves with his speed, with his lower body flexibility, his balance, his change of direction," said Harbaugh.
Look for Charbonnet to get the bulk of the carries this upcoming season, after leading the team in carries, yards and touchdowns on the ground. He should take the next step as a back who can carry the ball at an even higher volume than last year.
2. Hassan Haskins: The redshirt sophomore got more and more comfortable as the season wore on last year, a great sign for a player who transitioned from linebacker to the backfield, where he seems to be a great fit. Haskins ran the ball 121 times for 622 yards and four touchdowns a year ago and started the final six games of the year.
Haskins is a needed change of pace from Charbonnet. While Charbonnet is shiftier, looking to make a move and get around a defender, Haskins wants to run through guys, and succeeded at that in his debut season at the position in a winged helmet. His breakout game came against Notre Dame, when he rushed for 149 yards in the rain, right through (and over, with a nice hurdle on one run) the Irish defense.
Expect Haskins to split carries again, to an extent, with Charbonnet to form a two-headed monster of sorts at the position.
3. Chris Evans: Here's where things get interesting. Evans missed last season due to an academic issue, but returned to team activities this January. He has accumulated 1,722 rushing yards and 14 touchdowns throughout his three years playing at U-M.
Evans is a different style of back from Charbonnet and Haskins, and will add another change of pace altogether.
"He has a certain type of elusiveness to him that not many other guys on our roster have, and it’s pretty special in the scope of our conference and nationally," Harbaugh said. "Just what he can do in tight spaces with his feet, with his hips and it’ll be a nice added weapon for us."
Would we be shocked to see Evans take the reigns and be the premier back in his redshirt senior season? No, but we expect him to be used much more situationally. While he's not projected to lead the team in rushing, we would project him to lead the running back group in receiving out of the backfield. His versatility also gives him the ability to play in the slot, if needed. Look for him on third-and-long situations to pass block, slip out for a screen or short pass, or get the handoff on a draw.
His skill, experience, leadership and versatility are a nice addition to a running back room that exceeded expectations a year ago.
"You love having that kind of veteran leadership, especially with a guy like him, who hasn’t had the smoothest, most perfect ride, but that’s now a strength for him," Harbaugh said.
4. Blake Corum: The biggest unknown in a position group that is fairly solidified would be Corum, the four-star incoming freshman from Baltimore (Md.) St. Frances. He rushed for 1,438 yards on 172 carries and scored 22 rushing touchdowns as a prep senior. Corum comes in with a lot of speed, and is a versatile back, like Evans. He could very well be used situationally this season in meaningful snaps, but his opportunities may be much more limited than the others on this list due to the depth at the position.
Corum was already impressing in winter workouts as an early enrollee, and is ahead of the curve compared to other freshmen, something that will benefit him come fall.
"He’ll bring great competition to the group, in terms of what he can do skillset wise," Harbaugh said.
5. Christian Turner: Before the 2019 season, many thought Turner had a chance to take over the starting duties at running back, but after the impressive breakout seasons by Charbonnet and Haskins, Turner seemingly finds himself buried on the depth chart. To his defense, Turner did battle injury, holding him out of the final three games of the campaign. He notched 44 rushes for 171 yards and one touchdown on the year.
If not for the talent ahead of him, Turner would not be a bad option to get meaningful carries, but it's even harder to imagine him getting the ball much now that Evans and Corum are on the roster.
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