Despite some saying the anticipation for the Michigan football season is at an all-time low, with kickoff just 44 days away, that's not the feeling from the men actually inside Schembechler Hall.
Those who weren't around for the 2020 season in which the Wolverines finished with a 2-4 record have injected new life into the program, and those who were part of that team want to get the bad taste out of their mouth.
"It’s a different atmosphere this season, and I feel like it’s going to be a big season for us," redshirt sophomore running back Hassan Haskins said at Big Ten Media Day Thursday. "I’m definitely excited to play again."
Haskins is now the veteran in the running backs room, which is considered the team's top position group, and he has earned the respect of his teammates over the last few years.
"Hassan is a baller. Hassan is a guy that is just a football player," redshirt junior Josh Ross said. "Runs the ball, tenacious runner, able to be crafty and kind of have balance and get out of situations that you’re kind of like, ‘How did he get out of that?’
"But also, at the same time, not only is he a great running back, but he’s also going to go on special teams and earn it. Those are the types of guys you want on your team."
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Now led by new position coach Mike Hart, Michigan's all-time leading rusher who has been rapidly climbing the coaching ranks, there are high expectations for the ball-carriers.
"I like all of [the new coaches], especially my new coach, Mike Hart," Haskins raved. "That’s my guy; I love him. He definitely knows what he’s talking about. He’s been in my shoes before. He definitely is a great coach, and I love him.
"He knows the little details within the game of football. I’m just learning, picking his brain with everything he’s talking about. That’s really been a good start.
"He fills the room with energy. He’s exciting."
Head coach Jim Harbaugh said that Haskins, who led the team in rushing last season with 375 yards and six touchdowns, and second-year freshman Blake Corum, a speedster who posted 77 rushing yards and two scores in 2020, are 1 and 1 (a), respectively, while freshman Donovan Edwards, a four-star recruit out of West Bloomfield (Mich.) High who enrolled in January, will also receive some snaps.
Haskins said he's not sure if the heavy amount of rotating between the backs that occured last season will continue now that Hart is in charge of the room, but he's confident in whoever is out there on any given down.
"All the running backs we’ve got now are good," Haskins said. "Anybody can be out there and do their thing. I’m just doing day by day and just working like everybody else. I don’t consider myself bigger than any person on our team, and I know any running back that gets on that field is going to do his job."
Corum is known for loving to train, and posting about it on social media. His testing numbers have been off the charts during the summer cycle, and he helps push the group.
"He’s always been working like that," Haskins said of Corum. "He just does that; he feeds off it — working out, doing something. He’s always been like that since I’ve known him."
After winning a state title during the high school season, which was pushed back due to state orders, Edwards joined the Wolverines — and stood out from the day he arrived to Ann Arbor. He has carried that momentum into spring ball and through the summer.
"Donovan Edwards is going to be a good player, a great player," Haskins said. "I can tell and feel that he’s been working, grinding like everybody else. He definitely can be a great player, and I’ve got confidence that he will. He can do the job. It’s going to be exciting to watch."
As the most experienced player in the room, Haskins has taken on a bit more of a leadership role than in the past, he said. Him as the No. 1 guy, plus a duo of Corum and Edwards just behind him, should make up a formidable rushing attack. Haskins believes there may not be a better trio in the entire country
"Everybody we’ve got now is dominating," he said. "I feel like we’ve got the best running back group in the nation. I definitely got confidence in them when they get in the game and do what they do. I definitely believe in all of them."
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