The hype for Michigan Football’s Donovan Edwards is justified

One analyst offered up Michigan football’s Donovan Edwards as a Heisman contender and we don’t think that’s hyperbole at all. 

Donovan Edwards had a limited role with Michigan football as a freshman. But as his second season is getting closer, no one will be surprised to watch him explode this season as a sophomore.

Edwards totaled more than 400 yards from scrimmage last season and one game that helped with that was a 10-reception, 170-yard performance against Maryland. He also had a game with 86 yards rushing on eight attempts against Northern Illinois.

The ability to impact the game as both a runner and receiver is what makes Edwards so special, outside of his speed, athleticism, and ability to make people miss.

His touchdown pass in the Big Ten title game shows that he’s not afraid to ball out on the big stage and it’s going to be fun to see what he does with a lot more touches in 2022.

Jim Harbaugh heaped praise on Edwards, calling him “special” among other things during Big Ten Media Days this week:

"“Donovan Edwards, he’s one of those outliers, one of those — just keep doing you, Donovan. That’s all I can say to Donovan Edwards. I mean, just everything he does, every way he does it, every way he attacks things, just his personality, just being around him, I mean, can’t have any more favorite player than Donovan Edwards. He’s one of those that comes along every so often, every generation, so to speak. But he’s super special.”"

The hype for Michigan football’s backfield is deserved

Blake Corum has gotten plenty of his own hype this offseason and it’s well-deserved. It also wouldn’t be shocking to see him push for some major awards.

Could Corum and Edwards both rush for more than 1,000 yards? It’s certainly possible, but I’d be stunned if both guys didn’t get somewhere in the range of 1,500 total yards. Corum should be the leading rusher but Edwards won’t be far behind and he could be among the leaders in receptions.

I could easily see Edwards breaking out for something between 500-700 yards receiving. The Wolverines have lots of weapons already and how are teams going to deal with him out of the backfield? And that doesn’t even touch on the fact that he’s an elite runner. He averaged five yards per attempt last season and that was mostly in garbage time with backups blocking for him.

Behind the No. 1 offensive line and with gameplans built around his abilities, Edwards is going to be special, so special that Fox analyst Joel Klatt sees him as a darkhorse for the Heisman from what he told Wolverines Wire: 

"“I think that he’s a dark horse Heisman contender. I think he’s a dark-horse offensive player of the year in the Big Ten. And primarily because I think he’s about as complete as they come for a young player in particular. Even last year, as just a baby, when it comes to experience, he caught it really well out of the backfield. You saw that come to fruition in particular against Maryland in that game, the screen passes that became more prevalent after Blake left with his injury, in particular in the Big Ten Championship game. He’s really good at that. But he’s also great at running the football."

Edwards is going to be a game-changer and as I’ve said before, I don’t think Michigan football fans should be shocked if the tandem of Edwards-Corum is viewed as the best running back tandem in the country by the end of the 2022 season.

That’s my hope at least and it’s not hyperbole. That’s how good these dudes are.