Michigan Football’s Blake Corum deserved a Heisman invite

The 2022 Heisman Trophy finalists were released on Monday and unfortunately, Michigan football’s Blake Corum wasn’t on the list but he should have been. 

For the second straight year, Michigan football seemed to have a player poised to break through among all the quarterbacks that tend to dominate the Heisman Trophy.

It’s not just the award though. Look at the Heisman finalists of the past two years. All but one of them over the past two years — Aidan Hutchinson — hasn’t been a quarterback.

Blake Corum have should gotten a Heisman invite

Blake Corum would and should have made it two. I understand Corum not winning the Heisman Trophy after not being able to play against Ohio State, but he’s got impressive stats (better than Stetson Bennett) and as Clayton Safie of The Wolverine points out, if Corum had missed the first game or two instead of the last, he would have been invited.

Corum had 96 first-down runs this season according to the same article and that was second in all of college football. He also rushed for 1,463 yards in just 11 games. He got two carries against Ohio State and in the non-conference schedule, never got more than 12.

Blake and Michigan football aren’t about padding stats — just winning and they did that thanks to Corum, who averaged 5.9 yards per carry and had eight 100-yard games including over 100 in the first half against Illinois. He also had over 100 against Iowa and Penn State — three of the best run defenses in college football.

Corum had 243 rushing yards against Maryland, 166 against Penn State, and 177 against Michigan State. In every big game, he was exceptional and Michigan football wouldn’t be 13-0 without him.

However, quarterbacks rule the day. Bennett is a really good QB. He proved that last season but if he wasn’t playing for the No. 1 team, he wouldn’t be given any consideration and shouldn’t have been voted ahead of Corum. Stroud shouldn’t have either after another failure against Michigan.

The Heisman Trophy shouldn’t go to the quarterback of the No. 1 team. Caleb Williams or Max Duggan should probably win it, but Corum belongs among the top four, especially if the question is who is the best player in college football?

Unfortunately, the Heisman Trophy isn’t about what it used to be.