Donovan Edwards overcomes mental issues and is ready to lead Michigan football
West Bloomfield – Donovan Edwards did some drills and one-on-one time with the kids attending his third football camp at West Bloomfield High, then posed for photos and signed a few jerseys with the words “Sack the Stigma” in the background.
Edwards, who is entering his final season at Michigan, is expected to become the Wolverines’ best running back and team leader. That’s obviously important to him, but it’s not the only important aspect of his life.
Speaking openly and publicly about his mental health has become a big part of Edwards’ personality since he began addressing his mental health issues during the Wolverines’ playoff run last season, including at the podium during a media day leading up to the national title game.
There, Edwards spoke to a large audience of national media about how Mike Hart, his then-coach at Michigan, referred him to a therapist to help him deal with the mental health issues he was struggling with.
Edwards has made mental health one of his top priorities and wants to help others.
“I found my fire again,” Edwards said after his final camp at West Bloomfield High last weekend. “I had lost it.”
In the 2022 season, Edwards rushed for 991 yards on 140 carries and scored seven touchdowns behind Blake Corum. Last season, when Corum was the lead back, Edwards, who was slowed early due to injury, finished the season with 497 yards on 119 carries and scored five touchdowns, including two in the national title game. He also has 714 receiving yards in his career.
But last season he lost his fire and confidence. He didn’t recover from his offseason surgery as quickly as he had hoped, he had ongoing physical issues and, frankly, he didn’t feel needed.
“I just lost it because once you feel like you know your skills and you feel like you can’t make those certain plays and you feel like you’re not the one they’re relying on, you think, ‘OK, they don’t need me,'” Edwards told The Detroit News. “But they need you.”
“I realized that I wasn’t influenced by avoiding people. I realized that I was influenced by being a great teammate. I had — even if it wasn’t the way I wanted it to be, which is totally fine — an influence on the guys around me. They said, ‘We know what he can do, and right now it’s not working out, but at the end of the day he still has a smile on his face. He’s loving around other people.’ I think that’s what it’s about, and that’s why I’m grateful I went to Michigan, because Michigan made me a man and molded me into a great player. But a better man.”
Edwards thanks Stephen Eisenberg, a Michigan donor whose family is very involved in mental health at UM, with the Eisenberg Family Depression Center as the central facility, for encouraging him to use his platform as an athlete to raise more awareness.
“I realized that people think there’s nothing going on with athletes, that they’re just supernatural beings,” Edwards said. “That’s completely wrong. We bleed just like a normal human being, and at the end of the day, we’re normal human beings.”
“I just felt like that’s what I always wanted to do. I’m willing to be open. I want to inspire people to know that even if they’re going through a hard time, it’s OK, because everyone of us will go through hard times and struggle sooner or later. I just want to tell people that they don’t have to go through these things alone. I think it’s just something that I want to tell people that I don’t care who you are or what you do, that at the end of the day, you have feelings too and that everything isn’t always going to be OK, but it can be OK.”
Edwards said he has completed about 34 hours of community service so far this year as part of the Sack the Stigma campaign. He said being able to speak publicly about his mental health has helped him regain his confidence and he hopes to help others.
“People always tell you to be strong and men shouldn’t cry and stuff,” Edwards said. “But I feel like more and more men are speaking openly about what they’re going through and that makes other people see that they’re struggling too. And struggling is OK because that’s human nature. We’re all going to struggle. That’s what Don Gives is really about – really helping people and giving back to the community and uniting people so they can be one with each other.”
During spring practice, players from across the team talked about Edwards stepping up to his leadership role. Looking ahead to the upcoming season, he said being able to speak freely about his mental health has changed his outlook on football and his daily life.
“I’m focused. I’m ready to go,” said Edwards, who also plans to continue his youth camp year after year. “I’ve sharpened my game more mentally than physically, and the physical part will come. But for me, every single game, it’s about taking a deep breath, relaxing and playing the game as well as I can. I’m also not stressing myself out or putting any expectations on myself.
“I’ve realized there are some inconsistencies in football, right? You might get 5 yards. You might get 10 or 20 yards. You might get a minus-2. You might get a one-yard gain. So for me, it’s just about getting on the field and getting into the rhythm of the game. I don’t have to be Superman out there all the time. I could just go out there and get 8 yards, because the 8 yard gain is just as good as a 20 yard gain.”
And the new perspective is probably even more important. Edwards looked at his logo for Don Gives, crossed arms forming an unbreakable bond, and said it represents who he is now.
“It’s about people coming together,” he said. “And I think that’s all of our ultimate purpose in life, to just come together and be one.”
@chengelis
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