Donovan Edwards is ready to shine as the face of Michigan football
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Late in the first quarter of Michigan’s 34-13 win over Washington in the College Football Playoff final, ESPN commentator Chris Fowler yelled, “Welcome back, Donovan Edwards!” That’s when the Wolverines star approached the end zone for the second time that night, with a 46-yard touchdown sprint that showcased the natural talent of a player whose talent had mysteriously waned over the course of the 2023 season.
On 11th Hour of Michigan’s title fight, Edwards had experienced a kind of sweet redemption for a difficult fall in which he crashed heavily.
“It was a big mental battle for me,” Edwards said last Saturday at West Bloomfield High School, his alma mater and the site of his last youth football camp.
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In some ways, Edwards was to blame. He was disturbed by the hype he had created around himself last summer when he boasted on a national website that he would go down in history as one of the greatest running backs of all time and proclaimed his belief that he would one day “revolutionize the game.”
That was a lot of bluster from someone who was in the shadow of Blake Corum, the Wolverines’ best ball carrier and the de facto heartbeat of the offense during Michigan’s recent golden era. The self-aggrandizing comments were bound to blow up in Edwards’ face, and they did. In the 14 appearances prior to his 104-yard, two-touchdown performance against the Huskies, Edwards averaged just 28.1 rushing yards per game.
The weekly disappointments left Edwards contrite and searching for the “fire in his soul,” as he put it.
“I lost it, but then I found it again,” he continued. “And that really helped me a lot because I thought, ‘OK, I’m going to let go of all expectations of myself.'”
Edwards felt liberated when Michigan won the CFP Cup in Houston. But now, nearly six months later, he feels a weight on his shoulders again as the fanfare around him grows again. He can thank EA Sports for that, after the company announced in May that it had chosen him, Texas quarterback Quinn Ewers and Colorado two-way sensation Travis Hunter for the cover of its rebooted college football video game.
Edwards said he is grateful to have been chosen for the frontcourt position, calling it a “blessing.” However, he recognizes it can also be a burden, knowing he’s in the spotlight and the pressure is mounting to live up to his status as one of the most recognizable faces in the sport.
“I’m in a situation and on a platform where all eyes are on me,” admitted Edwards, a 21-year-old senior. “My question is, ‘What are you going to do when all eyes are on you? Are you going to do nothing? Are you going to step outside of yourself?'”
The Wolverines’ fate this season could depend on Edwards’ response.
Finally, the offense is undergoing a comprehensive restructuring. After the last confetti fell at NRG Stadium in January, the team said goodbye to Corum, star quarterback JJ McCarthy and the entire starting offensive lineup. The exodus of talent left Michigan with only a few proven performers other than Edwards and junior tight end Colston Loveland.
But while Loveland has produced consistent results throughout his career, Edwards’ performance has been more sporadic. Up until then, Edwards averaged less than 4 yards per carry in 10 of his 15 appearances last season. Failing to get going over the course of a frustrating fall, memories of his stunning 216-yard, two-touchdown tour de force against Ohio State in November 2022 began to fade.
That performance in Columbus made Edwards a household name, raised his profile and perhaps set him up for the disappointment of 2023. But it now offers cause for hope for this season — it showed he can shine in a leadership role. With Corum hampered by a torn meniscus in his left knee, Edwards was tasked with being the primary running back that afternoon 19 months ago. It was the first of three games in which he carried the ball more than 20 times. On each occasion, Edwards eclipsed 100 yards on the ground.
“Football is a game of rhythm and feel,” Edwards said. “If you don’t get into the rhythm that you know, who’s to say you’re going to score 40- or 70-yard touchdowns that you know you’re capable of?”
That’s a question Edwards asked himself last fall when he was averaging about eight tackles per game. But it’s one he probably won’t have to ask himself any time soon.
That’s because Edwards is expected to be one of Michigan’s main engines this season. New running backs coach Tony Alford described Edwards as “kind of the alpha male in our room.”
“I mean, he’s a great player, as we all know,” added H-back Max Bredeson. “His role will be as big as possible.”
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Edwards offered a preview of what it could look like in April when he propelled his team on a scoring drive in the opening possession of the spring game. With extra muscle on his 6-foot-1 frame, he carried the ball five times for 33 yards, ran hard up the middle and left defenders behind while picking up multiple first downs. In his brief cameo, he showed the strength, power and urgency rarely seen in 2023, moving the posts on just 16 of his 119 attempts and forcing just 14 missed tackles.
Offensive coordinator Kirk Campbell was particularly impressed by the muscular running back’s performance in this glorious training game.
“I told him at halftime that I was proud of him,” he said afterward. “I thought he probably ran the hardest race I’ve ever seen him run.”
The question now is whether he has enough strength to complete his career at Michigan, full of ups and downs.
Not long ago, Edwards, a third-round pick in the 2025 draft, thought he had already crossed that line. Last year, he planned to skip his final season and play in the NFL next fall, but he believed his own hype.
“I’m expected to move up in the league… I’m expected to have a great year,” he said in one breath.
“I thought it would all be rosy, but it wasn’t,” he explained in another post.
It was a hard lesson to learn in front of millions of people.
But it grounded him and set the stage for him to become one of the faces of college football in 2024.
Welcome back, Donovan Edwards?
“Whatever,” Edwards said dismissively.
He claims he never really left.
Michigan, meanwhile, hopes he has the staying power this year to lead the Wolverines back to glory.
Contact Rainer Sabin at [email protected]. Follow him @RainerSabin
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