After three seasons with the Michigan Wolverines and a legendary performance in the National Championship, most fans would have understood if junior running back Donovan Edwards called it a college career and declared for the NFL Draft.
But that simply wasn’t good enough for a special player and person like Edwards. Announced on social media on Monday, Edwards is sticking around for his senior season.
pic.twitter.com/mjPwClc7Ww
— Donovan Edwards ¹ᵏ (@DEdwards__) January 15, 2024
Edwards is coming off a monster National Championship game, scoring two first-half touchdowns and setting the tone for Michigan’s ground game. The West Bloomfield native became the first player in College Football Playoff history to score two 40-yard rushing touchdowns in the National Championship.
When it mattered most, he had about as efficient of a stat line as you can have a running back: six rushes for 104 yards and two scores.
Early house call from Donovan Edwards!
ESPN#GoBlue pic.twitter.com/efPMbscxBv
— Michigan Football (@UMichFootball) January 9, 2024
Donovan Edwards CANNOT be stopped
pic.twitter.com/ooVBHe8nyh
— PFF College (@PFF_College) January 9, 2024
This performance came after a relatively disappointing junior season for Edwards, where he rushed for 50 or more yards in a game just three times, while also only scoring five touchdowns. He said at media day for the National Championship he’s been seeing a therapist to help with his mental health during the rocky season.
Donovan Edwards on being asked if he’s been frustrated with his season individually. “I feel like this season has been more of a mental aspect for me. I feel like I’m going to be perfectly fine in the future.” He also says he’s been seeing a therapist to help with his mental… pic.twitter.com/6MgETzoQdm
— Josh Newkirk (@JoshNewkirk7) January 6, 2024
After that clip went semi-viral on Michigan Twitter, you couldn’t feel better for the kid after what he did in the National Championship; it felt like a performance like that was a long-time coming, and he will forever be a national champion.
A blessing and a dream come true!
️ @DEdwards__ pic.twitter.com/hAahd5bPi2
— Michigan Football (@UMichFootball) January 9, 2024
Across three seasons in college so far, Edwards has appeared in 38 games, rushing 294 times for 1,662 yards (5.7 yards per carry) and 15 rushing touchdowns. He also did a decent job catching passes out of the backfield, recording 30 catches for 249 yards.
Edwards was one half of arguably the greatest running back tandem in Michigan history. While Blake Corum — who is off to the NFL — scored a lot of touchdowns and was the go-to guy in short yardage situations, Edwards is well-known for his bursts of speed and big-play ability. Who could forget his performance in the win against Ohio State in 2022, where he ran for 216 yards and two touchdowns on 22 carries — definitely not us.
With Edwards officially back, you can pencil him in as RB1 in 2024. He will be right alongside Kalel Mullings, Cole Cabana, Ben Hall, Jordan Marshall and Micah Ka’apana as Michigan’s running backs next season.
