Michigan Football Preview 2013

2013 Michigan Football Preview

The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports

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Returning Taking A Backseat To Form After Five Seasons Of To Quarterbacks, U-M's Running Backs Will Rule The Roost Rb Junior Thomas Rawls appeared in eight games a year ago, starting against Ohio State and playing extensively in the opener versus Alabama, and he finished with 242 yards and four scores on 57 carries (4.2 yards per rush). photo by Lon horwedel R By Michael Spath unning backs coach Fred Jackson, now entering his 22nd season with the Wolverines, seems to have an extra spring in his step around Schembechler Hall these days, and a grin from ear to ear. Jackson has reason to smile; after five seasons in which U-M's natural ball carriers played second fiddle to quarterbacks (largely Denard Robinson, and for good reason) the tailbacks are once again expected to earn the bulk of the rushing touches in Michigan's prostyle offense. "You can tell by the way I carry myself around this building how excited I am because I know our running backs are going to dictate the game," said Jackson. 88  ■  The Wolverine 2013 Football Preview "I love Denard and what he did for Michigan, and I really hope he has great success in the pros, but when he was in the backfield, opposing teams put two safeties in the box, and even if they're keeping one eye on the quarterback, that still makes it harder for your running backs to run the football. "I'm not making excuses because we didn't do our jobs as well as we should have last year, but there were a lot of factors. I think when you look at our offense the last five games, with the threat of playaction and a passing game that put safeties on their heels, it really created an opportunity for our backs. "That's the kind of offense I coached here for most of my career, and the kind of offense that Michigan has proven over and over again is difficult to stop. We can hit you in the mouth when you only have

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