It has been a tale of two separate realities for Donovan Edwards during his first three seasons at the University of Michigan. On one side, Edwards has served as a critical piece during one of the most successful stretches in program history – one that included three consecutive wins over Ohio State, three consecutive Big Ten Championships, and a National Championship. On the other side, Edwards – a former five-star prospect – has had to remain patient while splitting reps with Michigan legend Blake Corum. Oftentimes, Edwards would watch from the sideline as the Michigan offense would routinely lean on Corum and the rushing attack in key moments.
With Corum now off to the NFL, Edwards is set to become the feature back in Ann Arbor for the first time in his collegiate career – and it’s clear he’s taking that opportunity seriously.
Meeting with the media during the spring, Edwards admitted that he’s faced his fare share of adversity during his time at Michigan, and that he’s learned to embrace that adversity.
“I’ll be honest, I kind of lost that fire going into my junior year,” Edwards said, “Not feeling great, not getting the carries that I want. But it clicked for me again, that fire in my heart was there again. It became evident that…there was a practice that it just showed back up.
“I’m grateful that everything has happened for me, because all it’s going to do is continue to push me as a player and as a man. I can’t sit up here and say I haven’t faced adversity because I have. But that adversity has made me a man, and that adversity is going to make me a better football player. I’m still confident. Don’t mistake my confidence for arrogance, but I’m confident within myself and my abilities and my capabilities. My obligation is to continue to bring everybody else up with me, because as long as we can do that, then we will be successful.”
Interestingly enough, a return to Michigan wasn’t part of the plan for Edwards heading into the 2023 season. In fact, the talented back made it abundantly clear over the summer that he intended to declare for the NFL Draft following the 2023 season. But things don’t always go according to plan, and it soon became clear to Edwards that he would benefit greatly from one more year in Ann Arbor.
“I wanted to leave, but at the same time, I think that God had humbled me and was like, ‘This isn’t your plan. This is my plan for you,’” Edwards said. “I’ve assessed everything that has happened for me. A strength for me last year, nothing football-wise, it was just me growing as a man, me facing adversity and hitting it straight on. But the weakness was, ‘How tough am I? How much can I endure?’ Like contact balance for football, how can I improve driving the feet, how can I improve that?
“But everything last year, I’m blessed that it has happened. There are a lot of things that I have to grow in as a man, and last year just showed me everything I need to do. I feel like I’m in a great spot though.”
Edwards, who’s put on 14 pounds during the off-season, is entering the 2024 season humbled, appreciative, and eager to take advantage of the opportunity in front of him. In spite of losing nearly 20 key contributors to the 2024 NFL Draft this off-season, the veteran back feels confident in the remaining pieces at Michigan – particularly in the running back room.
“It’s very diverse,” Edwards said. “Multiple people can do multiple things. You’re gonna be surprised when you see somebody doing something outside of their role because everybody can do everything. I’m excited for this group. This group has been through a lot together. We’ve grown together. We’ve seen the highs together, we’ve seen the lows together. As a team aspect, all we have to do is continue to build camaraderie with each other.
“Losing to Georgia, losing to TCU, winning the national championship — we’ve been at the highest pinnacle and we’ve been at the lowest pinnacle. All we have to do is get better, push one another, push one another. Be happy for the other man’s success and the sky’s the limit for us.”
