Michigan football wants ‘home run’ carries for running backs. Athletic OL group will help

Michigan football’s top running backs, Hassan Haskins and Zach Charbonnet, should get ready to hit some home runs this fall.

That's the term used by by position coach Jay Harbaugh as he wants them score on long runs.

Of course, applying the "home run" mantra on the field is easier said than done and requires work from more than just running backs. Getting those quick, long strikes begins with athletic offensive linemen, and that's what the team expects to have this season.

“Really excited about the athleticism that they have there,” Harbaugh said on a Zoom call Friday. “Overall, one of the things you could say about them as a, probably a little bit more nimble, a little bit more mobile than the guys we had last year, doesn't mean it's better. It just means that it lets you do some different stuff.”

The Wolverines had four offensive linemen — center Cesar Ruiz, tackle Jon Runyan Jr. and guards Ben Bredeson and Michael Onwenu – selected in the 2020 NFL draft in April; right tackle Jalen Mayfield is the lone returning starter.

Players that could join him on the line include Ryan Hayes, Chuck Filiaga, Karsen Barnhart, Zach Carpenter, Andrew Stueber and Nolan Rumler.

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“We have a lot of really good guys that weren't playing,” Harbaugh said. “And just because they weren't playing doesn't mean that they're necessarily lesser players. They're just behind, you know, four NFL dudes.”

Using athletic linemen could enhance the zone-blocking scheme, which focuses on footwork and speed to open running lanes without needing to overpower each defender.

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Charbonnet led the team with 149 carries, 726 yards and 11 touchdowns as a freshman last season. Haskins added 121 attempts, 622 yards and 4 TDs Haskins' biggest task will come without the ball in his hands.

“He was a pretty good pass protector,” Harbaugh said, “but there's things that he will be able to bring us as a blocker on the sweep game on the perimeter. You know, possibly as a lead blocker in terms of some of the two-back stuff. Kind of acting like doing some of the jobs that a fullback would sometimes do. He's capable of all that.”

And when Haskins and Charbonnet have the ball, and the linemen have cleared the running lanes, Harbaugh wants them to improve on opening their hips and extending their strides, turning runs of 7-15 yards into “really big ones.”

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"We need to turn some of these medium pretty good runs into an explosive home run, you know, ones that send the Big House into an eruption,” Harbaugh said. “So both those guys have kind of the same focus and I really believe that with the with the experience, the confidence, continuing to understand the system where the unblocked defenders are and just running with more confidence, they're both going to make a lot of improvements in that in that area.”

Offensive coordinator Josh Gattis wants to use more two-back sets, something the Wolverines weren’t able to implement as much last season.

The continued success of Haskins and Charbonnet is predicated on how well the offensive linemen mold into the system, but the running back group, which also has Blake Corum, Chris Evans and Christian Turner, is talented and hungry for success.

“We're just going to keep growing and getting better as a group and competing,” Harbaugh said. “And I know the end result of that will be everybody will get a lot better. When it comes down to it, you need a few guys to be able to be ready to play and crazy things happen over the year, so you need a deep room.”

Evan Petzold is a sports reporting intern at the Detroit Free Press. Contact him at epetzold@freepress.com or follow him on Twitter @EvanPetzold.