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Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK

Alex Orji and Donovan Edwards look set to dominate for Michigan Football coming out of the spring game

Originally posted on A to Z Sports | By Travis May | Last updated 4/22/24

It's hard to imagine that a Michigan Football team with nearly 20 real deal NFL Draft prospects this spring coming off a national championship could be better by any measure this fall, but it is possible . While the passing game almost assuredly sees a drop off with first round quarterback prospect J.J. McCarthy headed for Sunday football, the rushing attack could actually be improved this season.

Likely starting QB Alex Orji and star running back Donovan Edwards are the two reasons that Michigan stands to take yet another step on the ground in 2024. Most college football fans are already quite familiar with Donovan Edwards thanks to his big game heroics against Ohio State in 2022 and this year's national championship game. For those unfamiliar, here's Edwards' second touchdown of 40+ yards in the national championship game in January:

MICHIGAN pic.twitter.com/A4qohMnG2c
— Pardon My Take (@PardonMyTake) January 9, 2024

Edwards brings special rushing ability, but also already has just shy of 70 career receptions, averaging 10.5 yards per catch. He's going to be the obvious feature back to replace the long-time star running back Blake Corum.

The lesser known quantity is new (again, likely) starting quarterback Alex Orji. He's only attempted one official in-game pass attempt in college, but saw quite a bit of run game work last season. At 6'3", 240 pounds he's a physical force with underrated wheels when he gets moving too. Defending various options and play action against Orji and Edwards is definitely going to be a handful for opposing defenses this fall.

Orji and Edwards didn't play a bunch in the spring game on Saturday, but when they did it was lights out for Michigan's defense, as you can see in the post below.

QB Alex Orji & RB Donovan Edwards may make the Michigan run game even better than it was last season.

These four rushing plays were all from the same drive in the Michigan Spring Game on Saturday: pic.twitter.com/ygd2lI88KK
— Travis May (@FF_TravisM) April 22, 2024

All four of those plays in that post were from the same drive. Nothing but dominance. Edwards looks healthy and ready to carry the load, with added weight this year. Orji looks like a dynamic threat, ready to put some pressure on defenses himself.

It is a bit disconcerting that the two most explosive pass plays of the spring game came from backups Davis Warren and Jayden Denegal, but Orji has reportedly shown enough this spring to keep him in the lead for now. And as Joel Klatt reported on the sideline of the spring game, Tyler Morris looks like a decent WR1, with Semaj Morgan as a versatile gadget player too. However, the Wolverines could certainly use a new breakout star at the position.

While it was clear after Michigan's spring game that the team still has some work to do in the passing game, the run game is clearly in good hands. And we all know new head coach Sherrone Moore loves his run game. It will only get better from here. If Donovan Edwards continues to show that he's as special as we all know he can be and Alex Orji steps up, Michigan's running game will seriously be even better than 2023, giving the team a real shot at the postseason once again.

Be looking for more Michigan Football coverage here at A to Z Sports all year long! Follow me (@FF_TravisM) and A to Z Sports (@AtoZSportsNFL) on X for all the latest football news!

And if you want to watch some Donovan Edwards highlights to get pumped for another dominant season of Michigan Football just check out the video below!