Why Josh Ross believes the Michigan offense will be 'ridiculous' in 2022
Michigan Wolverines football lost running back Hassan Haskins, center Andrew Vastardis and right tackle Andrew Stueber to the NFL Draft, and offensive coordinator Josh Gattis to Miami, but don’t expect the offense to take a step back, linebacker Josh Ross — another NFL Draft hopeful — said at the combine over the weekend. He actually predicts that it will take a big leap forward.
A former team captain, Ross went against Michigan’s offense for five years, and raved about the unit on multiple occasions last season. The Wolverines scored 35.8 points per game, which ranked 16th nationally, and racked up 443.1 yards per contest, which slotted 24th in the land.
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The Maize and Blue return 87 percent of their production on offense, which ranks 13th in the nation and first in the Big Ten, according to ESPN.com’s Bill Connelly. Ross, who got a first-hand view at some of the players who will take on even bigger roles this year, didn’t hold back in laying out what he predicts the Wolverines’ offense will look like.
“I can’t even put it into words how I feel about how our offense is going to be next year,” Ross said. “How [sophomore running backs] Blake [Corum] and Donovan [Edwards] are going to be the two-back tandem now. How talented Donovan Edwards is. Him coming in as a freshman, that dude was like one of the most mature freshmen I’ve ever seen.
In fact, Michigan’s group of second-year players are all expected to take a step forward, at numerous positions, including defensively.
While sophomore signal-caller J.J. McCarthy is reportedly dealing with a shoulder injury during spring ball, he’s expected to compete along with redshirt sophomore Cade McNamara for the starting job. Edwards, wideout Andrel Anthony, linebacker Junior Colson will likely start in the middle once again and safety Rod Moore is a top candidate to replace the two safeties who are off to the league. Others could also make big moves on the depth chart.
“The whole class,” Ross said. “You’ve got J.J., you’ve got Donovan, you’ve got Junior…”
But Edwards stands out above the rest. He rushed for 174 yards and three touchdowns as a freshman, while adding 265 receiving yards and a scoring catch. A dangerous weapon in both the run and pass game, Edwards — in his role splitting time with Corum, who rushed for 952 yards and 11 scores in 2021 — should add an extra flair to the offense under co-coordinators Matt Weiss and Sherrone Moore.
It’s Edwards’ habits that really impressed Ross.
“Donovan was a guy who — I’m watching him meditate while he in the hot tub,” Ross said of the Michigan sophomore. “Freshmen don’t do that. Like, I’ve never seen that. But okay, now I know what he’s about.
“Just the speed that he has and his willingness to get better, how hard he works — the sky’s the limit for him. You already know about Blake, what he is, and what he can do. If that dude didn’t tweak his ankle toward the end of the season, it would have been even more of what he was doing.
“Our offense going to be ridiculous.”
