Michigan Football: The New Assistant That Will Make The Biggest Difference

Jim Harbaugh's coaching staff has five new faces for 2021, and there's one in particular that will likely make the biggest difference.

Jim Harbaugh’s new-look coaching staff will look very different when Michigan takes the field in just 199 days. With only four holdovers from the previous staff, Harbaugh added five new assistant coaches to his staff - most notably defensive coordinator Mike Macdonald who replaces Don Brown.

Though many might expect Macdonald to make the biggest impact of all the new assistants on staff, I think there’s another new face who will almost certainly make the biggest impact - running backs coach Mike Hart.

Hart arrives back home with a tall order as he attempts to improve a rushing attack that ranked No. 95 (out of 127) in yards per game. The inability of the Wolverines to establish a consistent rushing attack led to Michigan finishing the 2020 season ranked No. 123 in the nation in time of possession, putting tremendous pressure on an already struggling defensive unit. For most, Michigan’s struggles in the rushing department had everything to do with a four-back rotation that prevented any of the backs from establishing a rhythm.

With a talented stable of backs and Hart’s new philosophy, the expectation is that the rushing attack will be much improved in 2021. Veteran running back Hassan Haskins returns for his senior year after leading the Wolverines in rushing during the 2020 season. Though Haskins is the most experienced back of the bunch, he’ll need to fend off sophomore Blake Corum and true freshman Donovan Edwards - two talented backs who are more than capable of taking that top spot.

Either way you cut it, much of Michigan’s success in 2021 is dependent on Hart’s ability to revive the ever-important rushing attack. Having spent four years in Ann Arbor working to become the University of Michigan’s all-time leading rusher, Hart now has the task of trying to produce one as an assistant coach.