This might be the only time you'll see Hassan Haskins hesitate. It's one of the few times you'll see him stumble. And it's probably the only way to stop him from pressing forward.
Just ask him to pick a favorite from his seemingly endless loop of highlight-reel runs this season. Ask him to sift through all those plays where he carried a pile of defenders, or hurdled a hapless defensive back, or turned nothing into something and helped his playoff-bound Michigan team do the same.
And then note the indecision, because it's everything he's not when he's playing football.
"Um, I mean, there's so many plays, you know?" Haskins says, smiling. "Um, let me see. Let me see. ... There's so many that I can pick from. But probably one of mine from this season ... let me see ..."
Eventually, Haskins found a hole Wednesday morning — or a whole, as it were — and made his cut during an Orange Bowl media session.
"Probably just the whole O-State game," Haskins finally said, settling on not just one highlight, but an entire game full of them as Haskins rushed for 169 yards and tied a school record with five touchdowns in that epic 42-27 win over archrival Ohio State a month ago. "That was a surreal moment. Probably the whole game, to be honest. That's probably my pick."
Haskins' hurdles
Fair enough, and who in maize and blue is going to argue with that choice at this point, what with the Wolverines getting set to face Georgia on Friday night in a College Football Playoff semifinal? Certainly not his coaches, including the offensive coordinator who knows his gameplan each week begins and ends with Haskins' punishing running style and his penchant for big plays.
"I don't know if you can actually pick out one specific play because he creates so many wild ones," Josh Gattis said. "Whether it's hurdling guys or it's extra effort, short-yardage plays where he's running over defenders in a hole."
Ask his teammates to pick a favorite and the general consensus seems to be that 50-yarder against Nebraska "where he jumped the dude running full stride," as Blake Corum, Haskins' tag-team backfield partner, described it. That one was a doozy, all right, and it led to a game-tying drive in the fourth quarter, as Haskins bolted through the line and then hurdled Nebraska safety Marquel Dismuke at full speed before picking up another 25 yards or so.
"But I like all the hurdles in general," shrugged tight end Luke Schoonmaker, who had one of the key blocks to spring Haskins that night in Lincoln. "Anytime he's going over somebody, I think everybody gets excited for that."
They did when Haskins hurdled a Western Michigan defender just before halftime of the Wolverines' opener at Michigan Stadium in September. And especially when he did it again against Ohio State cornerback Cameron Moore to seal that rivalry win in late November. (Noted UM alum Tom Brady posted a clip of that hurdle highlight on his Instagram as he yelled "Oh, let's go, baby! Go Blue!" in the background.)
But truth is, those highlights barely scratch the surface of Haskins' value to Michigan's offense this season. The statistics really don't, either, though it's hard to ignore 1,288 yards and a modern-era, school-record 20 rushing touchdowns. More than half of those yards have come between the tackles and nearly two-thirds (796 yards) have come after contact, according to Pro Football Focus. And of Haskins' 261 carries this season, a whopping 101 have resulted in first downs — most among all FBS players.
"I feel like you can just look at Hassan's runs and just be amazed by all of the hurdles and whatnot," receiver Mike Sainristil said. "But what can't go unnoticed is when he looks stopped in the backfield and he's still pushing and gets those two or three extra yards that we need for a first down. The good-looking plays are always fun to look at as highlights, but the real eye for football will never let those plays go unnoticed."
Nor will the offensive linemen, which is why Michigan center Andrew Vastardis calls Haskins both a "great asset" and an "inspirational" leader because of the effort he gives every day. And every play, for that matter.
"Like, there's really no other level to how he plays the game, how he conducts his business," said Vastardis, a sixth-year senior and captain for the Wolverines. "It's always all or nothing. That just resonates with everyone else, because that's how we play football at Michigan."
And that's what Haskins has done ever since he showed up on campus in Ann Arbor some 3 1/2 years ago, a lightly-recruited three-star prospect from the south side of St. Louis. He has been a rock, usually in the hardest of places, for the Wolverines.
"Hassan is everything to us," Gattis said. "We absolutely love him. ... He's a guy that when you talk about a physical back and how you want to build your backs, he's the exact prototype of what you want to build your running back room around. He's done a tremendous job carrying the load for us."
Particularly after Corum, his sensational sophomore running mate, went down with a high-ankle sprain in the win over Indiana on Nov. 6. Haskins played 70 of 72 snaps on offense for Michigan the next week at Penn State and finished that game with 31 carries for 156 yards, two-thirds of which came after contact. He also caught five passes for 45 yards in that 21-17 comeback win and, for good measure, played a handful of snaps on the punt coverage team as well — something he did all season for special-teams coordinator Jay Harbaugh.
No talk, just tough
Getting the extra yards or going the extra distance is something Haskins always has done, quite frankly. It's just that his low-key demeanor doesn't exactly amplify his perceived value to outsiders, though you can bet NFL scouting reports will include a few exclamation points this winter.
"Most of the great leaders, their actions speak so loudly you can't hear what they are saying," Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh said. "Hassan's actions speak so loudly. He's incredible in every way. Anybody who has watched any of these games knows that."
Harbaugh says he doesn't remember Haskins ever missing a single practice, or even a practice snap, this season. Not since he missed one in spring ball two years ago, actually. ("Not even for a broken chin strap," Harbaugh added.)
And it's that reliable toughness the Wolverines will be counting on again Friday against Georgia's vaunted defense, ranked No. 1 in the country with a front seven that's loaded with future NFL talent.
Gattis, for one, is promising a "train wreck" of a game against the Bulldogs, at least when it comes to the interior of the line of scrimmage. But that's where Haskins does his best work, finding gaps like water and then moving mountains if he has to. (Rewind the 2021 tape to that comical, pile-driving run Haskins had against Northwestern for one such example.)
And when Gattis talks excitedly about this CFP semifinal becoming a four-quarter game, where "endurance is going to play a big piece" and "who's able to win the line of scrimmage late in the game is going to be the key," well, he's banking on Haskins there, too,
Michigan's explosive ability on offense often gets overlooked. (The Wolverines lead the nation with 17 plays of 50-plus yards this season.) But everything this team does, whether it's the play-action passing game or some of the gadget plays Gattis has drawn up, is built off the backs of that offensive line and the gap-scheme runs Haskins spins into gold.
"When you've got a guy with his ability, his talent, his vision, his physicality, it makes him pretty complete," Gattis said. "I wish we had him around here for another four or five years, but we're really, really proud of what he's accomplished and everything he's done to this point."
And maybe that's the point here, as Haskins searches for a signature play. He's not done "carrying the load" for Michigan this season, and if at all possible, he has more business to conduct. So there's a chance he's saving his best highlight for last.
