Hassan Haskins to play in the Senior Bowl
I guess this cements his plans for next year. He’s smartly choosing to get a contract signed before taking another season’s worth of hits.
December 14th, 2021 at 9:03 AM ^
He leaves as a legend and can still add to that legacy! Thanks for everything H2.
December 14th, 2021 at 9:08 AM ^
Good for him! Would always love to get a player with Hassan's talent back in the fold, but this seems like the best move for him personally. He's demonstrated all he needs to at the college level for pro scouts to know what he is about. It's time to get paid for his services.
Some pro team is going to get a hell of a running back. Will always be a Hassan Haskins fan!
December 14th, 2021 at 9:08 AM ^
Some stats from his career:
Haskins has rushed for 2285 yards and 30 TDs in his Michigan career thus far, with the postseason pending. Those numbers put him at 20th in career rushing yards and tied for 8th in touchdowns.
Haskins is also 24th in career rushing attempts with 443.
Haskins set a Michigan record for rushing touchdowns in a season with 20 and counting this year.
Not bad for the 975th ranked player in the country.
December 14th, 2021 at 9:35 AM ^
With a significantly Covid-shortened junior year!
December 14th, 2021 at 10:19 AM ^
Haskins' stat that will be instantly remembered years from now:
- 5 TD's in The Game.
December 14th, 2021 at 10:26 AM ^
TD s and yards per game have to be pretty good even with splitting time
December 14th, 2021 at 12:19 PM ^
Guy could have been a nobody who showed up for one game and scored 5 TDs against OSU and he'd do down as an absolute legend at UM
December 14th, 2021 at 3:24 PM ^
It reminds me of Barry Pierson in 1969. Three interceptions and a great return upset the buckeyes.
December 14th, 2021 at 12:51 PM ^
Its fun to know I finally got to see a Michigan game live that people will still be speaking of in revered tones 50 years from now. That Keegan, Steuber, Vastardis, Zinter, Hayes, and Haskins put in a legendary performance
December 14th, 2021 at 2:13 PM ^
Plus he is one of the existentially most enjoyable Michigan running backs we've ever had. Leaping fools. Trucking safeties. Great vision and shiftiness. Moving massive piles for ten yards. Crushing pass rushers. He's been awesome! I also love him tackling on punt teams. Love Hassan! Some NFL team is going to love him.
December 14th, 2021 at 2:13 PM ^
Plus he is one of the existentially most enjoyable Michigan running backs we've ever had. Leaping fools. Trucking safeties. Great vision and shiftiness. Moving massive piles for ten yards. He's been awesome! I also love him tackling on punt teams. Love Hassan! Glad he's going to the league.
December 14th, 2021 at 3:16 PM ^
That's a Biakabutuka-tier stat line.
December 14th, 2021 at 10:53 AM ^
And he can block!
December 14th, 2021 at 11:34 AM ^
And he was like a linebacker for a while…
December 14th, 2021 at 1:05 PM ^
Thanks for the stats! Know these numbers don't likely exist for players back in the day, but my guess is that he'd be really high - like top 10 or higher - on the list of most yards after contact. And of course, #1 in Fool Hurdled.
December 14th, 2021 at 9:13 AM ^
Totally the right decision. Go get em Hassan! Thanks for this season!!!
December 14th, 2021 at 12:09 PM ^
I'm not sure about that. I truly hope it's a great decision and I support him in it. But I don't know about his prospects as a pro. Hassan is not fast.
December 14th, 2021 at 12:16 PM ^
Well, coming back for a year is not going to make him faster and will give him another year of punishing hits. For a RB, this is the only choice. Unlike Hutch, he has no chance of improving his stock and could actually see it go down. If he were to return he would be splitting carries with both Corum and Edwards.
December 14th, 2021 at 12:53 PM ^
He's got nothing left to prove at the college level and running backs have a very finite window to make money professionally. Coming back isn't going to make him any faster. Time to go to the league
December 14th, 2021 at 2:08 PM ^
Give it to him twice
December 14th, 2021 at 3:44 PM ^
The NFL has changed dramatically from the days you'd see running backs getting drafted as franchise cornerstones. Sure, everyone would love breakaway speed, but in the modern pro game, the first two orders of business are (1) pass protection/blitz pickup and (2) catching the ball out of the backfield.
He can do those things and compliment them by breaking tackles and getting the reliable yards even if some safety is able to chase him down on a breakaway. If he doesn't jump over the dude.
December 14th, 2021 at 4:01 PM ^
FFS, Haskins is not "slow" either. He'll test better at the combine than you think he will.
December 14th, 2021 at 9:16 AM ^
He's definitely presented as good a case to be drafted as he can. Probably a Day 3 guy, but he knows how to churn out extra yards, has good leaping ability (as we all know by now), and always falls forward.
Is he good enough to be an early down back in the league? I'm guessing not, but maybe someone will want him in specific situations, like short yardage / goal line situations where they just need someone who they can consistently count on to get just 2-3 yards.
December 14th, 2021 at 9:22 AM ^
The ol’ Leroy Hoard: “If you need one yard, I’ll get you three. If you need five yards…I’ll get you three.”
December 14th, 2021 at 10:23 AM ^
That's Jarrod Bunch. Leroy Hoard was a beast. The only reason he's not my favorite Michigan fullback of all time is that he eventually spent a lot of time at tailback.
MVP of the 1989 Rose Bowl, and well-deserved.
December 14th, 2021 at 3:18 PM ^
That's Jarrod Bunch.
This quote has never been attributed to Bunch—it's always been attributed to Hoard, to the extent it's part of his wikipedia bio:
"Hoard was known as a "goal-line" running back who excelled at breaking through an opposing defense's goal-line defenses. Regarding his skills, Hoard reportedly once said to his coach, "Coach, if you need one yard, I'll get you three yards. If you need five yards, I'll get you three yards."
I've always been a bit skeptical Hoard actually said this, and the fact there's no source for this quote reinforces my skepticism. However, it's never been connected to Bunch.
December 14th, 2021 at 9:59 AM ^
There are plenty of fools in the NFL who need hurdling.
December 14th, 2021 at 11:07 AM ^
Will be interesting to see if his game translates to the NFL.
I suspect not, but he can play on special teams and let's not forget he started out as a LB with us.
As a RB, he just doesn't have the speed for the NFL imo, but neither did Leveon Bell, so who knows...
December 14th, 2021 at 11:08 AM ^
Kind of reminds me of Anthony Thomas who was under appreciated coming out of college. He ended up rookie of the year had some good years ended up rushing for about 4000 yards in career. I’d say 5th round makes a lot of sense as an upside. He does a lot of the little things. Depending on his testing could see him move up to 3rd or 4th.
December 14th, 2021 at 1:59 PM ^
thomas was pretty fast. he returned kickoffs for UM. on the other hand, haskins is a much tougher runner. thomas would constantly get tripped up pretty easily. haskins runs through people.
December 14th, 2021 at 8:03 PM ^
4.62 forty for A-Train at the combine. Would think H2 has something similar there, and I remember Mr. Thomas running through a quite number of arm tackles
December 14th, 2021 at 9:18 AM ^
Smart. His stock is high, he had one hell of a season where he showed what he's capable of. Dude put the offense on his back for a few games.
And, to be honest, if he stayed he might be looking at fewer carries going forward.
Go get paid, sir.
December 14th, 2021 at 10:30 AM ^
Agreed. He also put the Northwestern defense on his back as well.
December 14th, 2021 at 9:19 AM ^
Way to remain patient when he wasn't the feature back and then step up into that role when Corum was injured toward the end of the season.
December 14th, 2021 at 9:20 AM ^
I don't blame Hassan at all, it's the right move for him. Still got two more games to raise that draft stock!
December 14th, 2021 at 9:47 AM ^
Hopefully 3
December 14th, 2021 at 12:04 PM ^
Oh, that's right. I wasn't counting the Senior Bowl.
December 14th, 2021 at 9:24 AM ^
dont go! someone get him a good NIL deal!! The NFL is brutal for RBs - enjoy being king on campus one more year!!!! the stable of backs next year would be silly good... edwards is ready to explode next year as an APB - 2000 yards total, except we'll still have corum.. and hopefully dunlap contributes etc..
December 14th, 2021 at 10:34 AM ^
His college stock will never be higher and he has finite years available on his body, this is clearly best for him and most likely his family.
December 14th, 2021 at 11:03 AM ^
Agreed. Not even sure why he is playing in the Senior Bowl. Perhaps to get some one-on-one time with scouts to show his character? Additional coaching? I'm sure his reasons are spot on, I'm just not knowledgeable enough of all that goes on at the Senior Bowl type events.
He's shown what he is. It's not like he was at Alcorn State or something, the people who are important (NFL scouts) have seen his film.
December 14th, 2021 at 11:05 AM ^
Yeah, you just made a number of good arguments for Haskins to go. We’ve got a talented stable of RBs, so there’s a good chance his carries decline next year. The NFL is brutal on RBs, which means cash in while you can, AND it means that he can find a spot to play because so many guys get hurt and guys like him can step right in and play well.
Haskins is definitely making a good choice. He’s not blazing fast, so he’ll never be Derrick Henry or anything, but he can do what a lot of RBs are asked to do and do it really well. His vision is excellent, his blocking is very good, he doesn’t go down easily…
If he finds the right team he can excel. Go get it.
After the last two games.
December 14th, 2021 at 12:08 PM ^
This is it right here. Fitz Touissant made between $1.4-1.8M (according to google) in his 4 year NFL career as an UDFA. There’s enough injuries and carries in the NFL that Haskins can at the minimum make the same amount and have his retirement nest egg stashed away before he’s even 27.
December 14th, 2021 at 1:50 PM ^
i agree - man. youd think we hadnt enjoyed a recent run of good fortune, with all the crankiness on here. Of course he should do whats best for him - and going while he has less mileage on his legs is for the best. especially with his style of running. yeesh.
but i also love the idea of him on the team another year running over OSU lineman and LBs.
Both things can be true.
December 14th, 2021 at 9:29 AM ^
I’m completely ok with this decision.
December 14th, 2021 at 9:29 AM ^
He has to end up on the Ravens, right?
December 14th, 2021 at 9:32 AM ^
Ravens, Seahawks or Patriots. All those franchises seem to love Harbaugh developmental prospects.
December 14th, 2021 at 9:45 AM ^
The Ravens could use him too. They’ve had such bad injury luck with RBs this year.
December 14th, 2021 at 9:31 AM ^
I imagined this was the case.
Didn't he actually start his career at M as a linebacker? I was almost certain of it, but nobody ever talks about it. Seems like the kind of fact that TV coverage teams would repeat over and over.
December 14th, 2021 at 9:43 AM ^
Yes... and a good one.. I vaguely recall he was crushing players on special teams and he played a few snaps in a game at LB in emergency, and looked like a man. But this could be faulty memory.
December 14th, 2021 at 10:20 AM ^
Same recollection. Was excited when H2 returned to RB, right away could see flashes of his spatial intelligence, picking good holes w/patience that he could exploit w/leverage. We can see even more growth under Hart’s tutelage, even more patience, vision and NO fumbles. Happy to be a workhorse, thrilled when H2 busts through a hole and carries a load of defenders with him, and wow when H2 leaps and leaves a defender chasing ghosts.
Best of all H2’s an impressive human. Smart, humble, obviously loves his teammates and they obviously love him and his steady leadership.
Get yourself paid H2, you’ve earned it.