Michigan Running Backs - Volume 1

A celebration of Wolverine running back greats

[@aaronjoley4491]

My favorite was always Allen Jefferson. That knee injury set him back. Dude was a complete stud!

[@bwill3337]

Me too. People forget about Allen Jefferson. But we were so stacked back then. Had Morris Boles, Hoard, and Jefferson. When I was at UM, we hand Tyrone, Ricky Powers, Jesse Johnson, and Tim Biacabatuka on the same team! With Walter Smith, Derrick Allexander, Amani Toomer, Mercury Hayes, as recievers. Stacked!!

[@bwill3337]

In that Era can't forget John Vaughn, and the Chris's, Howard and Floyd who lead us to the national championship (not to forget Clarence Williams in the passing game)

[@mostlynoble]

I started watching UM when Boles and Hoard where in school. I thought Toney Boles was the next Marcus Allen. He was built like him and ran like him....This is a great video. So my wishlist is to do one of these for UM DBs ...Tripp Welborne, Law, Marlin Jackson, Woodson, Hall, Shazor

[@SFFOOL76]

Boles and Vaughn is still one of the best running back duo's I've seen still to this day.

[@waynewalton8798]

Blake and Hassan. Would be up there now.

[@thabest1995]

Tim Biakabatuka

[@kentfrederick8929]

When I was at Michigan, it was Butch Woolfolk, followed by Larry Ricks. The intern minister at my church went to Wayne State for his B.A. He was a Michigan fan, because he became a starter at Cass Tech after Harlan Huckleby graduated and moved on to Michigan.

[@samdriver1973]

I love this video. It brought back some good memories for me. I'm not a Michigan fan at all but the very first NCAA football game I ever watched was a Michigan game. The players that stood out for me from that game were Vada Murray (RIP) on defense and Tony Boles on offense. Boles was a great back. He would have been a great NFL back if he didn't get injured. He had to be great to have the great Leroy Hoard as the back up to him. Arian Foster running style reminds me a lot of Boles. I remember most of these other guys too. My second favorite Wolverine back is Tyrone Wheatley. I use to be a huge NCAA football fan.

[@MrAlex_Raven]

Thanks for the video. I need to familarize myself with more of the history of the university.

[@garymaccagnone3669]

When Michigan stopped recruiting the great running back, so went their dominance.

[@Murf_Workshop]

Gary Maccagnone exactly

[@waynewalton8798]

And try to change the culture going to more of a spread type offense that's never been Michigan. I believe that rich rod experiment set the program back at least 5 years

[@RealmofFreakdom]

@@waynewalton8798 Just chose the wrong Head coach to make the transition.

[@YungLilBoii]

​@@waynewalton879810 years at least we are only now recovering.

[@darnellanderson7318]

Mike Hart the last great Michigan RB

[@lloydkline1518]

Michigan had other 1000 yards running back after Mike hart

[@garymaccagnone3669]

Wheatley was a mixture of speed and power.

[@bluelarry1674]

there is a legend about him when he ran track that he would make the road runner sound before he broke away. . . .don't know if true but really fun to think about.

[@owtll1]

If Tony Boles had not blown his knee at Minnesota on the same turf that took out Billy Sims the UM record book might be a little differant today he was pretty fast

[@tonyderks9172]

Yeah he was my favorite

[@PSU2024]

As a PSU fan I followed Michigan closely. To this day I still think Wheatley was best ever at Michigan. Guy was 6 ft 235lbs and had sprinter speed. Probably fastest RB to go with one of the biggest.

[@gabeswitala2292]

And he always came thru the most in the biggest games.

[@Train2kill00]

These highlights brought back a lot of great memories. I agree with the list for the most part. You can't leave off Jarrod Bunch and how could they forget Jon Vaughn. He was amazing, if the coaching staff wouldn't have been so enamored with Ricky Powers, Vaughn may have stayed in school a little longer. He had back to back two hundred yard rushing days against Notre Dame and I think it was Arizona.

[@jbayonjr]

UCLA

[@wolverine58]

ANDY I love it when you show Great UM Players vs OSU,,,,MSU and ND BTW you might put some high lights up of Gordon Bell...Rob Lytle...Billy Taylor ...Ed Suttlesworth ...Ron Johnson...Just to name a few

[@cortes0505]

Oh man, I could watch these all day long. I'm really grateful for you putting together these videos. Michigan has had so many great running backs. It's a shame Biakabatuka didn't come back for his senior year. I can only imagine what he would have done. Who was best? Overall, I would have to say Wheatley, speed, power and vision, but the case could be made for half dozen others as well. It seemed like you could always count on Michigan producing a great running back, year after year. That changed when the decision to hire Rich Rod destroyed Michigan football for 10 years. Quarterbacks should throw, running backs should run. Looks like things are back on track, but it has been long, hard drought.

[@xrandy11]

Bo didn't want to recruit Morris at first because he was too small. Glad he changed his mind.

[@xrandy11]

4:40 Wheatley outrunning the entire Washington secondary.

[@danieldekok6949]

Where's Butch Woolfolk?

[@waynewalton8798]

Tyrone Wheatley was favorite. Could do it all even special teams. Catch a ten yard screen and go house.

[@ericbasia]

Love this, thank you so much for posting, your the MAN!

[@YungLilBoii]

Boys. We got another one of these fellas. Cut from the same cloth. Blake Corum. Might actually be the best that ever walked those halls. He will win the Heisman.

[@lonnellgrigsby1367]

He was great not sure about the best ever

[@markg.7865]

Since 1978. 1. T. Wheatley 2. J. Morris 3. B. Woolfolk 4. A. Thomas 5. M. Hart 6. T. Biakabutuka 7. C. Perry 8. T. Boles/L. Hoard 10. C. Howard 11. J. Vaughn 12. L. Ricks/R. Powers 13. R. Rogers 14. S. Edwards 15. C. Floyd 16. J. Bunch

[@jbayonjr]

Chris Perry's senior season was perhaps the second best season a UM back has had behind Biakabutuka in 95. I'd put him higher and Butch a little lower. I'd also bump Hart above Thomas (great from day one).

[@llongone2]

Just my opinion, watching the Wolverines since about '84: Best north-south runner: Wheatley Best east-west runner: Morris Fastest breakout runner: Thomas Best single performance: Biakabatuka vs. OSU, 1995

[@markg.7865]

@@llongone2 Wheatley was faster than Thomas.

[@scotthafele5266]

As a lifelong Michigan fan idsay ony 1 chapter

[@generationll]

The last hilight was in 2007 during Joe Tiller's last game up there

[@sodear2meee]

Tyrone Wheatley is the best back in Michigan history , followed by Tony Boles .. no contest those were the two best ever .

[@markg.7865]

Jamie Morris was better than T. Boles, in my opinion.

[@bryanzachery4680]

sodear2meee Mike Hart

[@DubLubb]

Biakabutuka vs Wheatley....slight edge Wheatley

[@owtll1]

Wheatly and Boles were very fast and so was Butch don't call me Harold Woolfolk

[@maize09blue]

Michigan glory days of the power rb's. I'ts a challenge to bring any of these guys to the ground. WH do you have compilations of great Michigan defensive players?

[@WolverineHistorian]

Glad to hear it.

[@otisgreer8429]

How about a Jim Smith tribute

[@THEOPHILUS1]

say man where volume 2!!!!

[@GM-MarkOfExcellence]

I dunno. Vol 1 maybe should have started with Rob Lytle Butch Wolfolk Bob Perryman and I remember Huckleby was a dude too.

[@WolverineHistorian]

Most of their games weren't televised so it's hard to make proper highlight reels for them, unfortunately.

[@JLaw1977]

Go Blue!

[@mstevens24]

No howard?

[@MRJ2di]

Matthew Stevens Desmond Howard? He was a wide receiver.

[@LineMountain]

I didn’t remember Wheatley being that fast.

[@Vanguard-DaGreat4719]

He was state champ in the 100m and 200m his jr & sr HS.. had a crazy 40yd time

[@PhilthCollinz]

@@Vanguard-DaGreat4719 HOOOLY FUCK, u just gave me memory brain freeze, 🤣I didn't remember this tidbit about Wheatley till I read it here, thanks for jarring my memory 🤣🤣🤦🏿‍♂️yeah Wheatley had world class speed combined with his size made him a nightmare to tackle.

[@xrandy11]

He was probably the fastest of them all, which is saying something considering that he also was one of the most powerful. That run against Washington in the Rose Bowl where he leaves the DB in the dust is my favorite (you can almost hear him saying "buh-bye"). If he had not hurt his knee in his senior year he would be the all-time yardage leader at UM.

[@DubLubb]

@Randy Hansen yessir...both guys had the angle on him but couldn't close the window...he also returned a kickoff from the endzone and after scoring only 12 seconds had come off yet he couldn't sprint full out until 30-40 yards into the run back....

[@BigBlueBri]

Where was Sam McGuffie?

[@xrandy11]

McGuffie? He played for one year and barely had any 100-yard games.

[@whooziss]

Go back a little further, Rob Lytle and Billy Taylor......

[@WolverineHistorian]

I wish I could. But there were very few televised games in the 70's. So I don't have much of all to work with.

[@doomed2063]

+WolverineHistorian I thought Michigab was one of the most televised schools in the 1970's

[@WolverineHistorian]

+DOOMED ! The most televised in history, yes. But in the 70's, the rules were different. No college football team was allowed more than 2 televised regular season games, which accounted for the OSU game and one other. If you couldn't make it to the game, you had to listen to the radio.

[@jbayonjr]

Got to have, "Touchdown Billy Taylor!"

[@halbarbour7805]

Rice......

[@JDUBHITZ]

Great video but UGA is running back U lol

[@pji1979]

So go set up the "Bulldog Historian" channel and make that highlight video.