ANN ARBOR, Mich. (AP) -Carlos Brown has shown promise since he graduated from high school early in Georgia to enroll at Michigan in the winter of 2006.
Brown’s blazing speed is an asset that can’t be coached.
The problem has been, though, he hasn’t been healthy enough for the Wolverines to count on him.
Now, they can.
Brown had a 90-yard touchdown run Saturday, scored again and finished with a career-high 187 yards rushing to help Michigan beat Eastern Michigan 45-17 Saturday.
“Last year, I was always dealing with injuries,” he said. “So it felt good just to be healthy and have a chance.”
Ankle and hand injuries hurt Brown’s ability to get and stay on the field in the past.
Fellow senior running back, Brandon Minor, is off to a banged-up start with an ankle injury that has forced him to miss almost two of three games for the 23rd-ranked Wolverines.
guez said. “But Brandon Minor is the most physical back we have and maybe in the country.”
Michigan didn’t lean too heavily on Brown against the Eagles, giving him just 13 carries, as it rotated sophomore Michael Shaw and freshman Vincent Smith into the game. Shaw ran for 53 yards and Smith added 10, helping the team have 380 yards rushing for its highest total since 2003.
“We might have had the most yards we’ve rushed for, but I don’t think this is the best running game we’ve had,” Brown said. “We can still do a lot better.”
Michigan (3-0) might be without two starting offensive linemen against Indiana (3-0) in the Big Ten opener Saturday at home.
Rodriguez was worried center David Molk could have broken a foot against Eastern Michigan. Right guard David Moosman didn’t play in the game because of a dislocated shoulder.
Brown, though, is healthy and ready to go.
The native of Newman, Ga., has 238 yards rushing – 8.8 yards per carry – in three games to almost double the total he had in all of last season when he played in just five games and the Wolverines had a school-record nine losses.
Thanks in large part to a 90-yard TD Saturday, he surpassed his previous high of 132 yards rushing he had two years ago when he ran for 382 yards in eight games as Mike Hart’s backup.
“I didn’t know I was going to get this much work, but I was ready for it,” he said.
red six times in his career and coincidentally, each time he did it twice in a game. He had two TDs against Eastern Michigan and got into the end zone twice in a pair of games during the 2007 season.
Rodriguez hopes Brown can stay on the field and get in the end zone during to help Michigan be a contender in the conference.
“Our first goal each and every year is to compete for a Big Ten championship,” Rodriguez said. “Our first game is out in front of us now. We’ve got a very talented team coming in. We’ve got to play a lot better.”
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