Kalel Mullings names aspect he's looking to most improve in expanded role
Michigan Wolverines graduate running back Kalel Mullings is set for a more prominent role within the offense this season as a tandem mate to Donovan Edwards. His teammate has gotten the bulk of the hype this offseason given his big-play ability and the cover of EA Sports College Football 25.
Mullings might deserve more attention from the average Michigan fan, and head coach Sherrone Moore feels the same way.
“The guy that’s not talked about enough is Kalel Mullings,” Moore said last week at Big Ten Football Media Days in Indianapolis. “He’s going to be a force, he looks as good as he ever has. He’s going to have a great year. Watch him last year, every time he came in he had an explosive play, a big play, runs over somebody, makes somebody miss. It (was) hard to take the ball out of Blake Corum’s hands.”
Mullings, who stands at 6-2, 233 pounds, had 36 carries for 222 yards and a touchdown last year, but deserves more attempts this year. In order to do that, he is looking to round out the rest of his skill-set in the lead-up to the 2024 season.
The key trait for him is improving on his home-run hitting ability. He had two rushes last season of 20-plus yards, and Michigan wants more of it.
“Yeah, so for me, definitely it’s been the last third of my runs, being able to break the long ones,” Mullings said this week on the In The Trenches Podcast with Jon Jansen. “Being mobile and agile though, that’s been my biggest area of focus, while still maintaining my size and the biggest thing that kind of separates me. So, for me, this offseason has been finding that balance of being a big, powerful back, but at the same time being able to take it the distance and get those house calls.”
Mullings could be part of a true backfield timeshare this season with Edwards, but there are others who will work towards a role in senior Tavierre Dunlap and sophomores Cole Cabana and Benjamin Hall and freshmen Jordan Marshall and Micah Ka’apana. But it’s all competitive, and not combative according to the fifth-year rusher.
“We’re all brothers in that room. We all love each other,” Mullings said. “And that’s the main thing — it’s a real, genuine connection, and relationships with all your teammates. That’s first and foremost. And then after that, it’s just having fun with the guys, bringing the best out of each other. Because I know if one of the other guys is coming into practice pulling the best out of me, and I’m doing the same with him, no matter what happens, we’ll be — the team as a whole, being in a better spot.”
