Michigan Football: Is Kalel Mullings a dark horse Heisman Trophy candidate?

The Wolverines' fifth-year senior has carried Michigan's offense in the first five games of the 2024 season...

Matt Lounsberry | 4 Hours Ago

Sep 21, 2024; Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA; Michigan Wolverines running back Kalel Mullings (20) celebrates after he rushes for a touchdown in the second half against the USC Trojans at Michigan Stadium. / Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images

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Michigan Wolverines

In a year in which Michigan's offense has struggled to find consistency, running back Kalel Mullings has provided just that for the Wolverines over the past three weeks.

The fifth-year senior, who ran for 111 yards and two touchdowns in Michigan's 27-24 win over Minnesota on Saturday, has now rushed for over 100 yards with two scores in three consecutive games, all wins for the Maize and Blue. Mullings was the Wolverines' bell cow in victories over USC (159 rushing yards, 2 TDs) and Arkansas State (153 rushing yards, 2 TDs) and his increased role and production have the senior entering some eyebrow-raising discussion.

On Monday, On3Sports released a Week 6 poll of Heisman Trophy contenders, and Mullings came up tied for sixth place in the poll, alongside Tennessee quarterback Nico Iamaleava.

NEW: On3 College Football Week 6 Heisman Poll🏆

Do you agree? 🤔https://t.co/SuoFDb4IyZ pic.twitter.com/RtDOhiO0VP
— On3 (@On3sports) September 30, 2024

Through five games, Mullings has rushed for 540 yards and six touchdowns on 77 carries, an average of just over seven yards per carry. The senior also added 74 kick return yards on three attempts in Michigan's season-opener against Fresno State, giving him 614 all-purpose yards on the season.

Seeing anyone outside of a quarterback win the Heisman Trophy has been a rarity over the past 25 years. The last non-quarterback to win the award was Alabama wide receiver Devonta Smith in 2020, and the last running back to bring home the Heisman was Alabama's Derrick Henry in 2015. Michigan has had a pair of non-quarterbacks come close in recent seasons, with defensive end Aidan Hutchinson finishing second in the voting in 2021 and running back Blake Corum putting together a strong campaign in 2022 before suffering a season-ending injury against Illinois in the penultimate game of the regular season.

It would take a Herculean effort from Mullings in Michigan's final seven games in order to earn an invite to New York as a Heisman finalist, but the Wolverines play in enough high-profile games that the senior will have eyeballs on him going forward. That starts this week when No. 10 Michigan travels to Washington in a rematch of the 2023 National Championship Game, and continues in Weeks 10 and 14 when the Wolverines square off with No. 6 Oregon and No. 3 Ohio State.

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