Michigan RB Blake Corum says he’ll be back by fall camp Georgia Tech to face Florida State in 2024 opener in Dublin Luke Fickell eager to build upon Wisconsin’s winning culture

ANN ARBOR, MI – Michigan All-American running back Choir of Blake said his surgically reconstructed left knee was strong enough that he was allowed to run on an anti-gravity treadmill the following week.

Corum said he was “100% sure” he would play in the season-opening game on September 2 against East Carolina.

Corum tore his meniscus and sprained a ligament in his left knee against the Illinois on November 19. After a small game against Ohio State, he did not play as the Wolverines won the Big Ten title and advanced to the college football playoff semifinals.

Rather than enter the NFL Draft, Corum chose to stay at the school for his senior year.

“I feel great mentally, physically and spiritually,” Corum told The Associated Press.

At 5’8″ and 210 pounds, Corum rushed for 1,463 yards and threw for 18 touchdowns last season and had 952 yards and 11 touchdowns as a sophomore in 2021.

“I will definitely return to the autumn camp,” he said. “I plan to do everything in summer training, depending on what the doctor says. He told me that I shouldn’t have my hair cut until maybe June. I’m not in a hurry, but I’ll be ready for the season.”

Corum will watch his teammates face off against each other in the Maize and Blue Spring Game on April 1 at Michigan Stadium.

ATLANTA. Georgia Institute of Technology and Florida State will open the 2024 season in Dublin, Ireland.

Announced on Wednesday, the Aer Lingus College Football Classic will mark the second time that two teams from the Atlantic Coast Conference will open the season in Ireland. Georgia Institute of Technology beat Boston College 17–14 at the 2016 Opening in Dublin.

Scheduled for August 24, 2024 at Aviva Stadium, the game will be Florida’s first international game. Georgia Tech will be the home team.

“This is an incredible opportunity for our student athletes at Florida State and Georgia Tech to expand the reach of ACC football and play in front of an international audience,” ACC Commissioner. Jim Phillips said.

Georgia Tech coach Brent Key said the game is “a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for our student athletes to experience a new culture, for our fans to support us in an incredible venue, and for Georgia Tech to further advance our institution, athletics department, students and alumni on the global stage.” . ”

Florida State Coach Mike Norvell said he was “immediately intrigued by the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity”.

“The way the 2024 season is going with a third open date, the trip makes sense from a football standpoint as well,” Norvell said. “Very few people have the opportunity to go to another continent and experience another culture, let alone the whole team, so I’m grateful to everyone for all the hard work and support to make this game happen.”

The Northwestern beat Nebraska 31–28 in the 2022 game in Dublin. Navy and Notre Dame are due to play the first match of 2023 in Dublin.

New coaches often spend their first few months contemplating the need to incorporate a different culture into their programs.

Consider Wisconsin Luke Fickell exception.

Fickell says the Badgers already have what he calls a “really good trail,” backed by 21 consecutive Wisconsin Cup games. He just wants to find ways to buff him up as the former Cincinnati coach prepares to start his first spring workout in Wisconsin on March 25th.

“Sometimes the biggest mistake you can make is going there thinking you’re just going to completely change the culture,” Fickell told The Associated Press. “You can improve and make things the way you want, but I think that nature in many places has unique cultures, especially here, that have kind of developed over a long time.”

Fickell believes that the lack of runaway turnover after a tumultuous change of coach is indicative of such a culture.

Wisconsin fired Paul Christ October 2, a day after a 34-10 home loss to Illinois. Sports Director Chris McIntosh hired Fickell after many players called on the popular defensive coordinator and interim head coach. Jim Leonhard to get a job.

However, the Badgers haven’t lost many important members of the transfer portal other than the three-year-old starting guard. Graeme Merz, now in Florida. Forward lineman Michael Fertney and wide receiver Mark Allen went to the transfer portal, but then decided to stay.

In particular, Wisconsin managed to hold off a two-time 1,200 yard dash. Brelon Allen. Fickell said he reached out to current Wisconsin players, reminding them why they signed up in the first place.

“I kind of sold it just because I’m new, just because you don’t know me, trust and believe that the things that brought you here and the things that have kept you here still are the same things that go. be the one you love when you’re done here,” Fickell said.

But there will be notable differences under Fickell, who went 57-18 in Cincinnati and led the Bearcats to a college football playoff berth in 2021.

These changes should be most noticeable on offense.

New offensive coordinator Phil Longo ran an air attack variant for four seasons at the same position in North Carolina and intends to move some of that to Wisconsin. Although Longo said ball control will remain a priority, his arrival represents a dramatic shift in a program known for its ball control violations.

“It’s going to be a different pace and pace than what they’ve seen here for a while, perhaps offensively,” Fickell said. “But when you really go to study it, it will still be about the physical. It will still be about managing football and controlling the line of scrimmage.”

There are also many new faces.

Since Fickell’s arrival, Wisconsin has added 15 transfers, including two informal ones. Tanner Mordecaithrowing a school-record 72 touchdown passes at SMU, is one of three quarterback transitions on the Wisconsin roster.

Fickell says he would prefer no more than three or four transfers a year going forward. He noted that most of his incoming transfers have at least three more years of eligibility, giving new hires a better chance of developing them.

“I wouldn’t want to be in the world of transfer quarterbacks,” Fickell said. “I just don’t think that’s how you continue to support and build the program. Obviously we took three of them this year. We didn’t have many rooms in this room, so we had to do it.”

Wisconsin made it to the Rose Bowl as recently as the 2019 season, but hasn’t won a Big Ten title since 2012 and has gone 20-13 over the past three seasons, including a 7-6 mark last year. It’s a step back for a program that has played in six of the first nine Big Ten championship games and won the first two.

Perhaps a new approach might be useful.

“There is a trace, but at times it fades a little,” Fickell said. “Sometimes that’s when change isn’t so bad. I told my own son (Cincinnati offensive lineman Landon Fickell) when I left Cincinnati. I said, “The culture is here. Someone will come and adapt and correct the situation a little. In a way, it can give you a chance to get better.”

“I feel the same here. Recognize what’s really, really good, and then make sure you can improve what you know is important to what you want to do and how you want to do it.”