Michigan handled business at home against Wisconsin on Saturday, grinding out a 24-10 victory in front of the Big House faithful. The No. 20 Wolverines pulled away in the second half behind Bryce Underwood’s 270 passing yards and Justice Haynes’ two-touchdown performance, improving to 4-1 overall and 2-0 in Big Ten play. Wisconsin came out swinging with a 12-play, 75-yard opening touchdown drive, but that was basically all the offense they could muster against Wink Martindale’s defense. The Badgers didn’t score again until a garbage-time field goal, finishing the game at 2-3 and dropping to 0-2 in conference play.

Haynes has become exactly what Sherrone Moore needed when he hit the transfer portal looking for answers. The five-star recruit out of Buford, Georgia, spent two years backing up Jalen Milroe and splitting carries in Alabama’s crowded backfield before deciding he wanted to be the featured back somewhere. Michigan offered him that chance, and he’s made the most of it. And this week, Haynes still found a way to bully Wisconsin, which has had an elite run defense that came into the game allowing just 50 yards rushing per game (best in the country). The bullying was announced on the first play of the game in which Haynes rushed for 43 yards.

But the real story is that Haynes rewrote history in this game. Alejandro Zúñiga captured it perfectly on X: “Michigan running back Justice Haynes has surpassed 100 yards in each of the first five games. He’s the first Wolverine to rush for 100+ yards in his first five appearances with the program.” Against Wisconsin, Haynes carried 19 times for 117 yards, including a massive 43-yard run on Michigan’s opening possession that we talked about. That’s five straight 100-yard games to start his Michigan career, a feat no other Wolverine has ever accomplished. He’s also the first Michigan running back since 2010 to hit the century mark in each of the team’s first five games of a season.

Haynes has already rushed for a humongous 653 yards this season. This is higher than his career high of 448 from his entire sophomore year with the Crimson Tide. He has literally carried the ground game for Michigan and helped them to rank among the Big Ten’s top five running offenses. This is exactly what Sherrone Moore needed after he lost Blake Corum and Donovan Edwards to the NFL. 

An interesting statistic is that Ohio State’s freshman running back, Bo Jackson, just got a similar feat under his belt when he scored 100+ yards in his first two games. That was the first time any player has achieved this feat in OSU’s history. Shocking, yes, but it is what it is. Michigan’s running back history is also filled with legends like Mike Hart, Chris Perry, and Hassan Haskins. These guys have defined eras of Wolverine football. And now, through five games, Haynes has done something none of them ever did. If Haynes keeps this form up and gets a 1500-yard season, it won’t take long for him to get his name among those legends.

Big Ten’s rushing king

When we talk about Michigan this season, the spotlight falls on one name: Bryce Underwood. And he deserves the spotlight; he’s a phenomenal talent. But Justice Haynes is quickly outshining him with the performance he has been putting in week in and week out. Through five games, he’s the nation’s 6th leading rusher, averaging 130.8 yards per game, and more importantly, he’s sitting at the top of the Big Ten rushing charts.

After his 149-yard performance against Nebraska in week four, Haynes became the conference’s undisputed rushing leader, and honestly, no one else is even close. A graphic shared by the user Swanky Wolverine on X perfectly captured it: “Justice Haynes is your B1G Rushing Yards leader 🔥.” The post showed Haynes with 537 yards through four games—on an absolute island compared to the competition. Nebraska’s Emmett Johnson was next with 391 yards, followed by Jonah Coleman with 347, Antwan Raymond with 310, and Kaelon Black with 306.

But this explosiveness didn’t just appear overnight. Last season at Alabama, Haynes showed up in 12 games, starting six, and recorded 448 yards with 7 touchdowns on 79 rushes. His best game came against Western Kentucky, where he led all rushers with 102 yards and a touchdown on only 4 carries. This season at Michigan, he’s already blown past that entire season total through just five games. His 85-yard touchdown run at Nebraska is now Michigan’s 7th-longest touchdown run in program history.