ANN ARBOR – Receiver A.J. Henning is at a pivotal point in his Michigan career.
The former four-star prospect – the Wolverines’ highest-ranked recruit in the 2020 class at No. 102 overall – arrived in Ann Arbor touted for his speed and elusiveness with the ball in his hands.
Henning had a chance to showcase his explosiveness last season when he took over as the team’s primary punt returner in Week 3, but his playing time on offense remained sporadic.
The 5-foot-10, 185-pounder saw 181 snaps on offense last season – the sixth fewest among receivers – but he never became discouraged.
Heading in 2022, Michigan boasts more artillery in its receiver room after adding three freshmen scholarship receivers, including two top-150 recruits in Darrius Clemons and Tyler Morris. It also only lost one in Daylen Baldwin.
But Henning also knows he isn’t the same player he was last season.
“I definitely want to see a growth in my position this year,” Henning said Thursday inside Schembechler Hall. “I feel like this spring has been huge in building the basis of what I want to do for this season for the team to help them win. I feel like what I’ve done, and what everybody has done, competitively -- we all put ourselves in a position to help this team. I just feel like going into this year, I can definitely see myself in a position to contribute more on offense.
“I feel like my game is very versatile. I can line up really everywhere and get put in matchups that can help.”
Last season, Henning finished with 10 catches for 79 yards on 17 targets, but only one reception came more than 9 yards downfield, according to Pro Football Focus. He primarily was deployed as a rusher on reverses and jet sweeps, totaling 162 yards and two touchdowns on nine carries.
While looking to carve out a larger role on offense in 2022, Henning also understands there are other responsibilities of being one of the more experienced receivers on the roster.
The position is deep, but only fifth-year senior Ronnie Bell, who is recovering from a torn ACL, senior Cornelius Johnson and fellow junior Roman Wilson have been on the team for at least two seasons. (Junior Mike Sainristil played receiver in 2020 and 2021 but is now splitting time at defensive back).
Clemons, Morris, freshman Amorion Walker and sophomores Andrel Anthony and Cristian Dixon are underclassmen.
“I’ve been in the building for three years,” Henning said. “I know what it’s like. Like we say, we have a standard here. I know what it’s like to conduct my business in a way of how the Michigan Wolverines want to on a day-to-day basis. Just bringing that to the younger guys, how to help them along.
“As far as on the field, I feel like it’ll take care of itself and coaches putting people in positions to make the best opportunities for the team and for themselves. But I feel like now I can step into a more of a leadership role to help bring younger guys underclassmen.”
When the Wolverines take the field for their 2022 season opener, there will only be so many touches to go around for the nine scholarship wideouts. Henning said he is eager to earn a role.
“It’s huge,” Henning said of the competition this spring. “We know we have a lot of playmakers and it’s a competition, but it’s a helpful competition. Everybody’s raising the bar to make each other their best. Everybody every day is competing, and everybody every day is making one another better.”
For Michigan’s coaching staff, the depth at the position is a good problem to have.
“You’ve just gotta figure out how to get those guys into different positions and match up issues and different things with the defense to make it successful for us,” co-offensive coordinator Sherrone Moore said March 16. “The best thing we have is we have a great team and we have great unity. They don’t really care about the ball. Well, obviously, they do – if you’re a receiver, you want the ball —but they do a great job of staying together, really working together. It’s been fun. It’s always going to be a challenge as a play-caller to do that, make sure those guys are in the right place. But we’re just gonna continue to strain on our end to make sure those guys will be put in a position to be successful so we can take advantages of matchups we see against defenses.”
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April 01, 2022 at 05:04AM
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A.J. Henning looks to emerge in crowded Michigan WR room - MLive.com
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