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On Saturday night with time winding down late in the fourth quarter, the football game between Michigan and Southern California came down to one play. The Trojans led 24-20 with less than a minute left on the clock, and on a fourth-and-goal it read very simply: punch the ball into the end zone and the Wolverines win, don’t and Michigan loses.
And so with everything on the line, the Wolverines put the ball into the hands of their most consistent playmaker, graduate running back Kalel Mullings. But as Mullings barged into the end zone just a few seconds later, what was even more important to the play was who Michigan trusted without the ball in his hands — senior fullback Max Bredeson.
As Mullings rushed toward the outside of the line, a USC lineman diagnosed the play and stepped up to block him. But before he could get anywhere within three yards of Mullings, he was popped by Bredeson, driven backwards and kept from saving the game for the Trojans.
Bredeson, who almost never touches the ball, may not have been hailed as a hero for his performance Saturday — or ever really in his behind-the-scenes role. But in his unflashy, hand-in-the-dirt fullback position, Bredeson has carved out a niche for himself that the Wolverines simply could not survive without.
“He’s the ultimate thumper,” Michigan coach Sherrone Moore said Monday. “He’s the tone setter, he does it pregame, in the locker room, at practice. … He’s just unbelievable.”
While Bredeson’s contributions against the Trojans were especially notable, that wasn’t the first time he came up clutch with a crucial block in a game’s waning moments. In fact, just last year in the Wolverines’ Rose Bowl victory over Alabama, Bredeson cleared the last defender and allowed then-Michigan running back Blake Corum to seal the game.
But on an everyday basis, what Bredeson adds is less flashy. He isn’t in on every offensive snap, and in his four years in Ann Arbor he has touched the ball just seven times, but what he adds is a crushing physical presence. On runs, Bredeson clears opposing lineman and pries open gaps for his running backs. It’s not a flashy role, it’s physical and grinding, but it’s part of what has kept the Wolverines’ run game flowing these past two years.
“He lays the wood,” fifth-year offensive lineman Myles Hinton said Tuesday. “Whenever he’s in there, every play, I can trust that he’s gonna come and do whatever he’s got to do to get that run popped. Even in the pass game, if he has to block a defensive end, he’ll get it done. He’s one of those guys that’s like, if you’re on the field with him … you’re always like OK, it’s Breddy, he’ll get it done.”
While Bredeson’s current niche for Michigan is focused on allowing others to shine, he hasn’t always been a backstage player. In high school, Bredeson was a highly touted quarterback and was originally recruited to the Wolverines at that position. But almost immediately, Bredeson asked to make a change, something the coaching staff found surprising.
“I’ve said it before, but I don’t know many high school quarterbacks that come in and immediately ask if they can move to fullback so they can try to get on the field and help on special teams,” Michigan offensive line coach Grant Newsome said Aug. 28. “He leads with his actions, and it’s kind of overused and cliche, but he’s a foxhole guy. He’s one of those guys that if my life was on the line, I’m trusting Max Bredeson.”
So far, the Wolverines haven’t had to trust Bredeson in any literal life-or-death situations. But on the football field, Bredeson has come up big in moments that were do or die. He did it last January in the Rose Bowl, and he did it again Saturday.
There’s a reason why Bredeson was voted a captain by his teammates. It’s not because he’s the star of the show. It’s because when Michigan needs the players that it can trust the most — like it did Saturday — Max Bredeson is on the field.
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