Q&A: A healthy Carlos Brown thrives in Michigan's revamped offense

Carlos Brown

Brown accounted for 90 yards on one burst up the middle, registering the third-longest touchdown run in school history. But much of the season yet ahead, Brown hasn't ruled out making another run at the record books as he recently discussed in a question and answer session.

Q: OK - so 90 yards is a long run. But did you know it ranked right up there with the best in school history?

A: I was just with (Michigan safety) Troy (Woolfolk), and he had a newspaper and he said, 'Look - my dad (former Michigan running back Butch Woolfolk) is No. 1, and I was like, 'You know what, we've got nine more games left to go.' So there's still room, and I can still try and get (the longest run record). I'm not going to try and go after it, but if I get in that position again, hopefully, I can get his record.

Q: When you have a day like you did against Eastern Michigan, what's that like?

A: Oh, man, it was great. Everyone was just doing their job. The line just opened a hole, and I just wanted to see if I could get through there and get going.

Q: Is there any better feeling for a running back than getting out into the open and seeing nothing in front of you?

A: That's the best feeling when you've got the ball in your hand and there's nothing but green. You can see the goal line in front of you. There's nothing like it. It's amazing. It's all adrenaline and everyone wants that feeling.

Q: So much has been made about some of the things that kept you out of the lineup in the past. How good does it feel just to be healthy?

A: It feels great just to help contribute to your team. Last year when I was sitting there watching (the team) I was like, 'Dang, am I ever going to get right?' and be able to help the team. So it feels great to be doing that.

Q: You had at least one freak injury - what was the strangest? Wasn't there something where you hurt your finger in the weight room?

A: Yeah, that was probably the strangest one. I was just lifting and put the (weight) down in a bad place. I don't know if it was really as bad as everyone wanted to make it out to be, but it was kind of weird.

Q: How did you get through missing so much of last year when you had mononucleosis?

A: It was very frustrated, but everyone was behind you. Your coaches, your teammates stayed by my side and they tried to keep me pepped up. So I just tried to keep paying attention and took as many mental reps as possible.

Q: What's the relationship like between you and your fellow running backs coach and your position coach, Fred Jackson?

A: It's awesome - every running back in that room enjoys Coach Jackson. He cracks jokes, but he'll get serious. It's like a father-son relationship, I guess you'd call it. He gives us advice about football, but we talk a lot about life as well.

Q: Now that you've got two quarterbacks in Tate Forcier and Denard Robinson that have proven they can run, what's that like for you?

A: It makes it so much easier because now (opposing defenses) they've got to respect the quarterback's ability along with mine. So it helps out a lot.

Q: People keep talking about this team playing with a chip on its shoulder? Do you see that?

A: Last year, we had a down year, and we've got to get it back. We're trying to get Michigan back to where it used to be, and so we're definitely playing with a chip on our shoulder.

Jeff Arnold covers sports for AnnArbor.com. He can be reached at 734-623-2554 or jeffarnold@annarbor.com