Rawls committed to the University of Michigan on February 1, 2011.
 In announcing his commitment, Rawls said he hoped to break Mike Hart's rushing records at Michigan: "Mike Hart, he was my favorite player.
Honestly, I want to play early like he did.
I want to play as a true freshman running back.
I know I am going to make an impact.
Also, Mike Hart holds a lot of records at Michigan, and with all due respect to Mike, I want to shatter those records."

As a freshman, he appeared in 10 games for the Michigan football team and had a season-high 73 rushing yards against Minnesota on October 1, 2011.
After a good showing in his freshman season, Rawls was picked by Michael Rothstein of ESPN.com as one of five Michigan players likely to surprise in 2012.

However, Rawls's playing time was minimal in both the 2012 and 2013 seasons, having only three carries in the entire 2013 season.
Rawls committed to the University of Michigan on February 1, 2011.  In announcing his commitment, Rawls said he hoped to break Mike Hart's rushing records at Michigan: "Mike Hart, he was my favorite player. Honestly, I want to play early like he did. I want to play as a true freshman running back. I know I am going to make an impact. Also, Mike Hart holds a lot of records at Michigan, and with all due respect to Mike, I want to shatter those records."
As a freshman, he appeared in 10 games for the Michigan football team and had a season-high 73 rushing yards against Minnesota on October 1, 2011. After a good showing in his freshman season, Rawls was picked by Michael Rothstein of ESPN.com as one of five Michigan players likely to surprise in 2012.
However, Rawls's playing time was minimal in both the 2012 and 2013 seasons, having only three carries in the entire 2013 season.
Thomas Rawls