Mocs Enjoy Spreading the Wealth at Running Back

Chattanooga-(WDEF-TV) You’d thought the Mocs ran the option last Saturday against Western Carolina. Three running backs each tallied over 70-yards rushing.
Alym Ford, Terrell Price, and Gino Appleberry all got in, on the fun and run. Running back by committee is a beautiful thing when the committee is all talented.

Tailback Alym Ford says it was cool seeing himself and his mates run wild.Said Ford:”Yeah it’s amazing. Just goes to show how much work we put in on and off the field in the running back room. We’ve got a lot of guys that can tote the rock every week.”

Said head coach Rusty Wright:”You rush for 270 yards. Somebody had to do well. Actually TP’s run, (Jamoi) Mayes is running down the sidelines, and he blocks the corner that finishes it, which we hadn’t been doing a good job of the last couple of weeks.”

It’s easy sometimes to forget in the running game the importance of down field blocking.

Said Wright:”We played Western Kentucky, and we had a hard time getting hats on the safeties, and those were good players. It’d be a ten yard gain, and the guy is down. We have to continue to push cracks and see things and do that. Just put hats on hats and make a guy have to work to go make a tackle.”

Having options at running back is a coaches dream. That wasn’t the case for Coach Wright in 2019 when injuries left Alym Ford as the last man standing, and he totaled 122 carries over a four game stretch.

Said Wright:”We got to a point where he was the only one. Alym was the only one back there. That was pretty much the offense. You’d have to take him out just to give him a breathe. And go do something completely different schematically offensively just to get him off the field.”

Now Ford enjoys having a lighter load. Said Ford:”I feel more ready to go come the fourth quarter as compared to the previous years, but I’m always ready to play. I’m excited for the guys that’s out there.”