Saturday, April 20, 2002
RedHawks look for running backs to break out
Murray No. 1 going into spring game
By Ian Duthie
Enquirer contributor
Mention Miami's offense, and the first name that comes to mind is Ben Roethlisberger. Rightfully so: Last year the freshman quarterback broke the single-season marks for passing yards (3,105), touchdown passes (25) and completions (241).
“He's the guy that makes us go,” coach Terry Hoeppner said. “He is bigger, stronger, and I already see he makes better decisions in practice. He is a given.”
But as the RedHawks prepare for today's spring game, finding the running guy to complement their star quarterback won't be so easy.
“(This season) we hope to get more consistency from our running game,” said second-year offensive coordinator Shane Montgomery. “We had some good yardage games, but toward the end of the season it really hurt us.”
Three competitors are vying for the starting position vacated by Steve Little, a senior who led the team with 587 rushing yards last season.
Cal Murray, third on the team with 342 rushing yards, has established himself in spring practice as a “strong No.1 running back,” Hoeppner said. Murray's early status as the starter is largely due to an off-season lifting program that added 15 pounds of muscle to his 5-foot-10
frame, bringing his weight to 195.
“I feel more powerful, stout. I can take more hits and finish my runs,” Murray said.
Last season, Murray averaged 7.3 yards a carry, which included a 183-yard, three-touchdown performance in his first career start against Ball State. The downsides were injuries which limited him to only 47 carries.
Luke Clemens, the team's top yardage returnee (431 yards), is back but won't play today after straining a knee in practice earlier this week.
“It's not that bad,” Clemens said. “If it were the regular season, I'd be playing.”
The wild card of the bunch is Pittsburgh transfer Jay Wallace. Hoeppner calls him the most explosive back who shows “signs of brilliance,” but Wallace lacks experience after sitting out last season due to transfer rules. He saw no action his freshman year at Pitt.
Whoever plays knows that this is a different offense from that which made stars of running backs Deland McCullough and Travis Prentice.
“We all have worked hard to improve our (pass) blocking and pass catching,” Wallace said. “We know the offense is going to pass more than it runs, but picking up a blitz or catching a screen can be as important as running it.”
Hoeppner said he hopes today's scrimmage marks the beginning of an effective running game that will make an already high-powered offense which compiled nearly 400 yards of offense a game last season even better.
“We can't continue to run just to run if we consistently face third (down) and long. I hope to have a good average per carry and not always rely on Ben to make a play,” he said.
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