While there is not a clear No. 1 running back with the Ohio State football team, head coach Ryan Day compliments the likes of TreVeyon Henderson as possibly being the leader of the group. Henderson is now entering his fourth year with the Ohio State football program and per his coach, the leadership has been “tremendous” according to Patrick Murphy of 247 Sports.
“It all started with TreVeyon,” Day said. “And I think TreVeyon’s leadership so far this year as he’s transitioned into his fourth year has been tremendous. The way that he’s gone about his work. The way that he’s holding guys accountable. He’s got a different look in his eye, and I think that’s important. He’s been in these games before. He knows.”
Day praises Henderson’s selflessness amid adding running back to OSU
He had shared the carries with Evan Pryor before, but now with the inclusion of former Ole Miss player Quinshon Judkins, the question would be if Henderson ended up frustrated by the move. However, the response from Henderson was different as Day made sure to talk to his running back before hand and let him know about the team’s intentions to bring in another running back.
“Well, when it first happened and Quinshon went into the portal, the first thing was talking to TreVeyon, and, ‘What are your thoughts?’ And he was unbelievable,” Day said earlier this month via 247 Sports. “’If you think it helps the team, Coach, then let’s do it.’”
While there is now a bevy of talent within the Buckeyes running back group, there is also young men who are selfless as besides Henderson, Judkins was more than fine playing alongside him. Day would give him props, saying that the transfer “has embraced what we’ve been in our culture.”
“And then talking to Quinshon and saying, ‘TreVeyon, he’s here and he’s coming back,’” Day said. “And he said, ‘Well, I’d love to go play with him.’ I think he said that to the media last week. I’ll give Quinshon credit. He also has embraced what we’ve been in our culture in the last couple of weeks, and we’ll see as it grows. But all the reports are that he’s doing a great job of assimilating.”
Day talking about Ohio State football’s depth at running back
Last season, Henderson rushed for 926 yards to go along with 11 touchdowns on 156 carries as he was the featured back on the team last season. With Judkins joining the team, there is a huge potential for a 1-2 punch combo with the Buckeyes as with the Rebels last season, he was exceptional, rushing for 1,158 yards and scoring 15 touchdowns.
Day talks about the depth now at the running back position as he mentions there is a lot of positives with having that besides the talent. He would mention that with the typical Ohio State football schedule, it is a long one, so having fresh running backs is “very, very important.”
“There’s a lot of depth there,” Day said of the running back room. “And when I think about next season, you have your 12-game regular season, you have the Big Ten Championship Game, then you have the 12-team Playoff. I mean, you’re talking about possibly, maybe 16,17 games. And so that’s a long run. That’s an NFL schedule. And so your roster needs to reflect that. And having depth at running back will be very, very important.”
When it came to the season prior, the Buckeyes finished 11-2, going 8-1 in the conference. Looking at the home stretch of the year, they finished on a two-game losing streak with their final defeat being against the University of Missouri in the Cotton Bowl.
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