COACH TALK: Rotation Remains Unsettled At Running Back
NC State running backs coach Des Kitchings just smiled when asked about the injury bug that hit his position group throughout fall camp. However, this isn't new territory for him.
He laughed before answering when was the last time the running backs were healthy all spring and fall.
"I don’t recall that ever happening at NC State," Kitchings said.
However, that doesn't prevent Kitchings from taking a positive mindset.
"For a coach, you can look at it two different ways," he said. "Either, 'Oh crap, my guys are beat up,' or, 'I get the opportunity to hone in on the details with it with these young guys.'
"I’ve been spoiled with Nyheim, Matt, Reggie, going back to Creecy, even when Shad was here, those guys have been with me for a while so they knew the details. Now you have a new crop and go back to square one, make sure the fundamentals and details and the offense are correct, that’s been fun for me as a coach."
Reggie Gallaspy and Ricky Person battled injuries in the spring, and during the fall every scholarship tailback was dinged up at some point or another. That led to additional reps for walk-on Brady Bodine, and the Wolfpack shifted true freshman Tyler Baker-Williams over from safety to tailback.
Nakia Robison, Ricky Person, and Trent Pennix are all in a position to compete at the position behind Gallaspy, the clear starter.
"Reggie is the bell cow," Kitchings said. "Four-year guy, excited to see what he can produce for us this year. From there, it’s still a mixed bag of who.
"Ricky, Nakia, we’ve had Tyler Baker-Williams at running back some so we’ll see if that sticks. Just going into the game, we’ve got to get a feel of who because those guys haven’t played. The only guy who has played is Reggie. It's just a matter of how the game goes and getting guys opportunities so they can play college ball."
Gallaspy's role in the offense is solidified, but Kitchings is searching for the clear back-up to his senior starter. The depth chart was released on Monday and heralded true freshman Ricky Person was listed as the backup along with the unexpected name of Tyler Baker-Williams.
Person's injuries in the spring and fall have prevented him from really showcasing what all he can do for the coaches, but Kitchings has a fairly good idea of the true freshman's ability.
"Ricky is a competitive kid, he said. "He wants to do everything right. He wants to go hard, he welcomes coaching. He’s got a chance to be a pretty good player for us."
The surprise on the depth chart was Baker-Williams being listed. A Raleigh (NC) native, Baker-Williams was slated to play safety for the Wolfpack, but his versatility in high school opened up this opportunity. It appears his ability to be present also played a role in him swiftly moving up the depth chart.
"Tyler was doing well on defense," Dave Doeren said at his press conference on Monday. "But, we felt putting him [at running back] while Ricky was out, Trent was out... he gave us a player who, if they didn't come back, could stay there and play.
"He's very athletic, catches the ball well, and he has good vision."
Trent Pennix, the third true freshman tailback, generated buzz early in fall camp. However, Doeren said Pennix missed roughly 20 practices with an injury before recently returning.
"We feel like Trent Pennix early in camp was going to be a really, really good player and he missed about 20 practices," Doeren added. "He's been back with us for about a week, and he's looked good.
"We're not going to rush the process. Who knows? He may be the No. 2 tailback by Friday."
Another option at the position is redshirt freshman Nakia Robinson, a player Kitchings coveted out of Miami (FL) Jackson High School in the 2017 recruiting class.
"Nakia had a lot of versatility," Kitchings said. "I like kids that played both ways. He played offense and defense, so it shows toughness about a kid. He’s a good runner, improving as a pass catcher... so I think he’ll be able to help us this year."
It will be interesting to see what type of rotation develops at the position. In the past Kitchings has chosen different approaches. He has used a true two-back rotation, like he did in 2014 with Shadrach Thornton and Matt Dayes, but has also gone with a feature running back like in 2016 and 2017 with Dayes and Hines, respectively.
As of now it's too early to say how it will all shake out at running back.
"Unfortunately, we’ll know more about guys in the live bullet situation," Kitchings said. "We know what we have with Reggie. Can he be a 80 plays per game guy? Yeah, but we don’t want him to have to do that.
"We have to have some guys step up and take plays off him. Otherwise, we’ll get to ACC play and he’ll be burnt out. That’s the nature of football, NFL or college; [you] have to have multiple guys. In a perfect world, you’d have three guys, and I think we’re trending that way."