University of North Carolina Athletics
Storylines: The Running Game
August 19, 2010 | Football
Aug. 19, 2010
This is the fifth article in a series from Tar Heel Monthly focusing on ten on-field storylines to watch during football training camp.
By Lauren Brownlow
It's a well-known fact that Carolina has not had a 1,000-yard rusher since 1997. Carolina has still managed back-to-back 8-5 seasons and has been to five bowl games in that span.
Everyone wants that streak to end. But after even a 100-yard rushing game seemed impossible during last year's first two ACC games (Carolina managed 56 yards on 41 carries), priorities shifted.
A young offensive line and wide receiving corps contributed to those problems. But by the end of the season, Ryan Houston was the only healthy tailback left on the roster when starter Shaun Draughn went out with a broken shoulder blade against Duke.
Houston, a grind-it-out runner, combined with an improving offensive line helped Carolina improve its rushing statistics significantly. But Carolina was left without a big-play rushing threat, save a reverse or end-around by a wide receiver.
This season, the two-year senior starter Shaun Draughn and versatile do-everything senior Johnny White, along with Houston, will give Carolina a balance of explosiveness and power.
Draughn is capable of being both a between-the-tackles runner and a big-play threat, but decision-making has been his weakness. But his knowledge of the game and experience has helped him progress.
"I'm just being more patient and then when it's there, hitting it instead of just waiting for the big one," Draughn said. "I think experience got me to the point where I'm not just thinking about what I have to do. I'm thinking about what the linemen are going to do and how effective the run can be if I know what they're going to do."
It helps that a line that could barely find five players last season is now rotating 10-12 linemen in practice, building chemistry with the running backs and each other.
Despite the injuries on offense and three games with less than 40 yards rushing, Carolina finished seventh in the ACC and 79th in the nation - not great, but very good considering where they started.
While they want to improve their rankings, numbers are less important than the way the improvements show on the field. Sophomore center Jonathan Cooper just wants the rushing attack to be consistent.
"We want to be able to run against everybody and have the ability to run the ball every down," Cooper said. "I want to feel like if the passing game isn't going, we could put it on our shoulders to win the game. I feel like we have the ability to do that."
There appears to be plenty of depth in the backfield but injuries are unpredictable. Already, talented freshman Giovani Bernard was lost for the year to a torn ACL. Sophomore Hunter Furr has some game experience; he impressed his teammates and his head coach in last Saturday's scrimmage. Butch Davis called it Furr's best practice as a Tar Heel.
Houston was able to step up last year and fill the void left by injuries. He is capable of being an every-down back, but he is perhaps best suited to close out games or convert third-and-short plays.
Johnny White, who had Carolina's longest rushing touchdown at NC State last season (40 yards), provides a dangerous added dimension in the backfield.
He was Carolina's starting tailback in 2007 and averaged 4.2 per rush, but Greg Little eventually replaced him.
"My freshman year, it was a confidence factor," White said. "I just felt like I didn't know what I was doing so I wasn't playing full speed. I was thinking too much. Now, I'm having more fun with it and being more confident in my ability."
White ended up taking on kickoff return duties after Brandon Tate went down in 2008. He has moved from cornerback to wide receiver and finally took on some running back duties by the end of 2009.
He worked so hard in the weight room that he earned off-season conditioning MVP honors. His teammates have raved about how well he has played so far.
"In the scrimmage (Saturday), all the receiving options were shut down but Johnny would just squirt out and catch the ball and turn a five-yard catch into a 15-yard play," Cooper said. "Shaun, he saw what Johnny was doing and he put together a drive of his own. It seems like Shaun's trying to win the spot back all over again."
But even if Draughn wins the battle to start, it doesn't mean that he will carry even most of the load. It's still unclear what the coaches will decide to do, but what is certain is that all three will be used quite a bit.
"You've got to have more at that position than one guy regardless of who is starting," running backs coach Ken Browning said. "Sometimes a role may be as a change-up. Sometimes the most important guy is who finishes the game for you, especially if you're in a four-minute or a two-minute offense.
"They're trying to define their roles and then based on what the coaching staff sees in practice, it's up to us to determine what combination and when helps us win that game."
Lauren Brownlow is the executive editor of Tar Heel Monthly.
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