In the race for running back, Saturday’s A Day scrimmage highlighted the likes of Roc Thomas, who carried for 62 yards and made the game’s first touchdown run under quarterback Jeremy Johnson.
“I think I did pretty well,” Thomas said. “I think I made a lot of progress, I feel more comfortable in the offense.”
In his high school career, the 5’10 sophomore rushed for 2,211 yards with 32 touchdowns and averaged 9.8 yards a carry in his senior year.
Falling behind Thomas were both Jovon Robinson, who carried 19 total yards switching between the starting team and secondary, and Peyton Barber with 37 net yards gained for Team Tigers.
Thomas said in post-game that the biggest strength he can see so far in the offense is the connection they have with each other and the efficiency of communication. Thomas added that the team’s weakness involves working on getting its edge back.
Compared to Robinson, Thomas says he has a disadvantage in weight, which allows Robinson to plow more defenders, standing at 240 pounds.
This fall, Gus Malzahn expects to see running back progression show on the field. “All three of our running backs are very good with the ball,” Malzahn said. He went on to recognize Thomas’ success saying, “Roc made some spin moves, came out of things, that was real nice.”
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