Ohio State assistant coach and running backs coach Tony Alford spoke with the media over Zoom call Tuesday to talk about his deep room of talent, and what it is going to look like as spring practice gets underway.
- As far as having one primary back or a tandem, Alford said Ohio State will do whatever gives it the best chance to win games. He said that means one running back taking the majority of carries or multiple running backs splitting carries.
- Alford said the room is “a great room.” He said that it is a “great group of kids.” and that the room is competitive, but very unselfish.
- When asked who would start if Ohio State had a game tomorrow, Alford said Master Teague because he is incumbent. He also said there will still be a lot of competition.
- Alford said it was not fair to true freshman running back TreVeyon Henderson to be compared to J.K. Dobbins. He said putting that pressure on Henderson throughout his development would not be the right thing to do.
- When looking past the running backs to the offensive line, Alford said he thinks that Ohio State has a chance to be an elite run blocking team.
- On Henderson and Evan Pryor, another true freshman, Alford called them “extremely coachable” and “hungry to learn.”
- Alford said that Marcus Crowley has a lot of talent and is working hard on his development: “He really has done a good job to committing himself to getting stronger. Marcus is a competitive kid, and he’s had a really good offseason. He’s had a really good focus these past couple months.”
- On the speculation that Steele Chambers may be moving from running back to linebacker: “I’ve seen some of that speculation. I don’t know where that speculation’s come from. It didn’t come from this office.”
- As far as competition in the running back room, Alford said he doesn’t “want them to be patient. Show the staff that you have to play.”
- Alford said he doesn’t think Teague was 100 percent healthy at the start of the 2020 season, but got there as the year progressed. He also called Teague a “genetic freak” and an incredibly hard worker.
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