Offensive team has depth

sports@dailylobo.com
@ThomasRomeroS

Depth at running back won’t be a concern for the New Mexico football team this year.

The Lobo backfield has several capable halfbacks to go along with senior captain Kasey Carrier, who broke the school record for rushing yards in a season with 1,469 yards last year. Senior Demarcus Rogers, junior Crusoe Gongbay and sophomore Jhurell Pressely all have experience in UNM’s triple option offense, and all are ready to contribute.

“That’s always a good thing; it’s a long season,” running backs coach Apollo Wright said. “All those guys are going to have to be ready and willing to go.”

The Lobos are deep at the position with 11 halfbacks on the roster, but head coach Bob Davie said despite the numbers he’s still worried about how injuries might affect the team’s running attack.

“We’re not quite as deep as it looks on paper,” he said. “We’re deep when it comes to handing guys the ball to carry the ball. We’re not as deep with guys who can block back there. With the way we run the ball you go through those numbers in a hurry.”

To make up for the lack of blockers, the team has moved sophomore David Anaya from safety back to running back.

The Lobos won’t have much to fret about if Carrier stays healthy. Carrier said he’s content with sharing the ball with the other backs.

“That’s up to the coaches, they’re the experts and they know what to do and what not to do,” Carrier said. “It will help with us staying healthy so I’m not worried about it at all.”

Carrier rushed the ball 255 times last season, and he said he’s confident that his body can take that kind of pounding again. He also said he wants to break the rushing record he set last year.

“Every running back or player has their goals, and I definitely want to hit one next year,” he said. “That would be nice (getting that many touches again). It’s my first time getting that since high school. Getting that again would be pretty exciting.”

With a year to get acclimated to the triple option, it’s probable that some Mountain West Conference foes might have spent time practicing to stop it. “Yeah, it sucks,” said Carrier. “Not for us, but for opposing defenses. I know our defensive players don’t know where the ball is going to go each play. Most of the time they think it’s a read, but it’s not, it’s an automatic give. I don’t know how you stop it.”