2017 FB Preview: Running Backs
8/15/2017 6:00:00 PM | Football
The 2017 Sam Houston State Bearkat football season is nearly upon us, and leading up to the August 27 kickoff vs Richmond, Bearkat Athletics will be taking a look at this year's Sam Houston roster.
This is the sixth of an eight-part preview, position-by-position of this year's squad. The Kats were selected as unanimous favorites to reclaim the SLC crown and boast five preseason all-Americans on the roster.
RUNNING BACK NOTABLES
Returning: Corey Avery, Remus Bulmer, Javin Webb, Jordan Brown
Newcomers: Kyran Jackson
HUNTSVILLE – Teams don't lead the nation in scoring and total offense by being one-dimensional, and with five talented backfield pieces in the fold, the Bearkats look the part of a balanced attack once again.
For an offense that threw the ball around as much as it did last season, Sam Houston managed to find plenty of touches for its backs a year ago. It was the first time since 2010 that the Bearkats did not feature a 1,000-yard rusher, but the team still finished second in the league in yards per carry (5.2) and was tops among Southland schools with 31 rushing touchdowns.
“One of the things we have emphasized this year is the run game,” running backs coach Zack Patterson said. “We want to improve the run game and be more efficient in the run game, because at the end of the season we kind of got away from it. We've seen our guys embrace that throughout camp. Each of the guys, when they are out there, are making the most of their opportunities.”
Six Kats rushed for at least one score last year, including all four running backs who return to the roster this season. Senior Corey Avery punched it across the goal line 10 times last year, leading the Southland Conference and helping him earn all-SLC first team honors for the second straight year.
He averaged 6.0 yards per carry and was one of two backs – along with Remus Bulmer – to average six yards or more per tote. Avery rushed for nearly 1,500 yards as a sophomore in 2015, and opened up the year hot with 206 yards and a pair of scores in the first two games of 2016 before an ankle injury slowed him down.
“Corey is a guy who has played a lot of games in his time here,” Patterson said. “Last year he was dinged up a little bit and wasn't as productive as he was his first year, but this camp he's looked really healthy.”
Avery showed a flash of 2015 two weeks later when he put up a career-high 212 yards and four scores on only 17 carries in a win at UIW; however, an injury late in that game nagged him throughout the remainder of the season. Still, in just two years he has moved into 10th all-time in rushing yards at Sam Houston and is just 450 yards shy of matching Charles Harris for second all-time in that category.
“He's got really good vision and balance and is a talented runner who catches the ball well,” Patterson said. “When healthy, he is as good as anyone in the country and you can see how good he can be with what he has done so far in his career. We are expecting him to continue that and have a good season.“
But Avery was not the only Bearkat back to make a big impact on the offense as Remus Bulmer took full advantage of his sophomore season, leading the Bearkats with 901 yards and eight scores on the ground, including a team-best three 100-yard rushing games on his way to being named to the all-SLC second team.
Despite being smaller in stature at just 5-7 and 185 pounds Bulmer showed elusiveness and a knack for finishing runs throughout 2016. He had back-to-back 100-yard games in wins over Houston Baptist and Stephen F. Austin and averaged 71.5 yards per game in the final four games of the regular season in pushing the Kats to the regular season SLC crown and into the FCS playoffs.
“I always joke with Remus and tell him he is like a prize fighter. You can't ever hit him square,” Patterson said. “He's a smaller guy, but he makes people miss and always seems to be falling forward. It's hard to get a solid tackle on him. He has continued to be productive in camp and is just extremely efficient and productive when he has the ball in his hands.”
Patterson and the Kats are also expecting Javin Webb to be a key piece to the backfield in 2017 after injuries cut his season short after just six games. He transferred to Sam Houston from Houston entering his sophomore season and scored four times in his first three games, averaging 5.4 yards per carry in those contests.
A talented back in his own right, he was a consensus three-star recruit out of Shreveport's (LA) Evangel High School and packs a punch into his 5-9, 205-pound frame. He gives the Kats a premier option in short-yardage and goal line situations, along with being able to catch the ball out of the backfield with efficiency.
“Having five guys who we feel comfortable putting out there is a big luxury for us,” Patterson said. “It comes down to the fact that they are a very selfless group. They all root for each other. When someone does well, they are all excited. I think they are all sacrificing themselves for the good of the team and they realize that it's good for the team that they are selfless. They know when it's their opportunity that they'll have the chance to make some plays.”
The Kats also boast a true speed option in Jordan Brown, who not only gives Sam Houston another weapon out of the backfield, but was a key player on special teams units last year. He picked up 116 yards on 22 carries with a score a year ago in his first season with the squad.
“Jordan is the speed guy of the group. He's very fast and very explosive,” Patterson said. “He was a special teams nightmare for teams last year and we really didn't want to take away from what he did there. He had a couple of nagging injuries last year and missed a couple of games, so we didn't really get to use him quite as much as we would have liked to. But he's another guy that when healthy is just really excelling.”
The new addition to the backfield is the lone running back signee from the February signing class – freshman Kyran Jackson. So far, Patterson and the coaches are happy with the progress they have seen from him and feel as though he could make an impact on the field this season.
He joins the team on the heels of a decorated high school career at Fort Worth's South Hills High School where he was named the District 7-5A MVP a year ago after leading his squad to a perfect 10-0 record in the regular season. Jackson earned that honor following a season that saw him rush for 1,434 yards and 28 touchdowns.
