Was able to speak with sophomore running back Jalen Rhodes after the spring game. If you recall, Rhodes suffered through a few injuries before finally getting his career started in 2015. He's a sophomore despite committing in the 2013 class along with seniors like Jarveon Williams. Here is our interview.
Q: Did this spring finally feel like you were able to focus on just playing football without concern for old injuries?
A: This spring felt great, man. I don't even know how to describe it. I'm just happy.
Q: Looking back, how much stronger of a person did all that adversity make you become?
A: It built me up so much...my confidence, the way I look at life and different things. It made me a happier person over time. It helped a lot. Gave me priorities, for sure.
Q: How often do Jarveon and you talk about the expectations for this season?
A: That's everyday. It's all we talk about. We try to give each other a competitive advantage and push each other. We're just trying to get better. We're all talented at this position group. The competition at practice is much more fierce than it was when I first got here. You can't take a day off, or someone will come fix that for you real quick and give you the day off by taking your spot. That wasn't true when I first got here.
Q: How's the offensive line look?
A: They've come a long way. There is no team without them, both sides of the ball. All we can do is thank them because they're all improving.
Q: How is this offense different?
A: It's not a ton different. We're still multiple, but there are some sets we'll be in a majority of the time that we weren't in last year. We're doing some one-back stuff more. It wasn't hard for the new staff to gain our trust because of the way they talked to us from day one. They told us they believe in us and we'll win. They really did everything they could to make this transition work.
Q: Does the youth on the staff help with that?
A: It's a big difference because we can relate to them more. They're not as removed from these situations as some of the other guys.
Q: Did this spring finally feel like you were able to focus on just playing football without concern for old injuries?
A: This spring felt great, man. I don't even know how to describe it. I'm just happy.
Q: Looking back, how much stronger of a person did all that adversity make you become?
A: It built me up so much...my confidence, the way I look at life and different things. It made me a happier person over time. It helped a lot. Gave me priorities, for sure.
Q: How often do Jarveon and you talk about the expectations for this season?
A: That's everyday. It's all we talk about. We try to give each other a competitive advantage and push each other. We're just trying to get better. We're all talented at this position group. The competition at practice is much more fierce than it was when I first got here. You can't take a day off, or someone will come fix that for you real quick and give you the day off by taking your spot. That wasn't true when I first got here.
Q: How's the offensive line look?
A: They've come a long way. There is no team without them, both sides of the ball. All we can do is thank them because they're all improving.
Q: How is this offense different?
A: It's not a ton different. We're still multiple, but there are some sets we'll be in a majority of the time that we weren't in last year. We're doing some one-back stuff more. It wasn't hard for the new staff to gain our trust because of the way they talked to us from day one. They told us they believe in us and we'll win. They really did everything they could to make this transition work.
Q: Does the youth on the staff help with that?
A: It's a big difference because we can relate to them more. They're not as removed from these situations as some of the other guys.
