By Will Vandervort.
Zac Brooks says he will be Clemson’s starting running back in the Aug. 30 opener at No. 12 Georgia. Why?
“Because I’m confident in my skill set and I think that I can get the job done,” the junior said following Tuesday’s practice at Jervey Meadows.
There is no doubting Brooks’ confidence, and he could be right. He might be the Tigers’ starter when it is all said and done. But other than his confidence, there is no underlining evidence that says he will be the starter when the 16th-ranked Tigers kickoff the season “Between the Hedges” in a couple of weeks.
Heading into Wednesday mornings’ situational scrimmage in Death Valley, Brooks and senior running back D.J. Howard are neck-and-neck in the race to be Clemson’s next starting running back. The two have noticeably separated from the rest of the pack as they have spilt first-team reps at practice and in last Saturday’s scrimmage.
C.J. Davidson is exclusively working with the second team in practice, while redshirt freshman Wayne Gallman is working with the third team.
“We are all working hard. I can’t say that D.J. and I are the way better backs and have made separation because we have all worked hard,” Brooks said.
Brooks worked hard in the off-season to put himself in position to be Clemson’s No. 1 running back. After injuring his shoulder at Virginia last November, he missed three of the last five games of the season and played very little in the other two.
He had shoulder surgery after the South Carolina game to repair some of the damage.
Before the injury, Brooks was having a solid sophomore campaign as he averaged 5.1 yards per carry and scored two touchdowns, while also grabbing six receptions for 83 yards, including a 31-yard diving catch for a touchdown in the Tigers’ win over Georgia.
“I don’t like to put parameters on guys but I thought by now he would be the guy that would separate himself,” running backs coach Tony Elliott said about Brooks before the start of training camp. “I think he has all the tools and all the ability. Now he is at the point where he is starting to be able to carry a little bit more weight.”
Speaking of weight, Brooks weighed in at 200 pounds at the start of camp, proving how hard he has dedicated himself to getting better and putting himself in position to be the No. 1 running back. He did that after having his best spring since he has been at Clemson.
He has carried that momentum into fall camp and is right in the thick of things as the Tigers hit the back stretch of fall camp.
“I just try to bring something else to the table,” he said. “There is nothing that I can’t do. That is something that I already had in my mind. That’s something I try to show on the field and prove so that I can be that number one back.”
Elliott said before camp began that Brooks was going to have to really work and push Howard for the starting spot because in a split decision the running backs coach will go with Howard as the starter. But it appears Brooks might make that decision a little harder, which is fine by Elliott.
“You saw some flashes in the spring and he really pushed D.J. for that spot,” the Clemson coach said. “But with D.J. being the veteran and with the way he was performing you have to go knockout the champ. I’m not about going in a split decision and taking the belt away from the champ.”
Judging from Brooks’ comment on Tuesday, it appears he is going for that knockout punch.