Tennessee Vols star talks about mindset of sharing playing time versus being the starter
It's never easy to watch someone else doing your job on the field. That's especially the case with college football, where the best of the best from the high school ranks have gone to continue their careers. Many who have been generational type of players at their high schools now are fighting just to get […]
It's never easy to watch someone else doing your job on the field. That's especially the case with college football, where the best of the best from the high school ranks have gone to continue their careers. Many who have been generational type of players at their high schools now are fighting just to get on the field and stay there.
That's especially been the case in the Tennessee Vols' running back room, and that was showcased last season. Between Jaylen Wright, Dylan Sampson, and Jabari Small, the Vols had three ballcarriers who would start at a large percentage of schools around the country.
As such, it can be difficult for players to handle more limited roles when they're used to higher workloads. Tennessee running back Dylan Sampson talked on Thursday about the mindset of being RB1 in the bowl game rather than being a part of a rotation that had been led by Wright, who sat out the bowl game to prepare for the NFL Draft along with Small.
"I think more than anything the game was beneficial. I tend to always practice the same way even with Jabari and J Wright here. We made each other better, but the game was very beneficial in just knowing that I would have times and opportunities to keep going at it.
"Back in the season when it was me, Jabari, and J Wright rotating, it's – you've got to give credit to the coaches. I don't know what I would do in that situation. They found a way to try to get all of us snaps. It's a hard situation, but just being able to be the main guy, knowing that I was going to get a lot of workload in that game, my mental mindset more than anything helped me. Just to show the coaches that, I had about 20 carries, showing them that I could carry the ball that much if they need me to. Just building confidence in me and the coaches."
Sampson seemed to handle being a part of a rotation while not being at the top of it pretty well. Wright eventually became the back with the most carries of the entire group. It was hard not to give him the ball though, as Wright averaged 7.4 yards per rush, second best among all running backs in FBS subdivision. Sampson averaged a healthy 5.7 yards per carry himself.
Now, Wright will be on the field for some NFL team on Sundays, and Small should also have a shot at an NFL roster. Meanwhile, Sampson will surely be the lead runner out of the backfield for the Vols this fall. Not likely by a huge margin, as that's not really Josh Heupel's style. However, he should have plenty of chances to prove he can be one of the best backs in the SEC.
