8/13/2018 football Edit

Barclay's message to RBs: 'Ball security equals job security'

Matt Stevens • BoilerUpload

Staff

Let there be no mistake about the first objective is for Purdue's running backs.

"If you don't care enough to hold on to the football, then playing time becomes optional for me as well," Purdue running backs coach Chris Barclay said. "It was spelled out in all capital letters. It doesn't matter if you're a starter or No. 10 (on the depth chart), if you don't hold on to the ball, you will not play for me."

And that point needed to be reinforced after the first few days of preseason camp, during which each of the first three tailbacks on Purdue's roster committed at least one fumble and Barclay, who said he "grew a few more grey hairs," saw his position group guilty of multiple giveaways in a single session. Barclay said a "long come to Jesus meeting" had to happen in his meeting room to stop a fumble problem that didn't seem to plague Purdue throughout the 2017 season.

Among the six fumbles Purdue lost last season, five of them were result of a giveaway by a wide receiver or quarterback, and tailbacks went 12 straight weeks without losing a fumble following the season-opening loss to Louisville. This commitment to protection of the football is a direct reflection of their position coach because besides being Wake Forest's all-time leading rusher, Barclay also was known for rarely fumbling, as he committed only five on 931 career touches in his college career.

"That's just something that requires no talent, it's just technique," Barclay said. "I tell them all the time that I wasn't the biggest guy when I played but I didn't put it on the ground a whole lot. So don't talk to me about, 'I'm not strong enough.' No. It's a want-to thing."

If that meeting room session wasn't enough, Barclay decided to remind his players on Twitter that he wasn't particularly happy with the fumbling problem on Aug. 3. Barclay sent out a 30-character "Ball Security = Job Security #FACTS" tweet that made his point crystal clear.

"Thankfully we'd rather get those hiccups over and done with early in camp as opposed to during the season," Jones said. "(Barclay) takes that very seriously as you can tell. He even tweeted about it. He subtweeted us after the fact. It's real."

With the amount of veteran depth at the start of preseason camp, it was anticipated that Purdue's tailback position was going to be one immediately ready for action in the 2018 season. However, a rash of nagging injuries has forced Barclay to reinvent the team's practice schedule and repetition pattern after Jones (finger), D.J. Knox (hamstring) and Tario Fuller (lower body soreness) continue to deal with physical ailments.

"It does take a toll on you when other guys are out in certain parts (of practice) because you need everybody to get those reps," Knox said. "For the most part, our training staff and strength and conditioning guys are getting guys ready to go."

Purdue's first preseason scrimmage resembled its spring game as redshirt freshman Alexander Horvath and first-year player Evan Anderson got a majority of the touches, Coach Jeff Brohm said afterward.

With the cloud of a durability issue hanging over the tailback group, a by-committee approach is likely to be used in 2018, but that tactic could allow Purdue coaches to have a fresh body on the field at all times. Last season, Purdue's run game was fifth in the Big Ten.

"Everybody at some point in the (2017) season was a key contributor," Knox said. "I definitely expect to be (by committee) because we have so many guys with big-play potential."

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