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Roc Thomas


WarEagle1982

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How does everyone feel about Roc's chances of getting on the field in a meaningful role this season? I think they are pretty good. I coach high school football in class 6A in this state. We have faced Oxford the past two seasons and there is no doubt in my mind that Roc is the best high school player I have ever seen in person, and I have seen some good ones! He single-handedly beat us this past season. Without him Oxford was a 4-6 team at best. He was truly a man amongst boys. I am confident he will be a star very soon on the Plains! Reminds me so much of Cadillac it is really scary and exciting at the same time.

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I think we see his role grow as the season progresses. We need to be careful with durability, this early in his college career. He will be a star for AU IMO... It's just a matter of when.

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The good thing is that, unlike Cadillac's freshman year, there is a wealth of talent in the backfield (Ronnie Brown was not a superstar yet in 2001). I am excited about what all of the RBs have in store for the offense, but I just feel like Roc has more overall potential than the rest.

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He reminds me of Caddy, as well, and the parallel extends even farther when comparing Peyton Barber to Ronnie Brown , but I still don't know how much of a chance Roc will get to have more than a specialized role. Remember how Carnell didn't see significant action until around midway through his freshman year? That's because it typically takes that long for a freshman RB to pick up college blocking assignments necessary for filling anything more than a specialized role. Also remember that Williams flipped from Tennessee to Auburn thanks to the now infamous 7 coach visit, during which he was informed that the reason AU hadn't been recruiting him very hard was that the coaches had been planning to push Rudi Johnson for the Heisman in 01 until he decided to go pro early, and Williams was the kind of player who could make an impact as a true freshman.

I bring that up because as talented as Roc is, there are two seniors who have quite a bit of talent in their own right, which means there is not as pressing a need for him to step in and take over. He likely does have more potential than both of the seniors, and perhaps more than Barber as well (though that remains to be seen, because Peyton is the real deal too), but because of their presence I suspect Gus will create a package to get him on the field and maximize his talents while minimizing errors due to growing pains. Quite frankly, it would shock me if Thomas is the primary ball carrier at any point in the first half of the season, and barring injury, it will likely take him showing out something serious for him to be more than a change of pace type of backup this year.

In any case, however, the future is exceedingly bright for Running Back U, that's for danged sure!

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The good thing is that, unlike Cadillac's freshman year, there is a wealth of talent in the backfield (Ronnie Brown was not a superstar yet in 2001). I am excited about what all of the RBs have in store for the offense, but I just feel like Roc has more overall potential than the rest.

A note on Brown: he was no less a superstar than Williams was when the two were freshmen. I mean, the year before Caddy flipped from UT to AU, Ronnie did the exact same thing following a 6 coach recruiting visit, and he was rated as only marginally lower by recruiting ranking services. He was also the starter during the first half of the season...

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I hope he does not play.....and I hope it is not necessary for him to play.

We have good depth at RB for the moment and experience with Tre shows that when a back gets in the zone, it's best to stick with him. Trying to spread carries around among 4 RBs IMO does not benefit the team or the individuals.

5* or not, hope he Red Shirts....gets to know the system and is ready to play for 3 or 4 years after Grant and CAP graduate.

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Every time I see a player's name as a topic title, I get a rush of fear that they've either gotten injured or done something wrong.

With Roc, I think he'll see more playing time than most people think. Corey Grant is much sturdier than OMac, but I don't think he's quite the every-down back. CAP can plow through a crowded line on a short-yardage situation but he has a fumble problem. Peyton Barber will also be seeing lots of playing time. Tre was a heck of a back but when you have the combination of backs we have this year, along with our OL, our run game will be terrifying.

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I hope he does not play.....and I hope it is not necessary for him to play.

We have good depth at RB for the moment and experience with Tre shows that when a back gets in the zone, it's best to stick with him. Trying to spread carries around among 4 RBs IMO does not benefit the team or the individuals.

5* or not, hope he Red Shirts....gets to know the system and is ready to play for 3 or 4 years after Grant and CAP graduate.

Roc will likely prove to be too good to keep off the field, and if he does redshirt then I rather doubt he would stick around four more years after that anyway. Thus, he can play this year and get at least 3 years of game action out of him, or he can redshirt and potentially only see the field for 2 seasons as an Auburn Tiger.

Also remember that next season we will have Thomas, Barber, and Jovon Robinson (who appears to be as solid as a recruit possibly can be), so if Roc gets redshirted this year, then Karryon Johnson will have other schools in his ear reminding him of that, whereas if Gus can find a way to get the ball in the hands of all four guys (including a true freshman), that underscores how much he is willing to let freshmen play if they earn their way onto the field. Running back is one position that I sincerely do not believe Auburn will ever be hurting at a whole lot, barring a rash of injuries (knock on wood), so why not let him play if he brings something to the table that the others do not?

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I think Barber becomes the starter by game #4 and Roc challenges CAP to be 2nd in line by game #6 or 7. Gus will play the best player and that does help sign 5* players like Roc.

War Eagle !

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I think the only way Roc takes over this year will be if he is so far head and shoulders above the rest he can't be denied. Absent that, I think Roc will see good playing time on special teams returning kicks like Tre did his Freshman year. At RB I think he will see a few (2-4) carries per game, more when we are up big. He will probably also see some short pass plays just to get him in space. Other than that, CAP, Grant and Barber haul most of the mail this year imo.

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I think he redshirts. Remember we will be passing more this year (too much talent at WR and NM improving) so our overall rushing numbers will be down. But generally only 2 RBs can get significant carries. Remember when Brandon Jacobs, Tre Smith, Ronnie Brown, and Caddy were all on the same team? Smith and Jacobs didnt get any touches except on special teams and in blowouts. With Marshall getting carries too, I think its realistic we see a 1000 yard rusher (CAP), a 700+ yard guy (Grant), 500 from Nick Marshall, and Barber gets the rest. Also, I think its Gus' preference to have one main horse at RB so he doesn't have to substitute so he can keep the maximum tempo going. This could also skew the numbers a bit.

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Every time I see a player's name as a topic title, I get a rush of fear that they've either gotten injured or done something wrong.

With Roc, I think he'll see more playing time than most people think. Corey Grant is much sturdier than OMac, but I don't think he's quite the every-down back. CAP can plow through a crowded line on a short-yardage situation but he has a fumble problem. Peyton Barber will also be seeing lots of playing time. Tre was a heck of a back but when you have the combination of backs we have this year, along with our OL, our run game will be terrifying.

fumble problem?? Based on what? The ACTUAL Statistics don't support that ridiculous statement. Let's look at the numbers shall we??

Stats are here: http://www.auburntigers.com/sports/m-footbl/stats/2013-2014/indgbg.html#IGBG.FMB

FUMBLES No-Lost

Nick Marshall QB.... 14-6

Tre Mason RB........ 4-4

Chris Davis......... 3-0

Quan Bray WR........ 2-0

Corey Grant RB...... 1-0

Jay Prosch RB....... 1-0

Ricardo Louis WR.... 1-0

Nosa Eguae.......... 1-0

C. Artis-Payne RB... 1-1

Steven Clark P...... 1-0

Marcus Davis WR..... 1-0

He fumbled ONE TIME in 91 carries....NOT A FUMBLE PROBLEM IN THE LEAST.

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Every time I see a player's name as a topic title, I get a rush of fear that they've either gotten injured or done something wrong.

With Roc, I think he'll see more playing time than most people think. Corey Grant is much sturdier than OMac, but I don't think he's quite the every-down back. CAP can plow through a crowded line on a short-yardage situation but he has a fumble problem. Peyton Barber will also be seeing lots of playing time. Tre was a heck of a back but when you have the combination of backs we have this year, along with our OL, our run game will be terrifying.

fumble problem?? Based on what? The ACTUAL Statistics don't support that ridiculous statement. Let's look at the numbers shall we??

Stats are here: http://www.auburntig...g.html#IGBG.FMB

FUMBLES No-Lost

Nick Marshall QB.... 14-6

Tre Mason RB........ 4-4

Chris Davis......... 3-0

Quan Bray WR........ 2-0

Corey Grant RB...... 1-0

Jay Prosch RB....... 1-0

Ricardo Louis WR.... 1-0

Nosa Eguae.......... 1-0

C. Artis-Payne RB... 1-1

Steven Clark P...... 1-0

Marcus Davis WR..... 1-0

He fumbled ONE TIME in 91 carries....NOT A FUMBLE PROBLEM IN THE LEAST.

dang, I didnt realize marshalls fumble count was that high.

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Every time I see a player's name as a topic title, I get a rush of fear that they've either gotten injured or done something wrong.

With Roc, I think he'll see more playing time than most people think. Corey Grant is much sturdier than OMac, but I don't think he's quite the every-down back. CAP can plow through a crowded line on a short-yardage situation but he has a fumble problem. Peyton Barber will also be seeing lots of playing time. Tre was a heck of a back but when you have the combination of backs we have this year, along with our OL, our run game will be terrifying.

fumble problem?? Based on what? The ACTUAL Statistics don't support that ridiculous statement. Let's look at the numbers shall we??

Stats are here: http://www.auburntig...g.html#IGBG.FMB

FUMBLES No-Lost

Nick Marshall QB.... 14-6

Tre Mason RB........ 4-4

Chris Davis......... 3-0

Quan Bray WR........ 2-0

Corey Grant RB...... 1-0

Jay Prosch RB....... 1-0

Ricardo Louis WR.... 1-0

Nosa Eguae.......... 1-0

C. Artis-Payne RB... 1-1

Steven Clark P...... 1-0

Marcus Davis WR..... 1-0

He fumbled ONE TIME in 91 carries....NOT A FUMBLE PROBLEM IN THE LEAST.

dang, I didnt realize marshalls fumble count was that high.

My thoughts exactly. I guess ripping it out during the read option is to blame for several if those

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Every time I see a player's name as a topic title, I get a rush of fear that they've either gotten injured or done something wrong.

With Roc, I think he'll see more playing time than most people think. Corey Grant is much sturdier than OMac, but I don't think he's quite the every-down back. CAP can plow through a crowded line on a short-yardage situation but he has a fumble problem. Peyton Barber will also be seeing lots of playing time. Tre was a heck of a back but when you have the combination of backs we have this year, along with our OL, our run game will be terrifying.

fumble problem?? Based on what? The ACTUAL Statistics don't support that ridiculous statement. Let's look at the numbers shall we??

Stats are here: http://www.auburntig...g.html#IGBG.FMB

FUMBLES No-Lost

Nick Marshall QB.... 14-6

Tre Mason RB........ 4-4

Chris Davis......... 3-0

Quan Bray WR........ 2-0

Corey Grant RB...... 1-0

Jay Prosch RB....... 1-0

Ricardo Louis WR.... 1-0

Nosa Eguae.......... 1-0

C. Artis-Payne RB... 1-1

Steven Clark P...... 1-0

Marcus Davis WR..... 1-0

He fumbled ONE TIME in 91 carries....NOT A FUMBLE PROBLEM IN THE LEAST.

Ah, ok. It seemed like he fumbled a lot, but I guess not. My mistake. :bigblush:

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Every time I see a player's name as a topic title, I get a rush of fear that they've either gotten injured or done something wrong.

With Roc, I think he'll see more playing time than most people think. Corey Grant is much sturdier than OMac, but I don't think he's quite the every-down back. CAP can plow through a crowded line on a short-yardage situation but he has a fumble problem. Peyton Barber will also be seeing lots of playing time. Tre was a heck of a back but when you have the combination of backs we have this year, along with our OL, our run game will be terrifying.

fumble problem?? Based on what? The ACTUAL Statistics don't support that ridiculous statement. Let's look at the numbers shall we??

Stats are here: http://www.auburntig...g.html#IGBG.FMB

FUMBLES No-Lost

Nick Marshall QB.... 14-6

Tre Mason RB........ 4-4

Chris Davis......... 3-0

Quan Bray WR........ 2-0

Corey Grant RB...... 1-0

Jay Prosch RB....... 1-0

Ricardo Louis WR.... 1-0

Nosa Eguae.......... 1-0

C. Artis-Payne RB... 1-1

Steven Clark P...... 1-0

Marcus Davis WR..... 1-0

He fumbled ONE TIME in 91 carries....NOT A FUMBLE PROBLEM IN THE LEAST.

Ah, ok. It seemed like he fumbled a lot, but I guess not. My mistake. :bigblush:/>

You're probably thinking of Blakely. Posters have confused the two before.

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I think he redshirts. Remember we will be passing more this year (too much talent at WR and NM improving) so our overall rushing numbers will be down. But generally only 2 RBs can get significant carries. Remember when Brandon Jacobs, Tre Smith, Ronnie Brown, and Caddy were all on the same team? Smith and Jacobs didnt get any touches except on special teams and in blowouts. With Marshall getting carries too, I think its realistic we see a 1000 yard rusher (CAP), a 700+ yard guy (Grant), 500 from Nick Marshall, and Barber gets the rest. Also, I think its Gus' preference to have one main horse at RB so he doesn't have to substitute so he can keep the maximum tempo going. This could also skew the numbers a bit.

Yeah, I do remember that season. It was 2003, better known as the year of the Nallsminger debacle. Afterward, Jacobs transferred and Tubs brought in Al Borges after his pitch for utilizing multiple backs in his offense won the head coach over.

And yes, we will be throwing the ball more this year than last, but then again, last year we had an 1,800 yard rusher in Mason, a 1,000 yard rusher in Marshall, and a pair of 600 yard rushers in CAP and Grant. All told, Auburn ran for more than 4,500 yards; even if you knock a third of that total off, your prediction for Barber would put him at 800 yards. Also, while we will indeed be throwing the ball more, it is quite likely that we will be going at a faster pace and running more plays, as well. And that's not to mention the incredible durability Tre showed last year while carrying the ball an average of more than 20 times per game, including an average of more than 30 carries per game over the final six contests of the season.

Besides, Auburn also threw for 2,400 yards last season, as well, so it isn't as if there wasn't a passing game. If you take 1,000 off of the rushing total and add it to the passing total (which is right about where Gus wants to be, anyway, because that's a pretty danged good balance), that still leaves an extra 500 rushing yards to be garnered by someone else.

The bottom line is that there are plenty of carries to go around even if Roc doesn't redshirt, and that's not to mention punt/kick returns, which he might be better suited to than some of the other guys we have there now due to his experience with taking hits and breaking tackles. Not to mention that if he is forced into action due to injuries, he'll already have acclimated at least somewhat to the new level of play. Now, Gus and Rhett might well decide to redshirt Thomas, but all signs point to him getting time on the field.

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Every time I see a player's name as a topic title, I get a rush of fear that they've either gotten injured or done something wrong.

With Roc, I think he'll see more playing time than most people think. Corey Grant is much sturdier than OMac, but I don't think he's quite the every-down back. CAP can plow through a crowded line on a short-yardage situation but he has a fumble problem. Peyton Barber will also be seeing lots of playing time. Tre was a heck of a back but when you have the combination of backs we have this year, along with our OL, our run game will be terrifying.

I hope you are correct, because Lord knows I can't wait to see it. Terrifying, WDE !!

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I think people believe Cam had a fumble problem because he fumbled at a crucial time in the ole miss game and didn't get many carries after that.

Was it not the LSU game where CAP fumbled?

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I think people believe Cam had a fumble problem because he fumbled at a crucial time in the ole miss game and didn't get many carries after that.

Was it not the LSU game where CAP fumbled?

Against LSU, CAP was involved in a fumble exchange with Marshall. It was Marshall's fault for fumbling though. Marshall lost grip on the wet football when he was trying to pull the ball out.
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I think ROC will see the field, and he will have a decent amount of carries at all times during the games. Roc will need to learn the blocking responsibilities which are critical to a RB getting PT.

Roc is not your average RB, he was a 5 Star recruit. Most people think he had the best HS RB highlight film of any RB in the country last year. Durability and staying away from injury are keys with Roc. He played with some pretty big injuries his senior year in HS, but I doubt our staff will put him on the field if he has injured himself. We are too deep at the RB position.

No way at all he redshirts unless he has a bad injury, because Jovon will be here next year and he will be getting a lot of carries.

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