UTSA Roadrunners show off improved RB depth as fall practice opens

Shifting to a limited role working mostly noncontact drills this spring as he recovered from surgery to repair a torn labrum, UTSA running back Kevorian Barnes said he watched the other running backs with a sense of wariness.
Even after rushing for 845 yards and six touchdowns to earn Conference USA's freshman of the year despite being the Roadrunners’ primary back for only about half the season, Barnes wondered if his position on the depth chart was in jeopardy.
Vanderbilt transfer Rocko Griffin was quick to adapt to UTSA’s system, junior Kaedric Cobbs showed progress in his recovery from an ACL tear the previous spring, and JUCO transfer Robert Henry was entering the fold as another prized recruit.
“I had to worry for my job, and my spot,” Barnes said. “It was on my mind. I just want to go out there and compete. Seeing those guys excel and do what they do to the best of their ability had me ready to get back out there and excited to prove myself.”
Barnes started to feel 100 percent around April, he said, hitting his old maxes in the weight room and working to develop into a more elusive, explosive runner.
As UTSA returned for its first practice of the fall Wednesday, Barnes reprised his role as the team’s No. 1 running back, with coach Jeff Traylor noting the Roadrunners are “really excited” about the position group and have “a real competition going for that running back spot behind Kevorian.”
After struggling with depth and health at the position through much of Traylor’s first three seasons, the Roadrunners believe they have a stable of young options in place, listing no seniors at the position.
“We’re deep. Everybody is great in that room,” Barnes said. “Everybody can go at the one, two or three spot, and I’m glad for it. When it comes game time, we can rotate anybody and everybody in, and we won’t get tired. We’re just going to run the ball.”
Barnes described Griffin as a smart, “well-balanced back,” arriving at UTSA after rushing for 695 yards and five touchdowns the past two years at Vanderbilt.
Working with the Roadrunners through the spring provided a “kick-start and a little cheat code” on learning the offense, Griffin said, and the past two months have helped him understand the “soul and heart of the team.”
“There are a lot of things outside of football that really drive this team, and taking that in and being part of it and living it, that’s really what I've been learning,” Griffin said.
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Quarterback Frank Harris hands the ball to running back Kevorian Barnes during the first day of UTSA football practice at the Roadrunners Athletics Center of Excellence, Wednesday, Aug. 2, 2023. It is their first year in the American Athletic Conference.
1of8Quarterback Frank Harris hands the ball to running back Kevorian Barnes during the first day of UTSA football practice at the Roadrunners Athletics Center of Excellence, Wednesday, Aug. 2, 2023. It is their first year in the American Athletic Conference.Jerry Lara/San Antonio Express-News
Griffin, a redshirt sophomore, said he felt “comfortable” as he opened his first fall practice with UTSA, and Traylor highlighted Griffin’s consistency.
“You’d think he’d been playing for the Roadrunners for four years the way he carries himself and conducts himself,” Traylor said.
A spring injury slowed Henry’s acclimation from JUCO, Traylor said, but the Roadrunners remain “very excited about who he is as a human and his talent.”
Cobbs, a junior, earned praise from Traylor as “the model of integrity” for his efforts recovering from a pair of ACL tears at UTSA, and freshman Brandon High enters from Spring Grand Oaks as the highest-rated high school recruit on offense in program history, per 247Sports’ rankings.
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“I know I don’t have to go out there and tempo myself to play the full four quarters,” Barnes said. “I can go out there and hit 120 percent right now, and I know I can come out and my coach will be just as comfortable putting another back in. Whether it’s Rocko, Kaedric or Robert, the flow won’t change. It’s going to be smooth for us.”
The Roadrunners experienced significant turnover at the position since last season.
Steele product Brenden Brady graduated after rushing for 1,751 yards and 17 touchdowns in five years at UTSA, and Trelon Smith left after his lone season in the program as a transfer from Arkansas. Junior Jaylon Lott moved from running back to linebacker this season, Tye Edwards left the Roadrunners via transfer, and Judson product De’Anthony Lewis is also no longer at UTSA due to some “off-the-field stuff,” Traylor said.
Still, Traylor acknowledged the possibility that newfound depth at the position could lead to more two-back formations in UTSA’s offense this year.
“It just never seems to work, because it always seems like there’s an injury,” Traylor said. “I’d like to play two backs all the time. Not necessarily a two-back set, but a rotation. … If they all stayed healthy, and two of them started running the ball incredibly well, sure, you’re going to want to do it. We just haven’t had that happen yet.”
The Roadrunners seemed mostly healthy across the roster as practice opened Wednesday. Quarterback Frank Harris was a full participant in workouts after an offseason knee issue, and receiver Joshua Cephus ran through limited drills as he recovers from a knee injury.
Wideout De’Corian Clark, also rehabbing from a severe knee injury suffered in November, was in uniform but not participating in drills.
Linebacker Trey Moore, defensive lineman Asyrus Simon and receiver Willie McCoy sat for precautionary reasons, Traylor said, while cornerback Dywan Griffin should return “in a couple weeks” as he rebounds from a summer injury.
“We looked like a team that’s coached together for four years and played together a lot for four years,” Traylor said. “We looked the way it’s supposed to look. Pretty sharp.”