California’s top JUCO RB to join Lobos
Floyd ran for 1,797 yards for San Francisco City College
After the firing in early December of six-year offensive coordinator Bob DeBesse, speculation abounded as to what direction the University of New Mexico offense might take in 2018.
Was head coach Bob Davie thinking about going Air Raid, filling the air with footballs?
Well, it appears not. More likely, Davie’s goal is to once again lead the nation in rushing, as the Lobos did in 2016.
Toward that goal, UNM got a commitment late Monday night from City College of San Francisco running back Isaiah Floyd. Last fall, Floyd led all California junior college rushers with 1,797 yards with 21 touchdowns and a 7.6-yard average per carry.
In December, the Lobos had signed running back Ahmari Davis, from Laney College across the bay in Oakland. Last season, Davis ranked third among California juco rushers with 1,359 yards. He averaged 6.9 yards per carry and scored 17 TDs on the ground.
Floyd is listed as 5-foot-7 and 185 pounds, Davis as 5-11 and 190.
On Jan. 20, Davie announced the hiring of former Arizona assistant Calvin Magee as UNM’s offensive coordinator. Under Magee and fellow co-offensive coordinator Rod Smith, the Wildcats ran a spread-option attack with little resemblance to the pistol-formation, triple-option scheme the Lobos ran under DeBesse.
But Magee, who also was Arizona’s running backs coach and will have the same responsibilities at New Mexico, has said his task is not to dismantle the old UNM offense but to blend it
with what he ran at U of A.
Last fall, Arizona ranked third nationally in rushing with an average of 309 yards — outgaining the Lobos by 74 yards per game.
The Wildcats’ leading rusher was a quarterback, Khalil Tate — something that hasn’t happened at UNM and probably won’t this fall. But certainly, as always, UNM quarterbacks will be expected to run the ball.
All five scholarship quarterbacks expected to be on board in the fall are dual-threat athletes with a history of productivity as rushers.
With the signing of Davis and the commitment from Floyd, UNM has seven scholarship running backs in the fold. In December, Wisconsin high school speedster Lawrence “L.O.” Johnson signed a UNM letter of intent. The returnees are:
Tyrone Owens, senior, 5-9, 187.
Kentrail Moran, sophomore, 5-9, 196.
Daevon Vigilant, sophomore, 5-7, 182.
Zahneer Shuler, senior, 6-1, 235.
Owens averaged 8 yards per carry as a sophomore in 2016, second nationally only to teammate Teriyon Gipson (8.8). Last year, Owens rushed for a teambest 770 yards and averaged 5.5 yards per carry.
Moran, Vigilant and Shuler combined for just 32 yards on 20 carries last year. Shuler doubled as a tight end.
Gone from the running-backs roster are Richard McQuarley, Daryl Chestnut and Romell Jordan, who combined last fall to rush for 1,199 yards, 12 touchdowns and a 5.4-yard average per carry.
Last fall, as the Lobos stumbled to a 3-9 record, Davie cited two factors for a significant drop in rushing production: underperformance by the offensive line and schematic problems in combatting the way defenses were aligning to stop the triple option.
Regarding the offensive line, UNM signed four junior college O-linemen in December. The seven returnees from that unit should benefit from another year on the practice field and in the weight room.
Regarding the schematic piece, that’s why Magee is here.
HEAD COUNT: With Floyd, UNM has 16 signings or commitments toward its 2018 signing class — the same number it had on the same date last year. But the Lobos could be said to be ahead of last year’s pace, given that signing day last year was Feb. 1 — the first Wednesday of the month.
This year, signing day is Feb. 7, the latest date on which the first Wednesday can fall.