Tailback James vows to improve his play
MADISON - Not satisfied with his performance in his Wisconsin debut, tailback Chris James turned to a friend and former teammate for advice.
James exchanged text messages with Dare Ogunbowale, who is on the Houston Texans’ practice squad.
The topic: how to flourish as a thirddown back, which is James’ role at least for now.
“He was telling me you’ve got to master it, man,” James said. “And seeing where he is now, I do have to master it. “I can’t see the role as what you can’t do. I have to see it as that they think you can do really well at that position.”
Bradrick Shaw led UW in carries in the opener against Utah State with 18 for 84 yards and a touchdown. Freshman Jonathan Taylor was next (9-87-1), followed by James (5-15).
The rotation when No. 11 UW (1-0) hosts Florida Atlantic (0-1) at 11 a.m. Saturday is a bit unclear because Shaw (right leg) is questionable.
Is James ready for more carries if Shaw is out?
“For sure,” he said. “That is just my mentality. I feel like I am harder on myself than anyone else is. I know I can be better and some day I will be.
“But at the same time, I still have to master third downs. I have to understand that is the position they need me to play this year.
“Running the ball that every Division I running back can do. But can you master third down?”
James, 5-foot-10 and 219 pounds, generally was an effective blocker in the opener.
However, he was called for an illegal block on Derrick Tindal’s lone carry and fumbled on the next play after
he was hit from behind by a lineman.
James, who redshirted last year after transferring from Pitt, hadn’t carried the ball in a game since Oct. 29, 2015.
“I thought Chris was a little bouncy,” UW coach Paul Chryst said. “We’ve got to settle him down.”
James insisted the long wait didn’t affect his play in the opener. Rather, it was adjusting to the new role of third-down back.
“I’ve never been a third-down back before,” he said. “You can embrace it in practice but when you’re out there in a game you have to master it.
“I’m going to master it. That is just the person I am. I know I will. And the more I perfect my craft the more confidence I’ll play with and the faster I’ll play.
“I thought I had some good blocks. It is just a matter of being indecisive as far as who you should block. That just goes with understanding where you should fit.”
UW’s running game in the opener was, not surprisingly, a mixed bag.
UW rushed 10 times for 16 yards in the opening quarter but finished with 234 yards on 45 attempts.
“We certainly had some good plays but we felt like we left a lot of yards out there,” Chryst said. “We didn’t maximize the opportunities we had.
“Each back had a couple that they just didn’t hit where it is designed to go. We had a couple mental mistakes that just didn’t give us a chance at all. It was good pointing that out.
“There were some good runs in the game and I thought the kids played hard, but some of those small details that really make it big, we were missing.”
James is eager for his second chance in a UW uniform.
“I’m excited,” he said. “I know I’m going to be way better.”