Radcliff Ready to Compete in a Crowded Backfield
August 18, 2014 | Football
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - The University of Louisville football team's backfield is crowded. And as any football coach can attest, that is never a bad thing.
As many expect, the backfield will likely be headed by senior running backs Dominique Brown and Michael Dyer. Several players will offer depth to the position, including redshirt sophomore Brandon Radcliff.
After redshirting as a true freshman in 2012, Radcliff showed glimpses in his first year of game action last season. Appearing in 12 games, seeing most of his work on special teams, Radcliff was used sparingly at running back, but made the most out of each carry he did receive.
Playing behind three upperclassmen in Brown, Dyer, and former Cardinal Senorise Perry, the Miami, Fla. native was handed the ball just 17 times during the 2013 season. Gaining 91 yards and scoring one touchdown on those 17 touches, Radcliff earned an average of 5.4 yards per carry, giving him the highest per-carry average of any player on the roster with at least 15 rushes.
If the 5.4 yards per carry average were not enough to show Radcliff's future promise, a closer look at his 2013 feats certainly will. Against Ohio in his collegiate debut Radcliff ripped off a career-long 19-yard rush on one of his first carries. Against FIU in just his third college appearance, the then-freshman carried for 47 yards in a 72-0 UofL victory. Radcliff also ended the season as the only player with more than three rushing attempts to to never be stopped for negative yardage.
During his prep career, Radcliff earned a three-star rating by several major recruiting services, including Scout and Rivals. At Christopher Columbus High School in Miami, he earned third-team All-State honors by carrying 49 times for 473 yards and nine scores during his junior season, even while battling injuries.
After sustaining a very minor knee injury early this year, Radcliff believes he is healthy and on track to once again increase his production and provide depth to the Louisville stable of running backs.
"I feel like I'm stronger," Radcliff said after the third practice of the Cardinals' fall camp. "I got in the weight room (during the offseason). (Strength and condition coaches Joe) Miday and coach (Scott) Wilks kept pushing me harder this offseason to be physical enough to come out here and compete."
Throughout high school Radcliff earned a reputation as a big, strong running back who was a task to bring down. Now at 5-foot-9 and 214-pounds, the added strength and size will only provide Radcliff with the means to become more of a factor in the future.
As for this season, Radcliff is content with his role in the backfield and enjoys the competition for carries he shares with his fellow backs.
"I like the talent," Radcliff says of the depth the team currently owns at running back. "Everybody comes out and pushes each other. We just have to come out here and compete. That's what you want. You want to compete and push everybody. Everybody has to get better every day."
Time for Radcliff to receive big-time carries could come as early as next season, when the Cardinals will be seeking to replace Brown and Dyer, whose eligibility will expire after the 2014 season. Playing in the offense of head coach Bobby Petrino, who is known to use every offensive weapon at his disposal, Radcliff could thrive.
In being introduced to Petrino's offensive system through the first days of fall camp, Radcliff grins when asked to describe the attack.
"High tempo," he says. "Fast. Very high-scoring. Exciting. All in one. That's what you like if you're an offensive player. You want to score."
Radcliff, Petrino, and the Cardinals will have their first chance to post points when they welcome Miami (Fla.) to Papa John's Cardinal Stadium on Sept. 1.
