TicketsCINCINNATI – University of Cincinnati running back Mike Boone doesn't hesitate to declare one of his main goals for the 2017 season: He wants to gain 1,000 yards rushing.
"I want to go down in the books for that," Boonen said. "It's a personal goal. Plus that'll make our offense better."
Boone, a 5-foot-10, 205-pound senior from Macclenny, Fla., wouldn't have dared to shoot for 1,000 yards during the last three years because he knew it wasn't possible. Former UC coach Tommy Tuberville liked to rotate his backs to keep them fresh so there was no featured back, which made it difficult for any of them to get enough carries to even dream about 1,000 yards.
"This year, though, I feel like it's a great chance," Boone said.
Tion Green led the Bearcats in rushing last year with 743 yards on 159 carries for a 4.7-yard average. Boone gained 388 yards on 105 carries for a 3.7-yard average before he missed the last three games with a severe turf toe injury.
During 2015, Boone's sophomore year, the Bearcats used a three-man rotation. Boone averaged an impressive 7.2 yards per carry, but didn't come close to 1,000 yards because he carried the ball only 104 times. As a freshman, he led UC with 650 yards on 101 carries, a 6.4-yard average.
Boone can expect more opportunities this year under first-year coach Luke Fickell, who intends to take full advantage of his talent. But that doesn't mean he'll run him so much that Boone has nothing left by the end of the season.
"We've got to be smart," Fickell said. "I truly believe Mike Boone is going to be one of our best players and we'll have a goal and we'll have some objectives for him. It's like a pitcher. If you start getting a bunch over his touches, by the end of the year what is he?"
Fickell feels fortunate to have a quality backup in redshirt freshman Gerrid Doaks, who, the UC coach says, will be 1b to Boone's 1a on the depth chart.
"We'll find out who's that 1c guy," Fickell said, "but nobody wants to be two and I appreciate that."
The Bearcats haven't had a 1,000-yard rusher since George Winn gained 1,334 yards in 2012, UC's final season under Butch Jones. Winn's 1,000-yard season was the third straight for UC. Isaiah Pead gained over a 1,000 in both 2010 and 2011.
But the streak ended in 2013 with the arrival of Tuberville and his share-the-wealth philosophy. He also had a potent passing game that drove the offense in 2014 behind quarterback Gunner Kiel, who tied a school record with 31 touchdown passes, so there was less emphasis on the running game.
"It's kind of hard to get in a groove," Boone said. "But I try not to complain. I just try to do what's asked of me."
Boone doesn't know how much will be asked of him this season. All he knows is that at this point he's the number one guy who gets the majority of touches with the first-team offense in practice. That's not likely to change anytime soon assuming that he stays healthy. Fickell said he already has an idea of how much he'll be able to use Boone without wearing him out.
"There's such a thing as a back taking too many shots and by the end of the year they're no good," Fickell said. "There's some things you can't avoid obviously, but if a guy feels comfortable and a guy is in a rhythm you obviously ride it. But you've also got to to have some people (behind him). In this game, running back is a tough position. Everybody's after you and you're gonna take a shot in a lot of these situations even if you don't have the ball. We expect you to block and we expect you to do some things. I think we need to have a stable of them."
Boone will be the first one out of the stable. He wasn't highly recruited coming out of high school, where he played wide receiver as a senior, but has grown each year as a running back and immediately impressed the new coaching staff.
"I feel like I've become a pretty good back," Boone said. "I get the whole picture now of offense and of defense. I know where the blitzes are coming from. I just feel mentally sharper. I missed the end of last season and that was hard for me. But I'm healed up now. I did my job in the trainer's room and now I feel 100 percent."
Bill Koch covered UC athletics for 27 years – 15 at The Cincinnati Post and 12 at The Cincinnati Enquirer – before joining the staff of GoBearcats.com in January, 2015.
"I want to go down in the books for that," Boonen said. "It's a personal goal. Plus that'll make our offense better."
Boone, a 5-foot-10, 205-pound senior from Macclenny, Fla., wouldn't have dared to shoot for 1,000 yards during the last three years because he knew it wasn't possible. Former UC coach Tommy Tuberville liked to rotate his backs to keep them fresh so there was no featured back, which made it difficult for any of them to get enough carries to even dream about 1,000 yards.
"This year, though, I feel like it's a great chance," Boone said.
Tion Green led the Bearcats in rushing last year with 743 yards on 159 carries for a 4.7-yard average. Boone gained 388 yards on 105 carries for a 3.7-yard average before he missed the last three games with a severe turf toe injury.
During 2015, Boone's sophomore year, the Bearcats used a three-man rotation. Boone averaged an impressive 7.2 yards per carry, but didn't come close to 1,000 yards because he carried the ball only 104 times. As a freshman, he led UC with 650 yards on 101 carries, a 6.4-yard average.
Boone can expect more opportunities this year under first-year coach Luke Fickell, who intends to take full advantage of his talent. But that doesn't mean he'll run him so much that Boone has nothing left by the end of the season.
"We've got to be smart," Fickell said. "I truly believe Mike Boone is going to be one of our best players and we'll have a goal and we'll have some objectives for him. It's like a pitcher. If you start getting a bunch over his touches, by the end of the year what is he?"
Fickell feels fortunate to have a quality backup in redshirt freshman Gerrid Doaks, who, the UC coach says, will be 1b to Boone's 1a on the depth chart.
"We'll find out who's that 1c guy," Fickell said, "but nobody wants to be two and I appreciate that."
The Bearcats haven't had a 1,000-yard rusher since George Winn gained 1,334 yards in 2012, UC's final season under Butch Jones. Winn's 1,000-yard season was the third straight for UC. Isaiah Pead gained over a 1,000 in both 2010 and 2011.
But the streak ended in 2013 with the arrival of Tuberville and his share-the-wealth philosophy. He also had a potent passing game that drove the offense in 2014 behind quarterback Gunner Kiel, who tied a school record with 31 touchdown passes, so there was less emphasis on the running game.
"It's kind of hard to get in a groove," Boone said. "But I try not to complain. I just try to do what's asked of me."
Boone doesn't know how much will be asked of him this season. All he knows is that at this point he's the number one guy who gets the majority of touches with the first-team offense in practice. That's not likely to change anytime soon assuming that he stays healthy. Fickell said he already has an idea of how much he'll be able to use Boone without wearing him out.
"There's such a thing as a back taking too many shots and by the end of the year they're no good," Fickell said. "There's some things you can't avoid obviously, but if a guy feels comfortable and a guy is in a rhythm you obviously ride it. But you've also got to to have some people (behind him). In this game, running back is a tough position. Everybody's after you and you're gonna take a shot in a lot of these situations even if you don't have the ball. We expect you to block and we expect you to do some things. I think we need to have a stable of them."
Boone will be the first one out of the stable. He wasn't highly recruited coming out of high school, where he played wide receiver as a senior, but has grown each year as a running back and immediately impressed the new coaching staff.
"I feel like I've become a pretty good back," Boone said. "I get the whole picture now of offense and of defense. I know where the blitzes are coming from. I just feel mentally sharper. I missed the end of last season and that was hard for me. But I'm healed up now. I did my job in the trainer's room and now I feel 100 percent."
Bill Koch covered UC athletics for 27 years – 15 at The Cincinnati Post and 12 at The Cincinnati Enquirer – before joining the staff of GoBearcats.com in January, 2015.