DeMarco Murray likes what he’s seen from Oklahoma’s running back rooms after just a couple weeks into spring camp.
Murray, who’s entering his fourth year as the Sooners’ position coach and is known for his quiet teaching approach, has been impressed with some of the younger players’ attitudes this spring.
While OU loses Eric Gray, who rushed for 1,366 yards and 11 touchdowns last season, it returns contributors Jovantae Barnes, who missed practice Monday with an undisclosed leg injury, and Marcus Major and Gavin Sawchuk.
The Sooners also added four-star Daylan Smothers and three-star Kalib Hicks, along with walk-on Chapman McKown.
“From first looks of it, seven practices in; I think we’re battling,” Murray said Monday, while deferring to Oklahoma head coach Brent Venables regarding Barnes’ injury. “I think guys are competing at a high level, guys are working, they’ve just got to continue to get better. … But so far it’s been good.”
#Sooners running backs coach DeMarco Murray talked Monday about his new position group.Here’s some of what they said: pic.twitter.com/1pG12G75Hn
— OU Daily Sports (@OUDailySports) April 4, 2023
Barnes and Sawchuk have high aspirations heading into 2023 and are expected to lead the room followed by Major and the freshmen on the depth chart.
“It’s been great because they were in the same shoes as (Hicks), (Smothers) and (McKown),” Murray said. “But seeing them a year later … They’ve improved verbally, they were all kind of quiet, but again, they’re all stepping out of their comfort zones and being leaders, which is what we need.”
One of those players who could become increasingly important to the Sooners’ depth at the position if Barnes misses the rest of spring camp is Hicks. The Denton, Texas, native ran for over 3,000 yards and 31 touchdowns at Ryan High School where he helped the Raiders win a Texas 5A Division I state title during his sophomore season in 2020.
Hicks also ran track at Ryan and dazzled Murray with his speed when he first saw Hicks sprint.
“How fast and explosive he is,” Murray said about his first impression of Hicks. “Obviously, (he has) a really thick lower body, great kid, just young. And just gotta get him fundamentally technical, that side of things, gotta get him squared away.
“But he’s come along very fast, obviously the school that he came from (has) a great coaching staff, they did a great job with him. But, again, at this level you’ve gotta be physical between the tackles because his speed is truly exceptional and it’s gonna be a great thing for us.”
OU football running backs coach DeMarco Murray during the game against Nebraska in Lincoln, Nebraska, on Sept. 17, 2022.
Murray raved about the veteran presences of Barnes, Major, Sawchuk and Tawee Walker during camp.
Sawchuk, who Murray says looks “totally different” after adding seven pounds of weight, is expected to make a jump in his sophomore season. The former NFL Offensive Player of the Year and coach also said he’s been impressed with Walker’s improvement.
The maturity of the position group hasn’t gone unnoticed by Venables.
“I like our leadership,” Venables said. “These are guys who are accountable — (Murray) hasn't recruited guys that aren't accountable. And that's the challenge for everybody on staff, is to find guys that value hard work, that value education, that value being a great teammate.”
Sawchuk appeared in just one regular season game until he heard his name called during the postseason. When Gray announced he was opting out of OU’s bowl game, the Littleton, Colorado, native saw an opportunity and ran with it.
He rushed 15 times for 100 yards and a touchdown in Oklahoma’s 35-32 loss to Florida State in the Cheez-It Bowl. Sawchuk says he feels more comfortable entering his second year with the Sooners.
“I feel a lot more confident with the coaching staff, all the players have helped with that,” Sawchuk said March 23. “But just being able to also have that year and know what the expectation is, know what the coaches want, know what (Murray) wants, just be able to know that and be able to execute it. It's definitely a big advantage.”
#Sooners running back Gavin Sawchuk spoke about heading into his second season in Norman. Here’s some of what he said after practice on Thursday: pic.twitter.com/euDNvS3ED9
— OU Daily Sports (@OUDailySports) March 24, 2023
For offensive coordinator Jeff Lebby, it’s a privilege to watch Murray coach the position he excelled at in college at OU and in the NFL. Lebby was a student assistant at Oklahoma during Murray’s freshman season in 2006 and has enjoyed reuniting with him.
“It's been great,” Lebby said. “I've mentioned it earlier, but I'm getting to do this with people I absolutely love and (Murray) has been unbelievable for those guys. This is a guy that's (played) at every single level. He’s pouring into these guys every single day and they take it and they run with it, so it's fun to watch.”
The two most important phases of a season, according to Murray, are winter and summer workouts. After a few months with strength and conditioning coach Jerry Schmidt, Murray has seen improvement ahead of OU’s spring game on April 22.
However, he’s most excited to test his players in the Oklahoma heat ahead of fall camp.
“I'm excited to obviously continue to get out here and practice,” Murray said. "But again, I'm always looking forward to summer workouts, getting those guys bigger, faster, stronger, and then letting those guys kind of take control and leadership of meetings and things of that nature.”
This story was edited by Austin Curtright. Grace Rhodes copy edited this story.
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