TOLEDO, Ohio – Junior Bryant Koback and senior Shakif Seymour have established themselves as a solid one-two punch in the Toledo backfield.
Koback led the Rockets with 1,187 yards and 12 TDs in 2019, earning second-team All-MAC honors. Seymour rushed for 741 yards last season and has totaled 2,008 yards and 22 rushing touchdowns in his Rocket career.
Both Koback and Seymour had their fair share of excellent performances last season. Koback recorded a pair of 200-yard rushing games, accumulating 228 yards on the ground at Colorado State and 259 in a rain-soaked, overtime thriller against Eastern Michigan. Seymour ran for 175 yards and two scores against Kent State and added 133 rushing yards the following week against Northern Illinois.
Led by that dynamic duo, Toledo's rushing attack was strong in 2019. The Rockets ranked second in the MAC and 18th in the nation with an average of 221.8 yards per game.
But head coach Jason Candle feels the depth in the running backs room goes beyond those two. Redshirt freshmen Micah Kelly and Jacquez Stuart will also be fighting for playing time this season. Both had opportunities to play briefly as true freshmen in 2019.
"Those guys are speed backs who can bring a different element to the game when they're on the field," Candle said of Kelly and Stuart. "It will be fun to watch those guys compete. They've certainly earned the right to play."
Candle said the explosive pair of Kelly and Stuart could get a chance to showcase their speed on special teams as returners.
A room full of talented running backs and just one football to go around could be a recipe for disaster for some teams, but that could not be further from the truth for the Rockets and their talented crop of backs.
"What I appreciate about those guys is they're all pros about it," Candle said of the running backs. "That's always been a competitive room. It's always been a strong suit here. None of them are above getting reps with the third team, because sometimes that's where you have to take your reps. It's going to be fun to work with all of them this season."
