For South Carolina running backs coach Thomas Brown, the situation is more about will than tactics.
When it’s short yardage, the defense is likely going to have numbers. There likely won’t be the perfect hole, the surge that makes things easy. It’s usually going to end with a back one-on-one against a defender.
That’s where USC’s backs need to win.
“I don’t care if it’s blocked incorrectly,” Brown said. “Somebody is going to be free. There’s going to be colors showing. You can control most of that by being able to be forceful through the line of scrimmage with pad level, keeping your feet moving on contact.