MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — After his teammate Wendell Smallwood tied for last season’s NCAA lead with 59 rushes of 10 or more yards, Rushel Shell wouldn’t mind a West Virginia repeat.
Those mini-bursts, after all, could aggregate into Shell’s first 1,000-yard season since high school.
Given the opportunity to be a featured running back in 2016—and by his own description, given the chance “to reintroduce myself to college football”—Shell has heard the refrain from position coach Ja’Juan Seider about getting more out of the holes the offensive line provides.
“Definitely. It’s something Coach Seider has been making a big thing about, being able to make the first guy miss,” Shell said.