PonyFans.com: Going into spring, I guess half the cavalry hasn’t really arrived, because a lot of people seem to think the incoming freshmen (Darryl Fields and Kevin Pope) are very impressive players who can compete for playing time. But with the guys you have already in place, do you have a pecking order as they all try to replace Shawnbrey McNeal?

Running backs coach Wes Suan said the key to incoming freshmen Darryl Fields and Kevin Pope getting on the field in their first year will depend largely on how hard they work in the offseason to be ready for preseason workouts (photo by Travis Johnston).

Wes Suan: Zach (Line) would be at the top right now, but Chris (Butler), being a senior who has played, I expect really good things form him, too. They’re all working hard in the offseason. Ryan Moczygemba doesn’t want to just be a special teams guy — I know he wants to play the position, too. Bryce Lunday is in the mix, too, because you can’t take the heart out of a guy, and he does everything 110 percent.

Those two freshmen coming in … it’s just a matter of how serious they are about getting themselves ready to compete. Right now, we’re telling them that they will come in and compete for the position. But if they can’t keep up with the upperclassmen, who have somewhat of an edge because of the two years in our system, and the sessions we’ve had that include the two spring practices and the seasons that we’ve had, it will be interesting to see where everything pans out.

So there are some guys who are competing, and that’s all I ask of them — not just to develop as football players, but to remind them that that’s going to be part of the characteristic values they’ll need in their future lives. As far as competing and doing whatever they can to get better and be the best they can be at their position on the football field, or at their job later on.

They bought into that, and evaluating the workouts, they’re all competing. They’re all friends, and they all know they’re competing for the same spot, but the physical part, right now, is important for them, and how they adapt and adjust and execute the mental part … it’s just a matter of time until we can tell who can get it done.

PonyFans.com: On Signing Day, June (Jones) kind of begrudgingly compared Darryl Fields to Eric Dickerson, because he’s a tall guy who runs upright and has a lot of speed, and then he brought out the name “Earl Campbell” when talking about Kevin Pope. So to hear some PonyFans talk about it, this running attack is going to be the Pony Express — Part II. Are people putting too many expectations, too soon, in these freshmen?

Suan: You know, people — and I don’t know what they think or how much they expect —but as far as coaches, we understand that these are still high school players who are playing in a different system. As far as them coming in and adapting to this system and having the desire or the toughness to play college football, that is all a matter of time.

The potential that (Fields and Pope) have, I think, is pretty good. (SMU director of high school relations) Tam (Hollingshead) had said that Kevin Pope is bigger than Earl Campbell was in high school. He’s got nice strong legs on him, and good instincts — same as Darryl Fields. They’ve got all the signs of being good backs — good vision, good balance.

Zach Line ran for seven touchdowns in 2009, more than twice the total of the whole team from the year before (photo by Travis Johnston).

I’m excited about those guys, but I also know the reality of it, that they’re still high school football players. They both play against smaller schools, and that does matter in terms of having good competition, week in and week out, but watching their skills on film, I think both of them could have played in 5A and still been pretty good.

PonyFans.com: Two years ago, Chris Butler was starting to play a lot before he got hurt, and then last year, Shawnbrey McNeal came in and took over the position. As the most experienced guy in the backfield, how is Chris handling the competition for the spot?

Suan: I don’t think he has been affected at all. He’s a very competitive guy, but he knows there’s going to be competition, and if anything, it has inspired him to work harder. He’s going to be a senior this season, and he wants to be a leader. He is a leader — he’s the first in line for most of the drills, and he hustles out of class to get to his workouts as fast as he can. So he’s ready to compete, and he knows he’ll get a fair chance.

PonyFans.com: Do you want one guy to take the position and make it his, or could you see a rotation of backs on a regular basis?

Suan: I just train them to be the best backs they can in every way. (Strength and conditioning coach) Mel (de Laura) does the physical stuff, and we do the technique skills and drills, and of course the film work and the assignments and reps during practice, and then June does the evaluations and decides who has the playing time, because which back is in there affects what plays June can call, or what plays he’ll want to call.

There’s been times when we had a back like (former Hawaii running backs) James Fenderson or Nate Ilaoa, guys who can stay in on every play and do some of everything — running, blocking, catching the ball out of the backfield. Maybe we’ll get that with one of the guys we have here — having the size, speed, quickness to do the blocking and the running. That’s like Shawnbrey — he was in there quite a bit on both running plays and in protection.

The elder statesman of the running backs, Chris Butler will be the backfield's lone senior in 2010 (photo by Travis Johnston).

PonyFans.com: If you go from Shawnbrey to Zach Line or one of the freshmen — both of whom are pretty big — as your primary ball carrier, how much does that change the plays that you and Coach Jones are able to call?

Suan: First of all, it’s June’s gameplan. He has his plan, how he’s attacking each defense. That’s why he’s so superior to other coaches — that’s what he has done his whole career, and he has done it very well for a long time. So if we find an every-down running back who can do every facet of the position, that becomes a great advantage because now, for example, when Zach Line is in there, they’re not just playing (defense) for the pass, and when Shawnbrey is in there, they’re not just playing for the run. I think there was a little tendency, even if they tried to balance out their defense, to defend both the run and the pass.

When Shawnbrey was in there, I’m sure they were more alert to the run, and when Zach was in there, they were a lot more alert to the pass. That’s why, when you saw Zach, linebackers were dropping and defensive backs were dropping, and then when Shawnbrey was running the football, the pass rush wasn’t as good, because they were two-gapping it and staying closer to the line of scrimmage a little longer, because they were worried about him running. If you can get the guys to be a threat both ways — as a runner and a blocker — then you have that advantage. It’s harder for defenses to predict what you’re going to do.

PonyFans.com: From talking to Vic Viloria before he left, and now talking to Mel, what kind of feedback have you gotten about the work your guys are doing this offseason as they get ready for the 2010 season?

Suan: I think the excitement of coming from the bowl game and getting ready for the next year, along with the new strength coach … we really liked Vic, but we also believe in Mel, and we’re hearing and seeing from the players that they’re getting a good workout. We know that, down the line, they’re going to be bigger, faster and stronger.