I don’t think you can judge the RBs after just one game certainly and only a few even played much. The O line is struggling. The RBs have not been as stellar as the star recruiting ratings might have indicated. I tend to not over value the recruiting guru ratings. Their somebody’s opinions and should get due credit. The coaches (Frost with advice of presumably Applewhite and Whip decided to go with guys they hoped were best for this first game.
Imo, the running game was not as effective or productive, for several reasons. Inconsistent blocking by O line. Good defense by NW. Offensive game plan / play design and selection. RBs misread or hesitated or otherwise failed to maximize what potential for gain there was. All of these are not uncommon or new.
i think the rotation with a couple backs mostly was OK. It was less musical benches than recent seasons. But some of the next guy up
prsctice is to give players playing opportunity. Talent deficit is not a big issue and hasn’t been since Frost arrived. We need to better utilize the talent we have all around the entire team, game plan better and the players need to dig down deeper than ever and get it done. The losses are piling up for many reasons. In the big picture (forest vs trees), the HC is in charge.
I feel all of Frost’s teams have been remarkably similar. Same talent approximately overall. Same offense. Similar defenses. Similar STs. Same frustrating results on the field.
While coaches and players’ names have changed every year, I couldn’t venture a guess which team was ‘the best’. Last year’s was widely proclaimed, lauded and ridiculed simultaneously as ‘the best 3-9 team ever!” I guess you could say Frost has fielded some very good losing teams. Not even sure if that is anything more than being nice.
I kind of wish the NCAA would go back to the freshman ineligible rule. Guys are not developing because they are playing right out of the gate. You get erratic, error prone play from inexperienced players. Period.