Zach, you've been here since January.
How's -- how's Mississippi? How's Ole Miss?
It's treating me real well.
It's a big difference coming from the Big 12 to the SEC,
but I'm loving it.
What kind of went into your decision to choose Ole Miss?
Really just the relationship I had with Coach Smith
before he left.
And getting better to know Lane. They were just telling me
how they could utilize me in the offense.
What kind of competition are you sensing
in the running back room?
How do you guys compete together?
So, with us, the competition is just outstanding.
We got -- I think it's five of us.
Me, Kentrel, Ulysses, Matt Jones, and Bobo Miller.
So, the competition we're doing would just be the drills.
Learning the plays.
Doing extra after practice, film session, all that.
Do you feel any expectations on you,
I mean in terms of what you've done at TCU
and bringing that here?
Um, I don't feel a ton of bunch of expectations,
but I feel like it's a big difference.
I feel like I've got a point to prove.
A lot of people feel like the competition in Big 12 is weaker,
so I just want to show that I can be able to adapt.
How has Kentrel (inaudible)
helped you and all the other guys?
Me and Kentrel, we hang out a lot.
Inside the facility, he's helped me with the plays and signals.
You know, I just got here, he's been here two years,
so that's kind of where me and him been going with it.
Zach, can you describe that process
when you went into the portal trying to find a new school?
Is it kind of like going through recruiting all over again?
In a way. Actually, in a way it's about
going through recruitment again. So, when you hit the portal,
I think the school got 24 to 48 hours to hold it.
But after that, you free to go. When you hit it,
you still going to be, you know, in classes and stuff,
but you just really got to kind of
already have it around your head
where you want to go 'cause the portal, it happen fast.
Everything happen fast.
You visited Ole Miss out of high school.
They were recruiting you. What -- how close did Ole Miss
come to getting you out of high school?
So, a couple years ago, this is funny.
I had a cousin going here. D'Vaughn Pennamon.
He was a running back here. He got hurt against A&M.
So, I was always coming to his games way back when he
(inaudible). So, that just kind of --
coming up here every year, going to his games.
Then when Lane came in the office,
it was just a repeat of the same process.
He moved to tight end last year, so I was just still
coming around (inaudible).
Were you close at all for picking Ole
Miss coming out of high school?
Oh, yes, sir. Most definitely.
Was the SEC (inaudible) the SEC where you wanted to go
or was it just Ole Miss (inaudible)?
Yes. Nah, that -- that was in my head.
SEC was where I wanted to go.
Now, my top two coming into it was probably A&M and Ole Miss,
but I kind of new where I really wanted to go.
I didn't really want to stay in Texas.
Was it just the coaching change that made you want to leave TCU
or was there anything else that kind of drove that?
So, it was kind of with the coaching changes,
but really it was just a better opportunity.
So, not -- not any knockoff against TCU or nothing,
'cause they're a great program. It's just the competition
I wanted, the bigger stage, I just wanted that.
What have you seen out of Bentley?
He just kind of showed up right
when y'all were able to start spring practice?
Could -- could you repeat?
Ulysses, what have you seen out of him so far?
Oh, explosion. Just pure determination.
Like I said, he just got here, too,
and, you know, what, last month?
So, he really just kind catch up right now.
We've got to learn as we go.
So, with the signals and the plays.
It's all about just adapting. We just got to catch on.
We got to throw in the fire.
How difficult has it been to --
to start comprehending this offense?
Uh, once you learn the protections,
it ain't -- it ain't hard.
You gotta learn the protections, that's the only way.
You got to protect that quarterback.
At TCU, did you feel like at times you were --
you were overused
and then at times did you feel like you were kind of underused?
Your stat lines kind of varies all over the place.
Now, me, personally, I feel like I was underused.
Not a knockoff against them 'cause
I'm not saying they don't know what they're doing,
but I just feel like I could have did a lot more.
Contributed a lot more to the team.
Both quarterbacks, obviously,
have had some big kinda things this spring.
What have you seen out of both Dart and Altmyer?
Both of them boys got a -- a rifle connected to their arm.
So, I think they switch.
Now, I can't speak much about their situation,
but they switch.
Some go with the ones one day, and then with twos the next day.
And then sometimes we just alternate
just to see who going to be hot.
And once they get hot, we get it running like that.
You were one of the first --
one of the earlier transfers in that January window
when it seemed like everybody was picking Ole Miss.
What was that like from your perspective,
kind of seeing player
after player after player (inaudible).
So -- so me, personally, I felt like I wanted to recruit.
I wanted to help get us some players.
So, when I first got in, I looked towards Dart way, too.
I was looking at Dart, too.
And then I seen Trig and him hit the portal.
So, you know, obviously I texted them just to see if they had,
you know, they had wrapped around the world about us.
But other than that, I felt like I wanted to be a recruiter.
How'd you know them?
Uh, so I really didn't now them. I just always heard of them.
So, we had a couple of transfers at TCU go to USC.
And I heard of them like that.
And then when they just hit the portal, it was just [snap]
You know how coaches, you know, they started talking.
So, same thing.
Did you get their number and text him?
No, I just text them on Instagram.
Yeah, social media.
You said that A&M was one
of the other places that you were looking at.
Yes, sir. But you wanted to leave Texas.
Why -- why did you want to get out of Texas?
Really, just my --
I don't want to say the wrong thing,
but just looking at the next level.
I -- I'm probably not going to be in Texas,
so I just wanted to kind of get the feeling going out of state.
Talking about how you -- how you'd like to be used,
do you see yourself as like a bell cow,
a three-day every-down back who gets 25 carries a game?
Kind of, if you could draw up the way you were used,
how would it be?
So, personally, I feel like I got the ability
to be a every-down back. I can do it all.
I mean, just depending on what you need done.
Is there a back you look up to or model your game after?
I know there are a lot of (inaudible).
I like Nick Chubb. Kamara. Alvin.
Those are two pretty different kinds of guys.
How do you merge power with that kind of versatility?
So -- so, with the versatility from Kamara and the balance,
some people say I model his running style.
And then, you know,
they say I look like a smooth runner sometimes.
So, when it comes to Chubb, I just like Chubb's
aggressiveness, his physicality. Him dropping the shoulder
and then stiff-arming on the edges.
(Inaudible).
Sorry.
What was Coach Kiffin's recruiting pitch like to you?
Come to the Sip, it'd be great.
He would just -- I don't want to just say it like that
but, you know, it was more in depth.
He was just telling me how he can get me ready.
He's a NFL coach. I mean, we not out there
just running balls to the walls all day long, you know.
Getting our breaks. He utilizing it just right.
Along those lines, be ready for the NFL,
obviously a big part of the NFL
is protecting the quarterback and --
and protections and stuff (inaudible)?
No, sir. So, at TCU we kind of had the --
we had the same formations with the protections.
It's just (inaudible) learn about the play actions,
knowing when to get out on your routes, stuff like that.
Is it tough adjusting to the tempo?
I know Ole Miss runs a different kind of speed.
Now that tempo is something serious.
I'm not used to going that fast. So, at TCU we did kind of tempo,
but it was kind of like slowed down, you know, in the game.
But here I think it's every 30 seconds, like, yeah.
At tempo.
You really just, they -- my biggest thing,
they would just push me to [snap]
get back up and [snap] keep going because I was --
after I got hurt at TCU, I was out for six months.
So, my biggest thing was getting back in shape.
So, they biggest thing for me was to just get up, keep going.
Keep pushing. Keep running, keep running, keep running.
Blackwell's the running backs coach as well, how has,
you know, kind of y'all kind of learning as y'all both go.
How's that been? So, it's been real good.
So, they don't -- we'll come in, uh, what is it?
Mondays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays,
we'll come in and learn the plays that'll be installed.
So, as he -- as he get them, he'll come in, teach us,
or either he'll text us,
look in our iPads and stuff like that.
And we have our formations and stuff up in there.
So, most of it really going to be on you,
if you're going to put the work in, the time in.
What -- what kind of guy is --
what kind of relationship are you building with him?
With Coach Black -- Coach Blackwell.
It's a good relationship.
I mean, it's really more of a trust thing
because his biggest thing is if I can't trust you,
I can't play you.
So, like I said about looking in your playbook
when he send that text out,
the next morning there's going to be a rerun
of what he sent out that night on the tablet.
So, like I said, it's up to you
whether you going to actually look into it
or not because he going to ask you questions.
Just don't go up there and lie.
Just tell him you ain't had time, you ain't had time.