Oscar Adaway explains his approach to South Carolina running back battle

South Carolina added quite a bit to its running back room via transfer this offseason, with the addition of Arkansas back Rocket Sanders the headliner.

Between Sanders, JuJu McDowell, North Texas transfer Oscar Adaway, SC State transfer Jawarn Howell and returning player Djay Braswell, South Carolina should have quite the competition going into the fall. Not everyone was available this spring.

But the goal at the position is clear. Everyone wants to play.

“We all view it the same way. We all want that spot,” Adaway said after the team’s spring game. “We all want it. But at the end of the day, as a team we all want to win. We all want to be a factor to winning, so that’s all that matters at the end of the day in our [running back] room.”

Sanders would presumably have the lead at the position based on his experience level, in the Southeastern Conference, no less.

The former Arkansas star is coming off a somewhat disappointing season with the Razorbacks, having rushed for 578 yards and five touchdowns. He’s capable of a lot more.

He showed that in 2022, when Sanders ran for 1,443 yards and 10 touchdowns, to go along with 28 catches for 271 yards and two scores.

That’s the running back Shane Beamer and his staff are hoping they get in Columbia. If not, though, there are some other quality options.

McDowell, for example, has rushed for 530 yards during his time with the Gamecocks, while also serving as a bona fide receiving threat out of the backfield.

Then there are the transfers that have logged some considerable production at their previous stops.

Adaway, for one, ran for 1,935 career yards in four years at North Texas, racking up 14 touchdown carries. He’s not the only transfer with some serious production.

Last year, Howell produced 809 yards and seven touchdowns on the ground, while also chipping in 10 catches for 149 yards and two touchdowns for SC State.

Sanders missed spring ball with an injury, while McDowell was lost halfway through to a collarbone injury. So some of the players further down on the depth chart at running back got a chance to show what they could do.

Whether that was enough to win serious playing time going forward remains to be seen. The good news for the Gamecocks, of course, is that there seems to be plenty of options.