Darwin Barlow and Keaontay Ingram are off and running after returning from injury

Head coach Clay Helton smiled after Tuesday’s practice when asked what it was like to see running backs Keaontay Ingram and Darwin Barlow back on the field after each missed two weeks due to ankle and hamstring injuries, respectively.

“It was fun,” Helton said. “That was really fun.”

The 6-foot, 215-pound Ingram announced his presence at USC this past spring, when he came in as a transfer from Texas and immediately made his mark on the running back position. He had one of the highlight plays of the spring game and looked like a potential starter after his first few touches early in spring ball. His emergence is likely one of the factors that helped Stephen Carr decide to transfer to Indiana, where he has impressed.

Barlow came to USC this past summer, transferring from TCU and giving the Trojans another back with experience. The 5-foot-11, 205-pound back got off to a terrific start in fall camp but suffered a hamstring injury before he could get to a day in full pads. Tuesday was his first day back from the injury and his first day in full pads.

“It felt good to get out there, cut,” Barlow said. “Just the feel for getting back in the pads, it felt great.”

Barlow said the time away from practices was frustrating and Helton acknowledged after Saturday’s scrimmage that both he and Ingram had been asking to get back in pads and on the field.

“Every day I felt better, I would be begging them, please let me come practice,” Barlow said. “But the doctors didn’t feel like I was ready to go back out there. I respect them because that’s what they do, and they got me back better, so it’s all a blessing.”

Barlow took his first carry on Tuesday and cut through a hole in the line, then made a defensive back miss before picking up more yards in the secondary. He’s been consistent in everything he’s done this fall and can be a weapon as a runner and receiver.

Helton said there’s still some improvement that can come in terms of pass protection and knowing all the assignments, but Barlow feels comfortable with where he is right now in the offense. He said he spent the past two weeks making sure he was deep in the playbook, watching film and taking as many mental reps as possible during practice.

His speed, vision and natural running style were evident early on, and Helton said that goes for Ingram as well.

“As far as natural running skills, both kids just have it,” Helton said. “And you can tell they’ve played a lot of college football. It’s evident in the film room. You see 6, 28 and 22. That’s a lot of reps for those guys.”

The 28 is Ingram and 22 is Barlow. The 6 is where things get interesting at the position. Vavae Malepeai returns as a veteran leader and team captain at the position. He’s carried the load a bit this fall with the other two missing two weeks of camp and he looks as explosive and hard-charging as he’s ever been in his USC career. But running backs coach Mike Jinks has said he’d like to limit a bulk of the carries to two main backs, rather than try to spread carries out over three or four players. If that holds true and a top two needs to emerge from this group, it probably becomes one of the more difficult decisions any position coach needs to make before the season opener. And that’s not even taking into account the fact that Kenan Christon has had a good fall and brings a speed element to the backfield that can’t be matched by the others, and that true freshman Brandon Campbell looks like anything but a true freshman right now.

If Barlow winds up getting significant carries for the Trojans this season, it will connect two paths for him. The former four-star prospect took a late official visit to USC as a member of the 2019 recruiting class and gave serious thoughts to committing.

“I loved it out of high school,” Barlow said of USC. “Just thought it was far. I chose to stay close to home, but when I entered the transfer portal, I always felt that I had a connection with Coach Helton and Coach Jinks.”

It could also unite him in the same backfield with Ingram. The two find themselves in Los Angeles after growing up about 100 miles apart from each other in East Texas — Ingram in Carthage and Barlow in Newton. The two have grown close since arriving at USC, but had something of a relationship before that as well.

“He’s just like a bit brother,” Barlow said of Ingram. “He came out of high school before me but we always kept up with each other…I always liked his game, always followed him at Texas. To have him here with me, he’s like a bigger brother.”

Ingram also said it’s a “brotherly bond” between the two.

“We’re from the same area, East Texas,” Ingram said. “East Texas boys. Country boys at that. Having him in the room with me, hearing about him in high school, growing up and stuff like that, it’s just amazing. When he came in the room, there’s no selfishness, there’s no pride. We’re feeding off each other and that’s what we do. Do our jobs to the fullest when we’re in the game.”

Barlow isn’t concerned about the depth chart at this point. He’s grateful to be back on the field and hoping to improve each time out.

“We’re all going to get our share,” he said of the running back room. “We’re all going to eat together. Being a part of the team, that’s what comes with it. Helping each other. Building off each other. The goal is to win a Pac-12 championship, so that’s what we’re going to do.”