CULLOWHEE, N.C. - Tyler Roberson has memories of being tracked down during a long run against East Tennessee State University on Oct. 1.
In a similar opportunity Saturday against Western Carolina, there was no way the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga quarterback was going to be caught.
Roberson finished with a career-high 121 yards in the 38-25 win over the Catamounts, which pushed the Mocs to 8-1 and 6-1 in the Southern Conference heading into the bye week. All but 19 of his yards came in a first half the Mocs dominated, leading 31-10 going into the break.
Roberson contributed a score to that total, faking a handoff and sprinting 54 yards on the right side for the score. It was unlike the ETSU game, when he was tackled at the 1-yard line after a 45-yard run. After that game, he worked with Ron Dickson, the associate professor of athletic performance, to improve his speed.
"I took that to heart because I ran out of gas," Roberson said. "I still feel like I got a little tired on the last 10 and I was disappointed he got my foot, but it is what it is."
He also added a 34-yard run that led to the Mocs' last first-half touchdown but admitted he didn't have the "clean finish" he would have liked. The 6-foot-4, 210-pound backup to Alejandro Bennifield has had his big plays but had a couple of bad reads and fumbled a snap in the final quarter with the Mocs trying to run the clock out.
"I have to learn from it, move on and take it with a grain of salt," Roberson said. "I'm not going to dwell on the negatives, but I'm not going to dwell on the positives, either.
"Today was a learning experience."
The Mocs averaged 310 yards on the ground the past two weeks, the team's top two performances of the season.
"If Tyler would have executed a couple of plays like he was supposed to and not fumbled the ball, he has a monster day, but as a quarterback you have to realize you can't miss some reads," coach Russ Huesman said.
"You can't fumble the football, and just like anybody, turnovers will kill you."
Offensive coordinator Jeff Durden said he was "very pleased" with Roberson's performance, noting that it's his first substantial experience in his career as both Roberson and Bennifield were planted behind four-year starting quarterback Jacob Huesman.
"We're going to continue to develop that, and that's going to help us as we get in these playoffs," Durden said.
Contact Gene Henley at ghenley@timesfreepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @genehenleytfp.