JACKSONVILLE, Ala. – There was a moment midway through what was a sometimes frustrating training camp for the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga football team when first-year head coach Rusty Wright let a secret slip.
As running back Ailym Ford quietly walked toward the bus after a practice, a heretofore angry Wright smiled as he pointed to the South Carolina native.
“That kid does it right,” Wright said. “He just does his work and is always wanting to improve.”
Amid the search for, as Wright likes to call them, “dudes,” he had found one in a guy who committed to the Mocs when the program was still searching for the successor to coach Tom Arth.
Now, after rushing for 127 yards and a touchdown on 22 carries in Saturday night’s 41-20 loss at Jacksonville State University, Ford has quickly established himself as a go-to option in the backfield – it not the outright starter moving forward.
Ford is the first UTC true freshman to eclipse the 100-yard rushing mark in a game since Erroll Wynn did so in 2006. He consistently moved the pile for extra yards and showed a burst of speed on several runs, including a 42-yarder from the UTC 4 that sparked a second-half touchdown drive.
“It is how the kid practices and how he does everything,” Wright said Saturday night. “It wasn’t a surprise. He shows up every day and practices and then plays like he practices. He goes to study hall, goes to tutoring, goes to class and that is why he is a good player.”
UTC’s running game was easily the silver lining from an otherwise, as Wright called it, unsound game. The Mocs’ 156 rushing yards are the program’s most since getting 236 in a playoff loss to Sam Houston State in 2016. Fixing a ground game that averaged less than 4 yards per carry last year was a main priority for Wright.
“We will get better and have a chance to win a bunch of football games because we can run the football,” Wright said. “We figured it out. Whether it is Ailym, Jeff Wood, TP (Tyrell Price), we will be able to run the football. The offensive line played well, too.”
Ford, in his usual humble style, deflected any praise toward the line, which also didn’t allow a sack for the second consecutive game.
“My line did a great job tonight, and I am so proud of them,” Ford said. “We’ve come a long way after starting from nothing, and I couldn’t have had this night without them. The key was we communicated a lot better, which makes a big difference. We really improved tonight even though we took the loss.”
The Mocs (1-1) return to competition Saturday at Tennessee (0-2). Kickoff is at noon, and SEC Network will televise the game.
Contact Lindsey Young at lyoung@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6296. Follow him on Twitter @youngsports22.