Everything From Virginia Tech RBs Coach Elijah Brooks After Wednesday's Practice

Virginia Tech running backs coach Elijah Brooks spoke to the media after Wednesday's practice; here's the entirety of what Brooks had to say:

On how pleased Brooks was with the running effort:

"Extremely uh happy. The entire offense worked extremely hard throughout the week and it was just good for our guys to come out and and play well."

On if there was a point in the second half where Brooks thought his group was unstoppable on the ground:

"I did. The offensive line during timeouts, they were begging for us to run behind them and they exuded a lot of confidence, which our running backs fed off of. And Marcellous [Hawkins] did a really good job of making guys miss all night. So, we were very confident."

On whether that started in the second half:

"I think the guys felt good all all game. I think we had a really good plan of attack and our guys executed well and I thought they did a really good job."

On Louisville's rush defense:

"They're tough. They're tough. They're big, fast, athletic, they play hard. It's definitely going to be a task this Saturday.

On how signal-caller Kyron Drones' dual=threat ability opens things up for the offense:

"He's a huge weapon. The quarterback run game is really tough for defenses to defend and Kyron's extremely talented when he gets going downhill. So, whenever he's playing like that, we're we're hard to stop."

On if it was encouraging as a running backs coach seeing the remainder of the contest stick to the game plan:

"It was. Coach [Philip] Montgomery really leaned on the staff and we felt that, we can get back in the game and not abandon the run. He called a phenomenal game and it was just really good to see our guys respond."

On whether having bigger running backs wears on defenses when the RBs are running 30, 40 times a game:

"I do. I told those guys on the sideline that those four- and five-yard runs are like body blows in a boxing match. And it might take time. You might not see the benefits until the third or fourth quarter, but if you stick to it, eventually, we'll have success."

On what he looks for to see that the opposing defense is getting tired:

"The defense starts to get up slower. We start to break more tackles and our guys have a look in their eye like, Feed me the ball.' When we see that as a staff, we want to continue doing it."

On RB Jeff Overton, who has been injured for the entirety of this season:

"It's great [to see him begin taking reps, albeit not in game action]. An unfortunate injury. But he's done such a good job of working hard to get back and I'm not sure when he'll return. But when he does, it'll be a huge accomplishment. I'll be really happy for him."

On seeing RB Bhayshul Tuten at the game vs. California:

"It was great. I told those guys before the game [that] 'Bhayshul's returning'. And I'mma feel pretty upset if the commentators and people are talking more about Bhayshul's return than what we're doing on the field. And so, it was really good to see our guys rise to the challenge. He was on the sideline coaching our guys up, telling them what he saw. It was really good."

On what makes Hawkins such an effective runner:

"He can do it all. He has a really high football IQ. He has a really good work ethic and whatever he needs to work on, he goes above and beyond to work on it. Studying film, making sure he knows tendencies of defenses and then when he comes out to practice, he practices extremely hard. And then, it pays off on Saturdays."

On what Brooks saw from Hawkins on film:

"When you turned on his film, what you saw is a all-around running back who who was extremely competitive. Really good body contact and just had a passion for the game. And so, I don't care what level you play on, football players are football players. And so, I was confident [that] with the right environment and the right coaching, he he could do some good things."

On who's the third running back in the rotation:

"To be determined. And it's really a lot of parity in in my room, where I can count on anyone to go out there. And so, these guys have to earn it in practice. A lot of times, whoever has the better practices will get the opportunities first. And I think that's what keeps our guys hungry."