Running back Brandon McRae has been injured so often during his football career at Winston-Salem State that he figures his senior season has to be different.
As he gears up for the start of preseason practice today, he bubbles with optimism about his health.
"I feel like I'm ready," said McRae, who missed most of last season with a broken left wrist.
McRae injured his wrist in the first game against N.C. A&T, had a pin inserted during surgery and went through spring practice wearing a cast. The cast just came off, but as a precaution, he probably will wear another cast for the first two weeks of camp.
McRae broke his right wrist in the third game of the 2007 season, and although that injury wasn't as severe, it still cost him the rest of that season.
"I don't have any more of them left to break, but thank God it wasn't my legs," McRae said.
McRae had his best season in 2006, leading the Rams with 623 yards rushing on 118 carries, scoring six touchdowns and averaging 5.3 yards a carry.
"That's the way I'm looking at it," McRae said of trying to put his injuries behind him. "Hopefully the football gods will see that I'm putting in a lot of work to stay healthy so that's what I'm hoping for."
The Rams, even though they plan to go with more of a spread offense under new coordinator Alan Hall, will need a workhorse back. If the powerfully built McRae (5-10, 225) can stay healthy, he might be the answer.
The Rams lost starter Nic Cooper to academic shortcomings. Ced Hickman, who played at North Forsyth and then N.C. State before transferring, also could provide help. He hasn't yet been ruled eligible to play, but he is enrolled and has gone through two sessions of summer school.
McRae said he doesn't feel pressure to perform. He just wants to stay on the field for all 11 games.
"Pressure is sometimes a good thing because that can make me rise to my full capabilities," McRae said. "I pretty much like the pressure."
McRae, from Springdale, Md., was one of Coach Kermit Blount's top recruits in the class of 2005 after rushing for 846 yards as a junior and 1,500 as a senior at Charles Herbert Flowers High School.
McRae redshirted in 2005 to get stronger, then excelled in 2006 in the power running game. He had the team's longest run from scrimmage that season, a 52-yard burst up the middle against Florida A&M.
In the WSSU weight room at the Bowman Gray Stadium field house earlier this week, McRae was curling a rubber ball to help strengthen his left wrist. He said that rehabilitation exercises have become second nature to him.
"By the first game, I think I'll be 100 percent, but if not, the plan is to be at least 90 percent," he said.
McRae said that once the Rams start contact drills, he probably will be held out as a precaution. He hopes to be ready to practice at full speed the week before the Sept. 5 opener against N.C. A&T.
One of the adjustments the Rams will have to make during camp is learning the offense. Hall put in the spread for spring drills, but McRae said that there's still plenty to learn.
"It's absolutely a spread offense, and right now we are in the process of putting some other things in there as well," McRae said.
McRae said that the opening of practice is always a big deal because it starts the countdown to the first game.
"The excitement level is there," he said. "Last year we had a young team, and we want to build off that. Hopefully we'll get better."
As for where he might fit in, McRae said he isn't too concerned.
"All I'm worried about is myself at this point," he said. "I just want to be healthy and play a full year."
■ John Dell can be reached at 727-4081 or at jdell@wsjournal.com.
Email
Facebook
Google
Twitter
Favorites
More
Advertisement