KAREEM HUNT: NOT A BIG NAME, BUT A BIG TALENT

When I was growing up I had plenty of outlets of entertainment to choose from. I had a neighborhood with all kinds of woods around it, some of my good friends were within biking distance and I was always playing some sort of organized sport on the weekends. But during my free time, when I could chose whatever I wanted to do, I often opted for a different outlet: video games.

I was pretty spoiled growing up. I had the Nintendo 64 right at the peak of its popularity. I was given a Playstation 2 for Christmas the year it came out. I was even one of 500 total people in the world who owned a Sega Dreamcast – not because of rarity, because no one wanted it. But even with all those options, I seemed to always fall back to my go-to, my Game Boy Color.

Toledo RB Kareem Hunt – Photo by: Getty Images

You see, the Game Boy Color was perfect. The button layout, though simple, had the capabilities of playing all the best games on it. It could fit in any storage space, and was great for trips whether through the air in a plane or on the ground in a car. I could take it where I wanted it to go, and it could be used in any situation.

Toledo running back Kareem Hunt is a Game Boy Color.

Hunt, like the Gameboy, evolved within his structure as the years went on. As a true freshman, he played in all 11 of the team’s games, recording 866 yards and six touchdowns. The following season, he recorded over 1,600 rushing yards and 16 rushing touchdowns (I would consider this the Pokemon Red/Blue year). After failing to reach 1,000 yards rushing in his junior season due to a lingering hamstring injury, Hunt got back on track in 2016 with a career-high 264 carries for 1,475 rushing yards and his third-straight double digit touchdown season.

Each year Hunt, who is 5-foot-11, 225 pounds, was able to do something eye-catching, but this year he brought every attacking aspect of the running back position together. Whether it was in the air or on the ground, Hunt fit into any game plan. His skills were simple, in theory, but they allowed him to do so much.

UP AND DOWN ON THE D-PAD: RUNNING DOWNHILL

No matter how dynamic a running back is there is one thing he must be able to do: get downhill. You can have the most elusive running back in all of college football, but if he can’t have at least moderate success between the trenches, teams in the NFL will be able to hone in on how limited he is, and soon he’ll be rendered useless.

Thankfully, that is not Hunt.

Hunt’s tape is littered with plays like the one above, and when I say littered, I mean that it’s shocking how “normal” those plays become after watching his tape for a while. It’s one thing to be able to put your foot in the ground and sprint through a gap like he does to start that run. It’s another thing completely to be able to bounce off a linebacker and get another six yards after contact.

To prove Hunt does this stuff all the time, here’s another one.

Hunt takes the phrase “keep your legs churning” to a whole new level. It doesn’t matter how many defenders are around him, when he knows he’s about to make contact, Hunt puts his head down, covers the ball and runs like his next stop is the first down line, regardless of who’s in his way. In fact, the only time I recall ever seeing Hunt fail to gain some sort of positive yardage was when four out of his five offensive lineman got beat, and even then he fought off two of them before settling for a one-yard loss.

Hunt’s downhill running is the equivalent to any racing game on the Game Boy Color. In those games, you constantly have your finger pressing up on the D-pad to ensure you’re never losing speed or give up ground to an opponent. Hunt always has his foot on the gas and his finger on the upper part of the D-pad; always.

LEFT AND RIGHT ON THE D-PAD: GETTING TO THE PERIMETER

Now that we’ve established Hunt can do what’s mandatory for a back to play any of the three (or four) downs in the NFL, we can now properly evaluate whether or not he has the ability to get to the edge or outside of the trenches like the Bucs need, as discussed on the previous page.

The answer: Oh baby, does he ever.

There was a stretch during the 2015 season where Hunt was either not at 100 percent or recovering from a hamstring injury. Because of that, his burst took a hit, and he wasn’t able to pull off as many runs as seen above. But when he’s been healthy, even in years before the injury, his breakaway speed has been evident.

Hunt not only has the skill, but most importantly the desire to go to the outside and find those extra yards. That’s the main component of a Buccaneers tail back that has been missing. Doug Martin could get to the outside when healthy. Heck, we even saw Jacquizz Rodgers pop out past the edge and get down the field a few times. But what makes Hunt different from those guys, who have the skill to do it, is that Hunt has the mentality to along with the skill. Hunt realizes that there are more yards to be earned on the outside if he can get there. Not that he tries to dance around and force it; he doesn’t. But barring a handful of times where I think he could have made it to the outside, when the opportunity was there, he usually saw it and preferred it. That mentality is something the Buccaneers don’t have, something they really have never had.

If the linebackers get blocked at the second level at the time Hunt hits his cut, it’s curtains. The run above is very LeSean McCoy-esque. McCoy is one of the best running backs in the NFL at making one hard, quick cut the only one he needs with patience and breakaway speed. I’m not saying McCoy is my pro comparison for Hunt. I’m simply telling you what this run reminded me of to show you how Hunt is already running with NFL traits.

A BUTTON: CATCH, COLLECT AND RELEASE

But the running back position is more than just carrying the rock. In today’s NFL, it’s not just a preference to be a good pass catcher, it’s a must if you want to play on second and third downs.

In his first three seasons, Hunt wasn’t used much in the passing game. Over those three years, he only accumulated 32 catches for 152 yards. However, in his final season alone, he recorded 41 catches for 403 yards, a major boost.

Hunt’s success in the passing game comes from something us video game fanatics are all too familiar with, mashing the “A” button.

In the later years of the Game Boy Color, certain games would require different actions from players, but the equipment still only had the two buttons to execute those actions. This caused for many of the players to hammer the “A” button as fast as they could to do as many moves as possible. Such is the case with Hunt in the play above.

Hunt first mashes “A” to make a crazy one-handed catch, but he continues to hammer away at the button, stiff arming defenders, staying up and staying in bounds.

I wish I had that play from another angle to show you guys just how silly it was that Hunt, not only caught that ball, but somehow was able to maintain balance on what appeared to be just three toes, re-gain control, and immediately burst forward for more yards. I cannot emphasizes this enough that the balance, body control and determination Hunt has cannot be taught; they are gifts.

B BUTTON: THE MOVES

The final category of Hunt’s game we’ll look at is what happens when you press the “B” button, often the special move button in many games that allow the player to do some sort of trick.

Hunt isn’t often fancy with what he does, he prefers to beat defenders by simply out working them at contact. But every now and then we get a gem where it all comes together, skill and power. The clip below is that gem.

I don’t mean to make Hunt out to be the greatest running back prospect of all time, but it’s hard not to get excited about a kid like this. His tape with the ball in his hands is fantastic. He rarely ever turns the ball over, and he’s the hardest worker on every play.

Hunt does need to improve on his blocking. I’ve seen a handful of good blocks by him, but there are far too many times where he’s whiffing at incoming linebacker or corners, instead of squaring them up with the powerful lower body we know he has.

I don’t like to force NFL comparisons, so I don’t make them often, but I can’t help but see Devonta Freeman when I watch Hunt. I really liked Freeman coming out of Florida State. I thought that no matter what team he went to, his determined running style, balance and power from his lower body were going to make sure he stuck in the league. That’s how I see Hunt.

For Bucs fans it’s easy to envision where Hunt wins because they’ve seen it, albeit from different parts over the last few years. He has the overall running ability of Martin. He has the “always fights for extra yards” mentality that some fans really loved with Rodgers. He has the speed and quickness to be a good open field player like Sims is.

He’s all three of Tampa Bay’s running backs rolled into one, and he even has some skills under his pads that Bucs fans haven’t seen in a long time, if ever. His skill set will be on display next week at the Reese’s Senior Bowl. A good showing on a bigger stage from the MAC star and he’ll move up from a Day 3 prospect to a Day 2 stud capable of being a three-down workhorse back in the NFL. Perhaps even in Tampa Bay.

He’s simple, in theory, but can do so much. He’s a great option to have in the air or on the ground. He can be used in any situation.

He’s a Game Boy Color.