Pitt RB coach Andre Powell keeps open mind with crowded backfield

Andre Powell has a secret, but it's not what you think.

Yes, he's Pitt's no-excuses running backs coach who wears a T-shirt that shouts, “Find a Damn Way.”

No, his secret doesn't involve football.

Maybe that disappoints some Pitt fans who are eager to know which of the five running backs will win the starting job. Powell has plenty of time for that — four weeks, actually.

“It will be sorted out,” he said.

That said, it should be noted — even though this is his 30th season as an assistant coach — there is more to Powell than football.

Before the start of training camp, he spent some relaxing, quality time on a fishing trip with fullback George Aston and quarterback Kenny Pickett.

Where did they go? That's his secret.

“Down the river to one of my secret holes,” he said. “I can't tell you. Somewhere between West Virginia and Lake Erie.

“We caught a bunch of smallmouth. We had a lot on (the line); we didn't get a lot in the boat. Those smallmouth are pretty sassy, but we had a good time.”

Powell said the three men did talk football during the trip. Some things are just unavoidable.

Aston, after all, scored 10 touchdowns last season — five on the ground, five through the air — and will be a big part of Pitt's restocked offense. At 6-foot, 245 pounds, he can help lead the way for the running game that lost James Conner, but still has former ACC Rookie of the Year Qadree Ollison, junior Darrin Hall, sophomore Chawntez Moss and freshmen A.J. Davis and Todd Sibley at tailback.

Powell said he will keep an open mind in regards to the freshmen, aware that running back may be one of the few positions where first-year players can flourish. Pitt's LeSean McCoy gained 1,328 in 2007; Dion Lewis 1,799 in 2009.

Powell's thoughts on the subject are steeped in simple logic.

“In a perfect world, you'd like to save those guys,” he said. “But we get them all ready to play, and it will sort out. If we don't need them, we'll redshirt them. If we need them, and they can play winning football, then we'll play them.”

Powell is too smart to get lured into a discussion of which back has started to separate from the rest. After one week of drills, it's too early to make any definitive determination, anyway.

“I've got three vets who know how to function and can play winning football, so it's just a matter of getting reps and getting better,” he said.

“We hadn't really (said), ‘This guy is (first team) or (second team).' Everybody runs with the 1s, and everybody runs with the 2s.”

Coach Pat Narduzzi said Ollison can get better than he was during his redshirt freshman season of 2015 when he ran for 1,121 yards while Conner was injured.

“What did he have, 1,300 yards or something like that?” Narduzzi said. “It was good because he was the guy. We want him better than '15.”

Ollison's carries were limited to 33 last season because Conner had 216, but Moss (42) and Hall (36) also had more. That sets up the current competition, made all the more intense now that Hall's leg injury that limited his spring work has healed.

Powell said Ollison is “a little bit wiser (than he was), with the ability to anticipate, see things before they happen, receiving the tips that the defense gives you.”

“I think he can get better. He's trying hard to give a great effort. I'm pleased with him, along with all those other guys. He's always been a smart guy. He can be a great coach one day.”

There's a good chance at least four backs will get a significant number of carries, but in time Powell must choose a starter.

His hope is he only needs to point the way and someone will make that decision for him.

“Back when I was young and couldn't communicate real well, I was always yelling,” he said. “Yelling doesn't do any good. They stop listening when you start yelling.

“I'm just pointing out. I ask them, ‘Is that your best?' I make them hear themselves say it. They know what the bar is.

“That's the nature of football: Get a bunch of good ballplayers and let them play. They'll help you somewhere.”

Jerry DiPaola is a Tribune-Review staff writer. Reach him at jdipaola@tribweb.com or via Twitter @JDiPaola_Trib.