By Mike Carmin
WEST LAFAYETTE – In the 20 months between the 2012 Big Ten Outdoor Championships and Purdue’s first indoor meet of the 2014 season, a lot transpired in Raheem Mostert’s athletic world.
He slowly recovered from a knee injury, preventing Mostert from running track last year. He didn’t have a defined role on coach Darrell Hazell’s team during the 2013 season, leading to a lack of confidence and frustration. He moved from receiver to running back during training camp.
Moments after Mostert ran 60 meters in 6.78 seconds inside Lambert Fieldhouse in January, his mindset and long-term outlook changed.
“That was my fastest time since my freshman year and I didn’t think I was going to run that,” said Mostert, who set a school record later in the season (6.63). “I had a lot of confidence after that. It’s built from there.”
FASTEST PLAYER IN COLLEGE FOOTBALL?: Raheem Mostert
Five months later, Mostert has four Big Ten titles — two indoor and two outdoor —and is looking for more at this week’s NCAA Championships in Eugene, Ore. Mostert is scheduled to run in the 100, 200 and the 4×100 relay, which placed second at the conference outdoor meet.
Now, you can’t shake Mostert’s confidence, either on the track or the football field.
His success during the indoor season carried over to spring football practice where the running back excelled, ripping off big gains during scrimmages. Coach Darrell Hazell and the Boilermakers are banking on the momentum from the outdoor campaign carrying over into the 2014 football season and helping jumpstart a struggling offense.
The native of New Smyrna Beach, Fla, ran a wind-aided 10.15 in the NCAA Regionals in Jacksonville. He also ran a 10.25 at the USC Trojan Invite in March, but that too was wind aided.
“Now, he’s blowing up, so we need him to blow up on the football field. We really do,” Hazell said. “He’s capable of some great things. I have confidence he will. If we can block the first level, he will erase a lot of angles of defenders because of his speed. A guy that runs a 10.15 — wind aided or not — is fast. You better take the proper angles or he’ll hurt you.”
Mostert was labeled the nation’s fastest college football player heading into the 2014 season recently by nfl.com. He’s always had the speed. Mostert led the nation in kickoff returns as a freshman and produced a 100-yard return last season at Penn State.
The attention Mostert has brought to the track program along with the football team continues to gain steam.
“He has been a breath of fresh air in terms of his attitude, willingness to do whatever it takes for the team to be successful,” Purdue track coach Lonnie Greene said. “He’s a breath of fresh air because he’s willing to put himself out there.”
No question, Mostert will have a target on his back once the football season starts. But the same target developed during track season.
After winning the 60 and 200 meters at the Big Ten indoor championships, Mostert didn’t perform well at the NCAA meet but still earned second-team All-America honors.
“Going into the indoor season, he didn’t have the target on his back,” sprinters coach Norbert Elliott said. “Now, all of sudden people know who he is. Folks want to crash the party.”
On that day, Mostert’s party was crashed. But there are lessons to be learned from what happened in March heading into this week’s NCAA Championships. Elliott said improving Mostert’s starts, especially in the 100, have been the focus.
“In the 60 meters, it’s pedal to the medal. The 100 requires a little more patience of setting up the race,” Elliott said. “He’s a big strong guy. The longer the race the more advantageous it is for Raheem. We have to work on the start so he can set up his race a little bit better.”
Once track season ends, Mostert will quickly switch to football. Summer school starts next week when all of his football teammates are expected on campus to continue offseason training. Fall camp is less than two months away.
“We have to do a great job of really piggybacking off his success in track and making him feel like he can be a really good player,” running backs coach Jafar Williams said. “We know he has the ability to do it. So much of being a good player is how you prepare upstairs. He’s come a long way from last year to this year.”
Expectations for Mostert are going to continue to build through the summer, leading up to the Aug. 30 opener against Western Michigan. He’s not ready to shy away.
“I worked hard to be the best I can be in track and football,” Mostert said. “The level of confidence I do have is, well, alright, I’m going to go out and bust my tail every day. I’m going to show them what I got.”
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