Nov. 28--SOUTH BEND, Ind. -- For Tarean Folston, patience was the virtue he had to cultivate.
As part of a three-man Notre Dame backfield, the sophomore tailback needed it to bide his time between carries early in the season as he shared touches with senior Cam McDaniel and fellow sophomore Greg Bryant.
To get more touches, he needed to become more patient as a runner, someone who would let the play in front him develop before taking off.
It seems to have clicked for Folston, who has emerged as Notre Dame's best running option even as the Irish have lost their last three games. Folston's carries have gone up and so has his production.
"I'm starting to see things differently ..." Folston said. "Just knowing the game better ... knowing where the blocks are going, knowing the scheme and knowing your opponent."
Folston has run for more than 100 yards in four of his last six games and is averaging 18 carries per game over that span. In the first five games, Folston had 8.4 carries per game.
For the season, Folston has totaled 802 yards and is averaging 5.2 yards per carry.
The key has been Folston's work in the film room, something he has enjoyed since he was just starting to play football in sixth grade.
Even when he didn't have access to film, Folston said, he would watch replays of games, diagramming in his head what plays would look like. Now, he has fine-tuned his approach to film study, saying one of the reasons his play has improved this season is because he has gotten better at reading safeties and the way they are leaning before the snap. And when he gets on the field, Folston is watching their eyes to see if they give away information about the defense's scheme.
"It's kind of natural now," Folston said. "I've been doing it all year. Safeties tend to tell but that's not always the case. ... They tend to roll. Their eyes give it away."
The lone blemish on Folston's sterling second half of the season was a 11-carry, 30-yard effort in Notre Dame's loss to Arizona State. Folston barely saw the field in the second half as the Irish tried to come back. The Irish went with McDaniel, who was better in pass protection. The coaches had told Folston he needed to get his blocking in order to see the field more, but while standing on the sidelines against the Sun Devils, it finally sunk in and became a moment where the "light switch" went on.
"Not being on the field for a specific reason, it was eye opening," Folston said. "I just knew that was the next thing I had to get better at and it started right away."
It seems to have been just a temporary roadblock for Folston. Even if the Irish have two other capable running backs, they have found a workhorse in Folston. It just took some time.
"I feel like I'm an all-around better athlete than I was last year," Folston said.
chine@tribpub.com
Twitter @ChristopherHine
