‘Complete Back’ – Versatile Hemby Ready to Share in Powerhouse Backfield
Pete DiPrimio | IUHoosiers.com
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - Roman Hemby isn’t an Indiana Hoosier to beat out the likes of receiver standouts Elijah Sarratt and Omar Cooper Jr.
But if this standout transfer running back has to rock an opposing team with a catch, look out.
Hemby did it for 41 games as a Maryland Terrapin – including catching at least one pass in 26 straight contests. He did it for multiple years as a top-45 Maryland high school prospect before that.
To win now and help IU remain nationally relevant (the Hoosiers are ranked in the top-20 in the coaches’ and AP preseason polls), to reach the NFL, both of which Hemby aims to do, catching is as vital as running.
“That’s something I took note of as a young guy,” he says. “I wasn’t always a running back. I played a little bit of the athlete position in high school. I was running corner routes or swings from the backfield. I was always trying to be eager to learn how to catch, make aggressive catches and catches that keep me on third downs because I have aspirations of playing at the next level. That’s something that can make me more marketable.
“To be a complete back, I had to hammer in on catching the ball. I love doing it. Any way to get an extra touch during the game is what I have to do.”
Four years of college experience gives the 6-foot, 210-pound Hemby an edge he’s eager to share with younger teammates.
“I’ve always been around people who gave me nuggets to keep pushing, keep me going. I’m using my experience with the younger guys and letting them know about a lot of the experiences they’re going through or are about to go through. Being that source to give back.
“I’m using everything I have to try to help someone else or learn from someone else. I make sure the younger guys know what to do when I know what to do and let them learn from my failures and successes. Keep the process moving.”
That includes adjusting to Curt Cignetti’s winning ways that sometime differ from other coaches. For one thing, Cignetti emphasizes practice efficiency over quantity. He limits the heavy contact in fall camp, and it’s worked. In 14 years as a head coach, he’s never had a losing record.
“It's definitely different,” Hemby says. “Every coach has his own philosophy. Here, we like to get our players to the game. We make sure we get the efficient work. We're out there for the right amount of time to get what we need to get done. We’re hammering it home in the film room. It’s things like that helps us to play at our best. We need to play fast in the Big Ten and I feel like Coach Cig's philosophy helps us do that.”
Hemby is getting accolades before ever running an official Hoosier play. He’s been named to the Doak Walker Award watch list, presented annually to the nation’s best college running back.
It happens when you earn a pair of All-Big Ten honors while totaling 3,353 career all-purpose yards, including 2,347 rushing yards and 921 receiving yards while scoring 27 career touchdowns, as Hemby did at Maryland.
All that made a big impression on Cignetti when Hemby entered the transfer portal. IU needed veteran running backs after the departures of Justice Ellison (848 yards, 10 touchdowns) and Ty Son Lawton (668, 12).
“Hemby's a veteran, he's done it for a number of years in the Big Ten Conference,” Cignetti says. “He's had a solid camp.”
And yet …
“He's got to improve on his pass protection.”
Hemby is part of a potentially strong running back group that includes returning veterans Kaelon Black (251 yards, two touchdowns last year), Khobie Martin (75 yards) and Solomon Vanhorse (102 kickoff return yards), plus UAB transfer Lee Beebe Jr. (1,628 all-purpose college yards), who has just returned from injury.
Linebacker Rolijah Hardy likes what he’s seen in practice.
“They’re all versatile. I think it’s one of the best backfields in the country.”
Adds Cignetti: “Kaelon Black has had a good camp. Beebe (practiced Monday). It’s good to get him back.”
Vanhorse played for Cignetti at James Madison. While injuries have limited him, he has the potential to make an impact as a returner as well as a running back.
“I thought (Solomon) really ran well in (Saturday’s) scrimmage and pass protected well,” Cignetti says. “He’s an older veteran guy.
“An interesting story on him is when we first went to JMU in '19, he had been a walk-on the previous season. He still was a walk-on. We open with West Virginia. It’s the third series of the game, and he's in there, played well (rushed for 55 yards and a touchdown), started the next six, seven games and then hurt his ankle. He then had some injury problems from that point on, but I thought he ran well on Saturday.”
Martin, a 6-foot, 208-pound redshirt freshman from Fishers High School near Indianapolis, could have a big role this season, Hemby says.
“I’ve seen a lot from him. He’s a guy who is eager to learn; a guy who works every day and tries to put his best foot forward; a guy who tries to learn from his mistakes.
“He has an extreme upside. He’s one of those guys who helps me. Being new here, he went through that process last year. He helps me out in that regard staying centered, mission centered. When he gets his number called, he’ll do what he has to do.”
Beyond that, Hemby says Black’s leadership makes a big impact.
“His leadership in the (running back) room as a whole, his ability to do everything on the field, is inspiring. It makes it hard for you to not put your best foot forward every day because you know that’s his process and how he does things. He does a lot to get himself to the next level and we aspire to be like that. It's cool to be around a guy like that.”
Ellison remains part of the IU program in an offensive quality control role focused on running backs. Hemby calls Ellison’s insight “a blessing.”
“To see somebody so passionate about the game and willing to give back to people who are close in age to him, he's like a big brother. He comes in to work every day ready to teach us new things, ready to help us get techniques down. He’s out there every day.
“If we need him, he's in there for extra hours making sure we get everything done so that we can be at our best. He wants to see us succeed. He’s somebody you love to have in your corner.”