Keeping Yarns on the field is important for Delaware football team

NEWARK — Marcus Yarns certainly could have taken off.

Indeed, with Delaware ineligible for the NCAA Division I FCS football playoffs in this, Yarns’ last season of eligibility, most people wouldn’t have blamed him if he transferred.

But the talented running back said Newark is where he wants to be.

“This community, and everyone being genuine, and the coaches being great coaches — on and off the field,” said Yarns, “that just kept me grounded and kept me wanting to play for Coach (Ryan) Carty and the University of Delaware.”

As the Blue Hens open preseason camp next week, Carty, of course, is happy that Yarns is still around.

The 5-foot-11, 183-pound Salisbury, Md. native was a first-team pick on the preseason All-Coastal Athletic Association squad this week.

There were times last season when he looked as explosive as anybody in the league.

In Delaware’s first eight games, Yarns scored 16 touchdowns and put up four 100-yard rushing games. He turned a screen pass into a 75-yard scoring play at Towson and sprinted 66 yards for a touchdown at Penn State.

Yarns, though, scored just two TDs in the Hens’ last five contests — in large part because he was limited by a leg injury. He ran for more than 68 yards only once in that stretch.

Delaware was 7-1 in its first eight games but just 2-3 in its last five, in large part because the quality of teams it played down the stretch. Not having Yarns at full strength didn’t help, though..

Clearly, Yarns is one of the players that the Hens need to keep healthy this fall if they’re going to successful.

“Health is always going to be important for all your best players,” said coach Ryan Carty. “You can see it, especially at the FCS level. Depth is always that biggest issue. You can see a difference between the beginning of a season and the end of a season sometimes.

“Sometimes the best games you play and the worst games you play, a lot of times has to do with the one or two people that you might be missing — or might not be 100 percent. Your best players need to make sure they’re always as healthy as possible.”

Of course, keeping players healthy in a contact sport is always a challenge. Carty knows the coaching staff can increase the odds of players staying injury-free by how it uses them — both in games and in practices.

And luck is always going to play a role.

Yarns, too, knows that his off-season work plays a big part in being able to stay on the field at full speed.

“I’m still trying gain weight, get stronger, get bigger, get faster,” he said.

“The best ability is availability,” said Yarns. “If I’m not playing, then I feel like I’m hurting my team as well as myself. That’s something that I’m priding myself on this year — just being able to play the entirety of every game and trying to be the best in every single game that I can be.”

All the Hens can ask is that players like Yarns are available when the game is being decided.

“When the game is on the line, we want to make sure we have the right packages that can get people the ball .... that can utilize their skill-set the best,” said Carty. “The best guys, we’ve got to make sure that we put the ball in their hands. And Marcus is obviously one of the best guys in the country.”

For his career, Yarns has run for an even 1,500 yards — 6.5 per carry — with another 515 receiving yards and 23 total touchdowns. The Parkside High grad was named a preseason All-American by FCS Football Central after earning third-team honors last fall.

When this season is over, Yarns hopes he’s done enough to attract the interest of pro scouts.

“As far as playing at the next level, I would love to,” he said. “That’s always been a dream of mine to go to the NFL.”

Plenty of QBs

Delaware has six quarterbacks on its roster right now, including four who have either started or seen significant playing time.

The group is topped by the two most veteran players in the room, Ryan O’Connor and Zach Marker.

“There is a lot of available talent in the quarterback room right now,” said Carty. “It’s been pretty awesome to see them develop together.

“It’s going to be honestly tough to split the reps and continue to compete, but it’s a good problem to have. ... We want to continue something that’s special and make sure that we continue to grow and challenge each other and create the best product we can at the quarterback position. That’s only going to happen with competition.”