USC RBs coach Mike Jinks discusses plans for managing a loaded depth chart

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USC running backs coach Mike Jinks might have the hardest job on the coaching staff this year in one regard, as it will up to him to divvy up playing time for one of the deepest position groups on the team.

Redshirt senior Vavae Malepeai won the starting job a year ago and still finished as the Trojans' leading rusher with 503 yards despite missing five games following mid-season knee surgery.

Stephen Carr (396 rushing yards, 143 receiving yards and 6 totals TDs) is entering his senior season as well, redshirt sophomore Markese Stepp (307 yards, team-high 6.4 yards per carry) was emerging last fall before undergoing season-ending ankle surgery, and sophomore Kenan Christon (373 rushing yards, 126 receiving yards and 5 total TDs) might be the fastest player on the roster.

Fans were already grumbling last season when Stepp was playing a limited role behind Malepeai and Carr, and that was before a domino of injuries opened the door for Christon to establish himself as well.

If all four are healthy -- and if there is a football season -- sorting out roles for those four distinctly different talents will be one of the predominant storylines on the offensive side of the ball.

But, as Jinks noted, it's a better dilemma than having almost no healthy running backs, as was the case down the stretch last season when Malepeai, Carr and Stepp were all sidelined concurrently.

"Going back to last year and the way that season ended, it's an unbelievable blessing to have all those guys healthy," Jinks said while joining the Trojan Talk podcast this week. "The thing that we want to do is we want to continue to grow that culture that was created last year. We had a great running back room, those guys all pushed one another, they want to see one another be successful. And really what I tried to do throughout the spring and visiting with them in the summer is 'be the guy' -- challenge them to be the one, be the alpha and take control of that room. So I'm looking forward to seeing those guys come back and compete."

There are some unknown variables still.

Obviously, it's unclear what the timeline for the preseason will be at this point after the Pac-12 announced Friday it was cancelling all non-conference games and delaying the start of mandatory team activities.

And if and when there is a preseason, Jinks hasn't been able to be around the guys since the lone spring practice back on March 12. He said he wants to see how Malepeai's knee is holding up and where Stepp is in his recovery from left ankle surgery.

Stepp told TrojanSports.com last month that he was still pushing through the final 10 percent of that recovery process and that he wouldn't rush his return until his ankle felt all the way back.

But at some point, presumably, Jinks is going to have some very hard decisions to make.

He reiterated his preference to have a couple three-down backs emerge to limit the need for rotating within series, and he also acknowledged that running backs benefit from having more touches so they can build a rhythm.