Saturday’s 35-7 win over Iowa State was arguably sophomore Quentin Castille’s most complete game at running back, as Castile gained 70 yards on 11 carries.



Castille also caught a pass out of five wide receiver formation, and was in the game on an a option play, although quarterback Joe Ganz kept the ball and was stoned for no gain.



Some pundits – this one included – have questioned Castille’s role in the offense, given his inconsistent blocking and running and his fumbling problems. Saturday was a solid retort to those criticisms that he’s little more than a short-yardage back.



“I tried to show it a little bit,” Castille said. “I can tell Coach (Tim) Beck and Coach (Shawn) Watson are getting more involved in not just me but the whole offense and letting us play in space.”



Beck said Castille, along with the rest of the running backs, are beginning to adjust to seeing the holes from the shotgun on zone read plays.



“He’s getting more patient as a runner,” Beck said. “Patience is something that’s really almost an oxymoron when you talk about running backs, but the good ones have patience…you’ve always got to keep defenses off balance. You can’t always put Marlon in there. Teams are starting to know that’s going to be the case.



“You don’t want to take those plays out of your playbook because teams are defending a player. And Marlon’s not going to be here forever.”


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