BOONE – Slotted during the month of March are the bulk of spring practices and spring games across college football. It is during this time that coaches are attempting to find replacements for many starters and get a gauge for where their team stands.

Of course, some players are more difficult to replace than others and for some fortunate programs, the next man up is already in place. For new App State Head Coach Eliah Drinkwitz, one of those men is Camerun Peoples.

With Jalin Moore off to the NFL, the Mountaineers look for another next man up opportunity with a loaded room. While we’ll most likely see a committee approach with Darrynton Evans and Malik Williams already in place, Peoples is someone to watch. He was held in high regard by the previous coaching staff and as a redshirt freshman this fall it could be his time to shine.

Without exhausting his freshman year of eligibility, Peoples provided a taste of what’s to come in 2019.

“It was a great opportunity,” he recently said. “You’re sitting there learning from running backs like Jalin and Darrynton and absorbing, and then finally just getting my chance to get my feet wet…I was ready for the opportunity and it was a great experience.”

In three appearances, the tailback collected 164 rushing yards on 17 attempts with two scores, good enough for a per carry average of 9.6 yards. The exclamation point was finding the end zone on a 63-yard run in App’s New Orleans Bowl victory over Middle Tennessee State.

The secret to his approach? PRIDE.

“Personal responsibility in daily excellence,” he said. “So, we keep that mentality, we go out there (and) attack every practice and every rep we do. Practice as hard as we can every single time we step on the field.”

Peoples believes the Mountaineer running game will be strong once again and the group has high aspirations for next season.

“No turnovers,” he said. “No turnovers, yards after contact because you always want to get those extra yards, and a thousand yards from somebody in the room.”

Built like a workhorse, the 202-pound Peoples should get plenty of touches even in a crowded backfield in 2019 and looks forward to the opportunity to showcase his talents.

“The next four years are going to be amazing,” he said. “I’m ready to show the world what I’ve got and ready to help my team win, go out there and put on a show for my team and my fans.”