Assistant Head Coach for Offense | Running Back Coach Tony Alford

Absolute honor and privilege to FINALLY meet former great Buckeye, 400 meter world record holder and gold medalist Butch Reynolds. Thank you sir for the words of wisdom and encouragement. #Buckeyes pic.twitter.com/cSw79W8YHn

— Coach Tony Alford (@CoachTonyAlford) May 22, 2022

 

@TreVeyonH4 @evanpryor3 @SaundersCayden @Geescottjr @AnthonyTalton @ToteNation We will see who has the best skill set… I got the smoked ribs on point!! pic.twitter.com/jWuxaF3Z5r

— Coach Tony Alford (@CoachTonyAlford) May 28, 2022

 

Getting close… #BuckeyeEats @evanpryor3 @TreVeyonH4 @SaundersCayden @Geescottjr @AnthonyTalton pic.twitter.com/pXb4byk5TS

— Coach Tony Alford (@CoachTonyAlford) May 28, 2022

 

For Father's Day, a look at Ohio State running backs coach Tony Alford, and the people in his life he's tried to serve, from his sons to his nephews to his players https://t.co/qRznqzALhK

— Doug Lesmerises (@DougLesmerises) June 19, 2022

 

What does Tony Alford want in an Ohio State running back, and why is he trying to kill them in practice?

"(I want a) tough guy. A mentally and physically tough guy that’s not gonna be broken."https://t.co/prBp5YIVVH

— Stephen Means (@Stephen_Means) August 7, 2022

 

Tony Alford keeping relationships, production at forefront of recruiting pitchhttps://t.co/LxlFFzPHOQ

— Lettermen Row (@LettermenRow) August 8, 2022

 

TONY ALFORD

• On struggles on the goalline: "There's not a lot of space. We have not run that quarterback a lot in that situation, so you're always gonna be outnumbered. In the end, we were still able to punch things in."
• On Mitch Rossi: "I don't spend a lot of time with him." Alford says he comes and does a few things with his group every day, but not much.
• Alford says Williams has "been through so much" and "I'm extremely proud of the young man he's become."
• Alford on his initial impressions from talking to Miyan Williams as a recruit: "Who tho hell is this? This guy doesn't talk."
• Alford says he's "thrilled to have" TC Caffey on the Buckeye roster.
• Alford says recruiting Williams made people think "I couldn't recruit," but that he saw something in him early on and now he's a "damn good football player."
• On Williams' recruitment: "Remember, he was committed to Iowa State. Quite frankly I think he was pretty pissed at me. No, he was really pissed at me."
• Alford says he had "the wrong impression" of Williams at first during the recruitment process, and that he's "as respectful a young man as you could get."
• "We have two guys that are capable of being starters here. We have two guys capable of playing championship-level football, I believe. ... I don't care (about how the carries get split up), I want to win games."
• Alford says Ryan Day is "the best" at running meetings and "the guys is amazing." Alford says "I do believe that Ryan Day is one of the all-time top guys I've ever had the pleasure of working with. He does not make you feel like you work for him, you work with him. That empowers you to do your job."
• Alford says TreVeyon Henderson is playing "OK" this season, but "has not played poorly whatsoever." Henderson says the longer home run plays "will come." Alford says he's "really improved" with his blocking.
• Alford says "20 seconds after (Chambers') interception" he thought "this is why you aren't at running back."
• "The thing about Miyan, he's about 3-feet-tall. The lower half of his body is like hitting tree trunks." Alford says Williams has an "uncanny way of speeding up into contact."
• On Williams: "If you sit down and have a conversation with him, he's a tough guy. There's nothing soft about that guy."
• On Henderson: "I'm not gonna allow people to paint a picture that he's not playing well."
• "Just because a guy flashes on the tape doesn't mean he loves the game. ... You have to be able to leave your ego at the door."

 

Always great to have @CoachTonyAlford Running back coach at The Ohio State University come by to recruit our young men.@OhioStateFB @TaftNationFB pic.twitter.com/U4ePsZCNCS

— Tyler Williams (@CoachTy_1) December 14, 2022

 

TONY ALFORD
Ohio State running backs coach Tony Alford talked about the depth of his running back next season with players like TreVeyon Henderson, Miyan Williams, Evan Pryor, Dallan Hayden and Chip Trayanum all providing the Buckeyes will unique skillsets.

• Alford said TreVeyon Henderson has been making tremendous progress in his recovery from a foot injury he had after Ohio State’s regular season ended. “He’s been great. From all indicators for me, he’s been great. … We expect to have him back working out in the summer.”
• Alford said that, as of now, the plan is for Chip Trayanum to remain with the running back room next season, a decision Alford is happy about. “He’s a great player. Chip is a consummate team guy. He wanted to play (this past season), and he felt like he could help us kind of with our situation of depleted bodies. … He helped us out when needed.”
• Alford said he hopes Dallan Hayden builds confidence from his performances as a freshman into next season. “He needs to eliminate the noise around him. … Dallan is will be an excellent football player for us, but he's never been through an offseason. He's never been through a spring. So this is still all new uncharted waters for him.”
• Alford said he would like to see Evan Pryor do a lot of the things Xavier Johnson accomplished this past season as a pass-catcher and runner. “We’ve always felt that he would be an integral part of our offense. … Hopefully, he can be that for us this year.”
• Alford said Johnson is a fantastic leader in Ohio State’s locker room. Even though he will be a wide receiver again in 2023, he would take Johnson at his position in a heartbeat. “He’s selfless. I think our locker room is littered with those kinds of guys. We talk about that Brotherhood. It’s real.”