Mike Weber made the first weekly media appearance of his Ohio State career Monday afternoon at the Woody Hayes Athletic Center.
Surrounded by a throng of reporters, Weber sat in a chair and fielded questions about his running style, former Buckeyes running backs Carlos Hyde and Ezekiel Elliott and all other kinds of topics.
Then, he was asked if he had a favorite running back he liked to watch growing up.
For Weber, a Detroit native, the only possible answer could be Barry Sanders, right?
“Walter Payton,” he said.
Wait, what?
“My dad played running back also so he used to show me his highlights and also Barry Sanders,” Weber continued. “I was more into them type of running backs than the current running backs.”
OK, good. There’s the Sanders mention. Everything is back to normal. Order has been restored.
However, what Weber said next perhaps explains why he didn’t mention Sanders at first. It might just be because he has had a relationship with the former Detroit Lions star and NFL Hall of Famer for quite some time now. There’s a chance he doesn’t view Sanders like the rest of the world does.
The two remain close, Weber said, even to this day.
“ I’m actually really cool with Barry Sanders,” he said. “I’ve played golf with him a couple times.”
“When I was little I played in a little All-American game and I met him. He had spoke to us. I know a lot of people who know him so I met him one time and I talk to him often, almost after every game. He’s a really good guy.”
Weber was named Big Ten Freshman of the Week on Monday after he ran for a career-high 144 yards and a touchdown in Ohio State’s 58-0 win over Rutgers on Saturday. It was just the latest chapter in what has been an impressive start to his collegiate career.
The redshirt freshman currently leads the Big Ten and is 11th in the country in rushing at 123.8 yards per game. Through four games, Weber has 495 yards and a pair of touchdowns on just 68 carries. He is averaging an eye-popping 7.3 yards per rush.
“He’s a banger,” Ohio State head coach Urban Meyer said of Weber. “He’s a thumper and a plus-yardage guy most of the time.”
A little bit different than that Sanders guy.
And a little bit different than the running backs who starred at Ohio State the last few years before him, too. Meyer said he thought Weber was more like Hyde than Elliott on Monday, but he has qualities of both.
When Weber himself was asked about it, he really didn’t have an answer.
“That’s kind of a hard question,” he said. “I just go out there and play my hardest. I want to be myself at the end of the day. They are great running backs, but I’ve got a lot of work to do.”
Even though Weber wasn’t on the team when Hyde was, he said the two have formed a relationship through their Ohio State bond. Weber also had the fortune of learning for a year behind Elliott.
And, as he revealed Monday, Weber also has a friendship with one of the greatest running backs in NFL history.
He’s hoping all of that knowledge rubs off on him and it helps Ohio State.
“I came really far from the Bowling Green game, most definitely,” Weber said. “I’m feeling really comfortable each game and I learn something different after each game. I feel like all the things that I’m learning, I just take it all in and keep getting better each week.”
