Even though he wasn’t offered a scholarship by Ohio State, TC Caffey had his heart set on becoming a Buckeye.
A prolific runner at Hubbard High School, where he rushed for 2,638 yards and 37 touchdowns to earn first-team All-Ohio honors as a senior, Caffey had offers from several smaller Division I programs, including Army, Charlotte and Youngstown State. Offered an opportunity to join the Buckeyes as a preferred walk-on, however, Caffey felt he couldn’t pass it up.
“It was a big dream for me,” Caffey said of playing for Ohio State. “I'm a competitive person. And I felt like this was the most competitive place to be. We got the most talented people in America playing this game here. And really just being able to come out here and compete with them every day, building myself as a man and as a football player.”
Hubbard coach Brian Hoffman said he and his assistant coaches told Caffey he should consider taking one of his scholarship offers, knowing he might have a clearer path to the field at one of those schools. But Hoffman never doubted that Caffey was capable of playing for Ohio State.
“I knew going to Ohio State as a walk-on could be an uphill battle, but I also when I talked to (former OSU running backs coach Tony Alford) when he was getting recruited, told him like, ‘This guy is gonna come in there and play for you. I believe that.’ He's the exception to the rule – his character, his work ethic, his dedication, I really believe he is going to help that football team,” Hoffman recalled.
Going into his third year as a Buckeye, Caffey is starting to prove Hoffman right.
While discussing Ohio State’s running backs after last weekend’s Student Appreciation Day practice, Day made a point of highlighting Caffey alongside the scholarship running backs as someone he expects to contribute to that unit this season.
“The other guy who’s been very, very good in there and I think is going to play for us and get carries for us is TC Caffey,” Day said. “He's done a very good job, he's very disciplined in his approach and he’s a guy that can really bring value for us.”
Caffey already started to show the value he could bring to Ohio State’s offense as a true freshman in 2022. Given the opportunity to play in the fourth quarter of a blowout win over Toledo, Caffey made one of the most spectacular plays of the entire season as he broke several tackles en route to a 49-yard touchdown.
WE SEE YOU TC CAFFEY
— FOX College Football (@CFBONFOX) September 18, 2022
The @OhioStateFB RB breaks off for a HUGE first career TD run pic.twitter.com/xSeUIFdYpQ
He says that’s a moment he’ll never forget.
“It was a real good moment for me, man. It was something that I’ll remember for my life,” Caffey said during an interview session on Wednesday. “It was a big dream of mine to come here and play in the first place, and to score a touchdown in the Shoe is just something that me and my family are gonna remember for a long time.”
Unfortunately for Caffey, his opportunity to build on that moment was halted when he tore his ACL in October. That injury sidelined Caffey for the rest of the 2022 season and most of last offseason, and he didn’t end up playing a single snap in 2023 as he was buried behind the likes of TreVeyon Henderson, Chip Trayanum, Miyan Williams, Dallan Hayden and Evan Pryor on Ohio State’s running back depth chart.
Caffey said it was tough to suffer that setback and that there were moments where he doubted if he’d get another chance to play for the Buckeyes, but he feels great now and ready to play entering his redshirt sophomore season. And the time he spent on the sideline only increased his hunger to earn his way onto the field in 2024.
“It was definitely frustrating at the start. But I think things happen to people for a reason,” Caffey said. “I believe in God, I believe in God's timing. So that really just made me appreciate all the things I have, and all the things that built up to that moment. And then the letdown of that made me really appreciate the game that I play and how hard I work to it.”
“I'm a competitive person. And I felt like this was the most competitive place to be.”– TC Caffey on walking on at Ohio State
That work ethic is why Hoffman was confident Caffey would be able to contribute at Ohio State. He said Caffey had a “first guy in the gym, last guy to leave kind of mentality” at Hubbard, which enabled him to steadily improve over the course of his high school career, more than doubling his production as a senior after rushing for 1,170 yards and 12 touchdowns as a junior.
“When football was over (during the offseason in high school), you could go home and you would see him at the local gym sometimes 8:30, 9:00, he's working out,” Hoffman told Eleven Warriors. “He was committed to it, and it's great to see that happen to guys that work hard.”
Caffey’s work ethic has made an impression on his more highly recruited peers in the running back room.
“TC works very hard. He knows the offense, he's always in the playbook, always in the meetings writing things down,” said Quinshon Judkins. “Very head-down guy. He doesn't really talk that much, but he's very good.”
Hayden described Caffey as “a really good player.”
“Very detailed. Very tough. He's a good ballplayer,” Hayden said.
How much playing time that will actually lead to for Caffey remains uncertain. Henderson and Judkins are set to lead Ohio State’s running back depth chart while Hayden is also pushing to play a bigger role as a redshirt sophomore. James Peoples and Sam Williams-Dixon could be candidates for carries, as well, after enrolling in January as scholarship freshmen.
Caffey is keeping his focus on working hard one practice at a time to show he can be an asset for the Buckeyes as called upon. Specifically, Caffey believes the physicality he showed on that touchdown run against Toledo is something he brings to Ohio State’s running game that adds value.
“We’ve got this saying in the running back room that's ‘Keep stacking days.’ And that's what I've been trying to do,” said Caffey, who’s listed at 5-foot-10 and 215 pounds. “Trying to build something in myself for the team that can contribute and bring a good part to the team.”
If his high school career was any indication, Caffey’s best football is still to come as he continues to improve.
“I've sent him texts of encouragement, letting him know that we're proud of him and keep working hard and good things will happen. And I really do believe that,” Hoffman said. “Especially in his case, because in my opinion, he has all the tangibles to be a really good player for them. And what sets him apart from the rest, in my opinion, is legitimately his work ethic and the way he goes about things.”
