Q. How do you feel about your new position as the primary running back? Nervous (smiles). I guess the anticipation is the part that's really nerve-wracking. Because I don't really know if I'll be No. 1, because they can get someone in the draft. It's a competitive league; I'm going to compete, give it 110 percent and see what happens.
Q. You appear to have been working out. Yeah, I've been doing a lot of running because I'm trying to get my wind up. I want to be prepared for whatever comes my way, whether it be 30 carries a game or three. I know I'll be well-prepared and ready to do my duty as a Carolina Panther.
Q. You and Foster were good friends. Was it tough to see him go? I'm going to miss him; mentally, I still feel as if he's still here. It still hasn't completely hit me -- even hearing people talk about it or seeing news reports -- that he's no longer around. I keep thinking, "We start workouts on the 17th; he's going to be there."
It's like something has happened that you don't believe has happened until you see it.
Q. Do you worry that people say you're too small (at 5-foot-9, 217 pounds) to be a starter and get 25 carries a game? It's funny that you mention that because I was reading the newspaper, and I get to the sports section looking for stuff to pick me up, see what the Panthers have done in the draft, see if Memphis kicked some butt (in hoops). And I see this one column that says the team will have to look for a No. 1 running back because I'm pretty much nothing more than a backup. It's cool, though; I like that because it gives me that much more motivation to go out there and prove the critics wrong. I don't have anything to lose, because if I don't do it, (the critics) were right.
Q. Does it seem like you've earned your chance to start? It could appear that way, but if another guy comes in and produces and he's better than me, I'll be the first one to say, "Look, this guy is getting it done." Whatever it takes to win, I'm all about it. To get us to the playoffs, start, come of the bench, be the 12th man, it doesn't matter if we get to the playoffs.
Q. Foster had injury problems, but you seem to be durable (one minor ankle injury in two years), and you were durable in college. It's the luck of the draw. I guess it goes as far as how you take care of yourself, what type of hits you're taking, because you can eliminate a lot of the contact based on how you take them. Not many people taking head-on shots are going to be durable (laughs). Even the great ones, they knew when to get out of bounds, or get down, or take that shot from the side rather than in the mouth. You've got to pick and choose your battles -- wisely.
Q. If the coaches said, "You're getting 25, 28 carries a game," do you feel like you'd be fine? I'll be fine. It's all about a mindset. You get that mindset in practice, the carries you get and how you practice determines your output on Sunday. So if I'm getting two or three carries in practice, that's going to transition into the game. Coach says we're creatures of habit; whatever we do during the course of the week, it carries over to that last day.
Q. How are you currently training? I'm doing long distance running, getting in shape right now, haven't started sprinting work. You see these guys running these 40s (yard dashes) in like 4.2s or 4.3s, but these are same guys that are getting caught on 90-yard runs (laughs). You're the fastest guy in the 40 but the slowest in the 90.
I never really considered Switz a poster who provided valuable info, but i read this far down the list and decided to totally ignore anything he posts in the future.
