After the sudden passing of his mother, Samajie Grant lived for a time with the family of Matt Bechtel, his coach at Colony High School in Ontario, California. As such, Grant had to wait for Bechtel to complete his post-practice duties — putting equipment away, filing paperwork, etc. — before going home.
Grant didn’t spend that time idly. He would do extra running. He would pull a weighted sled. All after practicing for two-plus hours.
“I’ve done this now for 21 seasons. I have yet to see somebody that has worked harder than him,” said Bechtel, now the coach at South Hills High School in nearby West Covina. “Most kids stay after and throw the ball around. He was doing the stuff nobody wanted to do. He just has a different work ethic than most kids.”
Fast-forward several years. Grant is now a senior at Arizona. With five games left in his college career, six at most, he is taking on a new challenge that requires extra work on and off the field.
Grant is shifting from wide receiver to running back for the desperate, injury-depleted Wildcats. He could start there Saturday against Stanford.
At the very least, he’ll be a significant part of the rotation.
“As a senior, I feel like it’s our job to do whatever we have to do to help our team win games,” Grant said. “Like coach Rod tells the younger players, just because you’re on the scout team right now doesn’t mean you can’t be playing next week.
“As a receiver, I for sure wasn’t expecting to be playing running back. Now I’m ready for it.”
If anyone can get acclimated to running back — re-acclimated, actually — in less than two weeks, it’s Grant.
At Colony he played multiple positions, including quarterback for a brief stretch as a sophomore when injuries struck. As a senior, Grant rushed for 1,495 yards and 24 touchdowns.
Grant played immediately upon arriving at the UA in 2013, mainly as a slot receiver, the ideal position for someone with his size (5-9, 180), athleticism and shiftiness.
“He learned it so quickly,” coach Rich Rodriguez said. “He learned all four receiver positions. He’s been really productive his whole career.”
Grant has 142 career receptions, ninth-most in UA history. He has caught a touchdown pass in three straight games. If he were to play pro ball, he’d be a slot receiver.
“Most likely I’m not going to be a running back if I make it to the next level,” Grant said. “I don’t know how they’re going to manage to put 20 pounds on me.”
So Grant isn’t thinking about his future. He’s thinking about the Wildcats’ present. And if you really think about this 11th-hour career move — necessitated by injuries and other issues at running back — it’s a prime chance for Grant to get more touches.
“He’s too athletic to not have the ball in his hands,” said quarterback Brandon Dawkins, who’s likely to return to the starting lineup after missing Arizona’s last game, against USC. “Any way we can get the ball in his hands is going to help this team offensively.”
Grant doesn’t have unrealistic expectations. He knows he won’t step on the field and immediately become Christian McCaffrey, Stanford’s star running back who accumulated 260 all-purpose yards in last year’s 55-17 Cardinal victory over the UA.
“Five yards a pop,” Grant said. “Get a first down. Keep the chains moving. That’s all I’m really looking for. That’s all my goal is this week.”
Although he has an extensive background at running back from his high school days, and some of it comes naturally, Grant has work to do to relearn the essential subtleties of the position and apply them in Arizona’s system. To that end, he has spent time watching film of Ka’Deem Carey in 2013 and Nick Wilson in ’14.
Grant knows how to make cuts. It’s more a matter of exactly when and where.
“He has natural instincts to run the ball,” UA running backs coach Calvin Magee said. “But he has to be disciplined in his running. So that’s what we’re working on this week.
“It’s not that easy. There’s a lot to it. You have to start by being an athlete. It’s easier for an athlete. But there’s still some particulars like cutting and blocking. You’ve got to do more than run and catch the ball. He’s willing to do it, though.”
Grant knows he’s going to get hit more at running back. He knows ball security — an issue at times for teammate Tyrell Johnson, who also made the switch from receiver to tailback — is critical.
Grant knows he’s going to have to block bigger defenders, although he’s actually looking forward to them coming straight at him. Bechtel said Grant is one of the strongest players he has coached, pound for pound.
“Most kids are really shifty or maybe they’re more of a power runner and run behind their pads,” Bechtel said. “He was a combination of both. He could make you miss or run you over.”
Grant went home during Arizona’s bye last week and visited his former coach. They talked about the old days and Grant’s new opportunity.
“He’s fired up about it,” Bechtel said. “We’re excited to see what happens.”
