PISCATAWAY – So much of the talk in the leadup to the start of Rutgers football’s season has been about how stud running back Kyle Monangai can build off his thousand-yard rushing season, one in which he led the Big Ten in a breakout campaign.

But the running back behind him on the depth chart will have a chance to make some noise, too.

Especially considering he’s feeling good after an injury marred his first two seasons.

“This is the best I’ve felt,” Sam Brown said following the Scarlet Knights’ practice on Monday. “I would say I’m fully back to myself now, 100 percent. It was tough coming back from the injury. But I would say the injury’s fully behind me now. I’m looking forward to this season and this first game coming up.”

That first game will be against Howard on Thursday (6 p.m., Big Ten Network) at SHI Stadium, the beginning of a highly anticipated Rutgers season.

For the 6-foot-1, 222-pound Brown, it’s a chance to continue the momentum that he built after a solid showing in the Pinstripe Bowl and then throughout spring practices.

Coach Greg Schiano said Monday that Brown did get “bumped up” during training camp – something that several of Brown’s teammates also experienced – and “he’s not all the way back by any means.”

“But my expectation is he’s really looked good both before he was bumped and since he’s been back,” Schiano said. “We have some depth in the running back room and we need to make sure we utilize that.”

Sam Brown's journey with Rutgers football so far

It’s been a rollercoaster journey for Brown, entering his third season in a Rutgers uniform.

Brown, a graduate of La Salle College High School in Philadelphia, showed just how formidable he can be back in 2022 as a true freshman when he ran for 101 yards against Indiana. But in that same game he suffered a foot injury that cost him the rest of that season, as well as offseason training and limited him in spring practices last year.

Last season Brown ran for 216 yards on 63 carries with two touchdowns. He recorded a season-high 38 yards on 10 rushes in the Pinstripe Bowl win over Miami.

“Going into the preparation for Miami, we had a lot of practices and game prep,” Brown said. “I wasn’t fully 100 percent yet but I was starting to get to that point and I was starting to feel better and get more comfortable, especially within the offense.”

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That game in a way served as a launching pad for Brown heading into the offseason – even if things got interrupted by his training camp injury.

Sam Brown's preparation has paid off entering Year 3

One thing that has never faltered is Brown’s preparation. Even going back to his freshman season, Brown earned plaudits for his studiousness and preparation.

That’s helped make him even more confident entering Year 3.

“Definitely with my knowledge of defenses and what they’re doing, I feel like when you come in as a freshman, you don’t know a ton,” Brown said. “You’re kind of just out there – you know the scheme of the offense and things like that, but you’re kind of just playing. Now I’m far beyond that point. I would say the preparation I’ve been putting in has helped me get to the point where I am now.”

Rutgers’ running back room, as Schiano said, does have depth.

Beyond Monangai and Brown at the top, the Scarlet Knights also brought in Antwan Raymond and Gabe Winowich in the offseason to join a group that included Ja’shon Benjamin and Edd Guerrier.

“Kyle works really hard,” Brown said. “By what we both do in practice, I would say we feed off of each other. We’re both competitors. He sees me going hard, he’s going to go hard. If I see him going hard, I’m going to go hard. But I feel like it’s like that within our whole room, with Antwan, Benjie, Gabe, Edd, Jordan Kinsler, Donovan Delaney. All of those guys, we all feed off of each other and we all work hard.”

If Brown is able to stay healthy, he’ll have a considerable chance to make an impact on the offense.

“I’m really looking forward to it,” Brown said. “But I just know I have to stay in the moment, take it day by day and when the time comes, the time will come.”

This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Rutgers football: Sam Brown healthy, confident entering Year 3