DeKALB | To pose the biggest question NIU’s football team must answer before next season would only be asking the obvious.

So, rather than worry about who will fill the black hole left by the nation’s leading rusher in Garrett Wolfe, Coach Joe Novak and his staff are taking action this spring.

“All our running backs are capable of catching the ball,” Novak said. “But Garrett was a durable guy, and I’m not sure Montell [Clanton] can do that.”

Clanton rushed for 93 yards in a 31-13 win against Buffalo last fall.

But afterwards Clanton was told his left knee would require season-ending surgery.

The 5-foot-9 junior said his recovery is going fine, and it’s just a matter of getting back into the swing of things.

“I’m not quite 100 percent,” Clanton said. “I’m almost there, but I’m doing all the drills.”

Despite Clanton’s personal analysis, Novak said the Rockford native is a bit rusty.

And though Novak has tried to limit Clanton’s activity, the head coach stated Clanton’s more than capable of filling the void left by Wolfe.

First year running backs coach Chris Beatty said Clanton’s limited game experience is evident in practice, something other candidates have little of.

“Right now we’re focusing on our guys being decisive with their cuts, being more capable of pass protecting and getting into passing routes,” Beatty said.

One name fans may have forgot about is Cas Prime. The senior running back missed two of the last three season’s due to injury, and is missing this spring due to injury as well.

Other names Novak mentioned that are in the mix to replace Wolfe are sophomore Justin Anderson and freshman Ricky Crider.

Anderson and Novak admitted Anderson has had a hard time hanging onto the ball.

And as for Crider, Novak said he’s not always impressive in drills, but come game time, Crider will be ready to go.

However, many Huskie fans may have a big question about another name Novak dropped. That name is David Bryant.

After rushing for 1,012 yards and 19 touchdowns on 90 attempts his senior year of high school, the sophomore was moved to the defensive side of the ball at NIU.

Novak had the same vision for Bryant as he had for departed safety Dustin Utschig, a former high school running back turned safety.

However, Novak said Bryant had not taken to the defensive side of the ball like his staff had hoped, and believed the Huskies were in need of more depth at running back.

“In the back of my mind I just kept thinking back to high school tape of him, and I became more excited about his ability and how fast he was,” Novak said.

But Novak also noted the inexperience of the offensive line next year will have a great deal to do with NIU’s rushing success.

And the extension of the offensive line is not fairing any better. Each of NIU’s returning tight ends, Brandon Davis and David Koronkiewicz, are not participating in spring workouts due to injury.

However, Novak believes the reps received this spring by back-up tight ends Reed Cunningham, Vernon Sims and Brandon Beal will pay dividends in the fall.

Over the past 15 years NIU has built a tradition at running back. There was LeShon Johnson, Thomas Hammock, Michael Turner and Garrett Wolfe.

Who wants next?