It's not as if Jashaun Corbin was ineffective as a running back in his first five games as a Florida State Seminole.
He just wasn't himself.
Although he had been cleared for contact earlier in the summer, the redshirt sophomore was still just 12 months removed from a devastating hamstring injury that cut short his 2019 season at Texas A&M.
The combination of playing in a brand-new offense and lingering concerns about his hamstring had the former four-star prospect feeling slightly uneasy during the first half of the 2020 season.
"Those first few games, he was definitely ... he wasn't 100 percent comfortable yet," FSU offensive coordinator Kenny Dillingham said. "But you could see him get more comfortable and more comfortable and more comfortable. And he's just an unbelievable kid, and I'm glad we have him."
While Corbin couldn't pinpoint the moment when he started feeling normal again, it might have been before or during the Seminoles' loss at Louisville late last month.
After averaging 4.44 yards per carry in FSU's first five games, Corbin carried the ball 10 times for 61 yards against the Cardinals. He followed that up with more than 5 yards per carry in the Seminoles' games against Pitt and N.C. State.
He now has rushed for more yards in the last three games (30 carries, 169 yards, 5.63 yards per carry) than he did in the first five (36 carries, 160 yards, 4.44 per carry).
"Definitely more confidence," Corbin said Tuesday, when asked about his improved productivity. "I'm starting to trust that I'm healed and fine now. So now I'm playing more relaxed and confident. Things are starting to get back more natural for me."
Corbin's emergence comes at an important time for FSU, as fellow tailbacks La'Damian Webb and Lawrance Toafili have been limited recently. Webb played sparingly in the N.C. State game and Toafili was "unavailable," according to head coach Mike Norvell.
