Football | 9/29/2016 12:03:00 PM

By Duane Cochran for FightingFalcons.com

When the game ends for Terrell Charles he hopes to eventually parlay his criminal justice degree from Fairmont State University into a career as a Federal Air Marshall. His reason is rather simple.

"That's the big-picture goal," Charles said. "I love to help people and I just have always felt like that's the job for me. To help as many people as I can and not be noticed.

"You know I kind of feel like that's the way I am in football. I just want to help us be the best team we can be. I want to play my role, do my part to the best of my abilities and help us be successful. I don't care about credit, individual accolades or being noticed."

Trouble is, however, what Charles is doing for FSU's undefeated football team this fall is hard not to notice. The 5-8, 190-pound junior running back from Elkridge, Md. is currently second in the Mountain East Conference in rushing with 411 yards and four touchdowns on 88 carries. He's averaging 102.8 yards per game and 4.7 yards per attempt.

In Fairmont's first four games Charles has rushed for 100 yards or more three times. He's also the only running back in the MEC to rush for 85 or more yards in each of the first four games. In his first two seasons at FSU, which were both shortened by injuries, he rushed for a combined 548 yards and four TDs on 147 attempts.

Talk to Charles about his impressive start this fall and the youngster is refreshingly unaware of his numbers or what he's accomplished so far.

"I really don't look or care about those things," he said. "I just know I'm fulfilling a role on our team and helping us achieve our ultimate goal which is to win each week.

"My mom (Kashonna Holland) has always told me that no matter what happens in what I'm doing, be it in football or life, to not get big-headed. She's taught me to stay humble and to keep working hard. I have a tattoo on my arm to remind me of that."

Tattooed on Charles' left bicep is Proverbs 11-2 from the Holy Bible which states "When pride comes, then comes disgrace, but with humility comes wisdom."

"I really believe in that and try to live by those words," Charles said. "I feel blessed to be in the position that I am here. I'm just trying to take advantage of my opportunity and do my job for our team."

Ironically the individual Charles is battling for the rushing lead in the MEC is someone he knows very well – West Virginia Wesleyan senior running back Michael Anderson, who leads the conference with 633 yards and four touchdowns on 107 carries. The pair were high school teammates at Howard High School in Maryland and often workout together during the summer months.

"Michael is a great running back I'm not going to lie," Charles said. "He was an animal in high school, so I'm not surprised he's had such a great college career so far. He had his first 1,000-yard season in college last year and I'm proud of him for that. He and I train together a lot at home. We have a good relationship. We know each others' families and I just have a lot of respect for him as a person and a player."

Charles' three 100-yard-plus rushing performances this season are the first for an FSU back since Daniel Monroe compiled four 100-yard-plus rushing performances during the 2011 season. He's also on track to become the Falcons' first 1,000-yard rusher since Doug Brazill ran for 1,137 yards way back in 2007.

Senior offensive tackle Rodney Carroll says he's not surprised by Charles' solid start to the 2016 season and says his unit takes a lot of pride in a running back being able to rush for 100 yards in a game.

"TC and our 'O' line have a good connection with one another," Carroll said. "We hang out together off of the field and have a good rapport with one another. As a back he does a good job of being patient and reading blocks. He knows if we run to my side that I've got him and I'm going to try my best to get him a hole and he's done a good job of finding those holes and running through them.

"He's had a good start for us. As an offensive line you know we don't get a lot of publicity unless it's for something we're doing wrong so anytime any of our backs can gain 100 yards in a game it gives us, as a unit, a lot of pride. That's our goal every week."

Fourth-year FSU head coach Jason Woodman, who played a major role in recruiting Charles, says seeing his junior running back mature as a player since first arriving in Fairmont has been a pleasure.

"He has come a long way in three years," Woodman said. "I think it was like week five last year when a light bulb went off in his head and he just became a different runner for us. He was hitting holes and making people miss. I think was playing his best football when he got injured last year and missed the last three games.

"This year he just picked up where he left off and has even improved some more. Something else that doesn't show up in his stats is that's he's really developed into a good leader for us. His maturity and attitude are great. He's an outstanding young man both off and on the field. He's the type of guy who will do anything we ask of him. I'm really proud of him."

Charles, who started since first arriving in Fairmont, admits early in his career it was a big adjustment for him making the jump from high school football to college.

"There's no doubt my freshman year that I really wasn't prepared for the speed of the game and how the game is played at this level," Charles said. "I was tentative in my running and I really wasn't good at being patient and letting things develop.

"This summer I really worked on trying to be more patient, reading blocks better and then exploding through the hole when I saw it. It also helps that, like Rodney said, I've got a good relationship with my line. Those guys do a great job and don't get the credit they deserve. I couldn't do what I do on this team if it wasn't for them. I have a lot of trust in them.

"Another thing is when you first come to college as a back a lot of guys, myself included, think you can juke people and put moves on people and at the end of the day that's not accomplishing anything. You're not going to fake out a lot of guys on defense at this level. You've got to run north and south. My high school coach always preached that and now, more than ever, I understand that. I just try to get north and south as fast as I can and get positive yards."

This Saturday Charles and his FSU teammates will host Urbana University at 2 p.m. for homecoming at Duvall-Rosier Field with a chance to improve to 5-0 on the season. The Falcons are off to their best start since 1981 and are one of only 21 unbeaten teams remaining in NCAA Division II. It's a far cry from the program of two years ago that finished 3-7 when Charles was a freshman.

"The rough season we endured here when I was a freshmen really helped all of us on this year's team who were here then find out where we didn't want to be as a program," Charles said. "We wanted to change the program and I believe we're doing that. We talk about it a lot, but this team is really a family for us. We're close and we play hard for each other. Things have changed, but by no means are we satisfied with where we are. We all know there's plenty of room for improvement.

"After we came back and won our first game this year I told the guys 'This is just one game. We haven't accomplished anything except to win one game.' It's been the same thing every week. We have high expectations for ourselves and this program, but it's up to us to live up to those each and every week. I think all of us when we leave here want to be able to look back and say 'We did something special there. We built something that we're proud of.' That's the ultimate goal – to be the absolute best team we can be."

There's little doubt this fall that Terrell Charles is doing his part to help the Falcons live up to that.