The word versatility describes having many different skills or qualities; it also allows you to adapt too many different situations or in athletics, positions. People who possess a strong work ethic embody certain principles that guide their behavior, leading them to produce high-quality performance consistently and the output motivates them to stay on track.

Since early on in his life and football career, South Alabama senior running back Tra Minter has used a strong work ethic to make himself one of the most versatile athletes on the field. As he concludes his collegiate career in the regular-season finale against Arkansas State scheduled to kick off at 4 p.m. at Ladd-Peebles Stadium, Minter will end his time as a Jaguar among the program leaders in a number of different categories.

Prior to beginning his collegiate career in Garden City, Kan., Minter was a two-time all-state player at Schley County High where he played not only on offense, but on defense and both special teams units returning punts and kickoffs. During his final prep season, Minter broke several school records and led all classifications in Georgia in rushing with 2,546 yards, adding 106 tackles as a linebacker where he earned first-team all-state honors at the position as well.

"I never came off the field in high school," Minter said. "We were a Single A school, so we weren't big and I had to play both sides of the ball. When I got to college, it wasn't something new to me to do that."

Minter's hometown of Ellaville, Ga., is a small rural community with a population of around 1,900 people, so people have to put in the work for everything they want to get out of life and that work ethic and attitude was instilled in early on in his life by his parents.

"Everybody knows everybody and someone is kin to somebody," Minter said of his hometown. "If you do something wrong, everybody in town is going to know about it because it's so small. I was very humble growing up and I wanted everybody to look at me as a role model. My mom and dad raised me to be a very humble young man."

Jaguar head coach Steve Campbell and running backs coach Larry Warner also believe his humble background and the job his parents did instilling those values played a big role in the development of his mentality not only in the game of football, but in life.

"Tra is a very tough and unselfish person," Campbell said. "He's not worried about how many touches he gets; he just wants the team to do well. You can tell that was the way he was raised. He's what you want as a coach on and off the field."

"I believe that it comes from his family," Warner noted. "He comes from a rural area in Georgia and all he knows is work. It comes from his family just trying to make it. He knows that he has to work extremely hard to try to be successful."

Minter's believes his strong work ethic has helped him overcome what some may see as possible deficiencies.

"I'm a very hard worker; I put in the work even when no one's watching," Minter said. "I think my hard work overrides my natural skills. When I'm in the weight room, I push myself to the max. I feel that if I miss a rep, I might miss one step in getting close to my future."

His hard work hasn't gone unnoticed by the coaches or younger players at his position as he is looked upon as a leader and a model of what they want to get too.

"He's done a great job of leading our running backs; he's set the tone for players like Carlos Davis and Jared Wilson, and our other freshmen," Campbell said. "He's a very versatile football player that can do a lot of different things. You want that in a running back; you want a guy that can run well in short-yardage situations, he can catch the ball out of the backfield and he can pick up a blitz. He's a guy who can stay in the game all the time. A lot of running backs that also return kicks and punts aren't the type of players that you want in there all the time, but Tra is an every-down back, and that's due to his work ethic and his toughness."

Warner concurs with Campbell. "In the weight room, Tra works extremely hard. When he comes out to the practice field ready to work every day; he practices like he plays. Since our staff has been here, we haven't had a bad day from Tra on the field. He just works when he's out here. He catches punts, even when our punters are just kicking the ball during our 'Pride' session, he's out there. We ask him to do a lot out here, and he comes to work every day with a smile on his face and does anything that we ask him to do. He just does it and gives us everything he's got."

Redshirt freshmen running backs Carlos Davis and Jared Wilson have also taken notice.

"Tra plays every snap like it's his last whether that's in practice or in a game," Davis said. "He sets high goals and his determination is strong."

"He knows just how much he wants to be out here and he puts his all out here on the field," Wilson said. "After practice, he's soaking wet with sweat and he goes into the weight room and works out in order to get better. I want to take up the same work ethic next season.

"With him graduating, there will be a big area for us as a group to fill in. We have to bring more to the table because he has set such a high standard for our position."

As Warner noted, the work ethic of Minter isn't just seen on the field, but extends to other areas as well, including the weight room.

"He has that 'It' factor," Director of Strength and Conditioning Lance Ancar said. "When you're talking about greats that I've been associated with in the past, they all have that 'It'. He will put in the extra work, come in the weight room and work on extra things that he needs to work on. He doesn't ever get too tired. Whatever you put on the bar, he's going to lift. He's not the type of guy that's going to ask a bunch of questions or make excuses; he's just going to do it. That's something I respect about him and it's something all of the great players I've been around or seen in the past have had.

"Tra has also matured a lot. He doesn't get in trouble off the field. He's that kind of all-around guy that you want on your team and at the next level. All of those things will help him reach his goal."

Minter arrived at South three years ago after posting stellar numbers at Garden City Community College where he earned second-team All-America honors for the Broncobusters and ranking second in the country in rushing yards, sixth in yards per game and 11th in rushing touchdowns that season. Minter also led GCCC to an undefeated season and the 2016 National Junior College Athletic Association national championship and recorded 1,293 all-purpose yards in his one season on the field.

"The competition level there helped me, because it made me come out of my shell. It forced me to compete to the level I needed to compete at in order to get on the field," Minter said about how that time at Garden City helped him. "There were 30 more guys at my position that wanted the ball also. I had to outwork them. I knew that I really had to compete. It's basically like a Division I conference out there with all of the talented players that they have."

That first season in Mobile, Minter was mainly used as a reserve back behind Xavier Johnson, who until Minter had held the career all-purpose mark with 4,094 yards that he accumulated over four-plus seasons. It wasn't until the next season and the first with a new staff that Minter really became the Jaguars' Mr. Everything. He was voted second-team all-Sun Belt Conference both as a return specialist and all-purpose back, and was a second-team all-league selection as a returner by Phil Steele Publications in 2018. He paced the squad with 1,803 all-purpose yards that season and led the league and was eighth nationally with 150.25 all-purpose yards per game.

His opportunity to excel in multiple areas on the field for the Jags during his second season actually arose out of necessity.

"To be honest, Tra was the only healthy back when our staff first got here," Campbell said. "Deonta Moore had a broken foot and had to have surgery. We had another back out as well and he was kind of thrust into the position. There was a lot put on his plate and he took it and ran with it."

After such a strong junior campaign, expectations for Minter were high as he was named second-team preseason All-America as an all-purpose back by The Sporting News, and was also named to the preseason watch lists for both the Doak Walker and Paul Hornung Awards, the latter given annually to the most versatile player in major college football.

So far Minter hasn't disappointed as he enters the finale having rushed for 951 yards and four scores on 172 carries while catching 29 passes for 195 yards.  The Jaguars' primary return specialist, he has also run back 27 kickoffs for 567 yards giving the running back 1,731 all-purpose yards on the year.  He currently stands second on the school's season record list for all-purpose yards and is second in rushing, just 49 yards shy of becoming the program's first 1,000-yard rusher.

Not only does Minter lead the Sun Belt Conference in all-purpose yards per game (157.4) — ranking fifth nationally in the category — but he is sixth in the league in rushing yards per contest and stands eighth with an average of 21.0 yards per kick return.

In nearly three full seasons at South, Minter has accumulated 2,093 yards rushing, 1,365 yards on kickoff returns and 4,210 all-purpose yards to rank among the top three in all three statistics in USA's career record book.

Playing in his home state for the final time in front of his mother, father and sister and just 105 miles from his hometown, Minter became the program's career all-purpose yards leader recording 127 all-purpose yards against Georgia State on his birthday.

While the all-time rushing record may seem out of reach with one game remaining, all Minter has to do is reflect on last season's finale as he became the first player in program history to eclipse the 200-yard mark rushing for 203 yards on 24 carries against Coastal Carolina.

To him, nothing is impossible, but the legacy that Minter wants to leave isn't a statistical one.

"I want fans to remember that Tra was a great guy and that they got all they could out of him," Minter said. "I want them to think back and say 'He's the type of guy that I want on my team or around my family'."

One other 'position' that Minter has taken on the team is one of helping establish a new culture for the program. With all that Minter has done on the field, the 5-foor-9 senior has proven to be the perfect person for the job.

"Whenever your best players are your hardest workers, you've got a chance to establish a culture," Campbell said. "Tra is a great player and one of our hardest, if not the hardest worker on our team who shows up every day."

"With our core values that Coach Campbell brought, the one that we as a program talk about the most is being unselfish," Ancar added. "That's something that Tra exudes. He's unselfish when he's not in the game as he's cheering on those younger guys. He bought into Coach Campbell and the staff right away, and I think the reason why he did was because he's the type of player that we talk about having in our program. We want guys who love football and do the little things. Tra is the type of guy that is going to do whatever it takes to be a team-first guy. Whatever he gets in life, he deserves because he puts the team above himself."

Minter also sees the value of what he has done in that area.

"They are trying to establish a culture and build a program that has a certain mindset," Minter said. "This program is going in the right direction. It might not look great right now, but we are so close to becoming a winning program. Once we get that spark, things are going to start rolling. It's big for a team to have a player with my mindset to set the example for the younger guys coming up. We have a lot of talented freshman and they just need someone to show them how to be great. I feel I can be that role model for them because every day at practice, I bust my tail, I run hard every day and I do what the coaches tell me. All eyes are on me and they see how I work."

Recently, Minter accepted an invitation to compete in the NFLPA Collegiate Bowl on Saturday, Jan. 18, 2020, at the Rose Bowl which will kick off at 6 p.m. (CST) on the NFL Network.  With the invitation, Minter became the first Jag to be invited to play in the postseason all-star game since Brandon Bridge participated in 2015.

To be able to make it at the next level, you have to have that work ethic and drive along with many different skills to increase your marketability. With all of the skills that Minter has shown during his career, any team that gives him a chance will be getting their all from him.

"Since I was seven, I knew this game was destined for me," Minter said. "I'm short and stocky, but I just feel in my heart that this game is meant for me. As soon as I step into that arena, I'm at home."

For more information about South Alabama athletics, check back with www.usajaguars.com, and follow the Jaguars at www.twitter.com/WeAreSouth_JAGS. Season tickets for all Jaguar athletic events can be purchased by calling (251) 461-1USA (1872).

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