Patriots' Reggie Gilliam details position switch that began his career

FOXBOROUGH, Mass — When Reggie Gilliam was approached by his college coach to make a position change, he knew that it was his only chance to make the team. "The reason why I transitioned to fullback was because I was a walk-on at Toledo, and at the time, I don't know if it's still like in the NCAA, but you can only take 105 guys on your roster to camp," the fullback explained. "So, I was the last fullback or last running back on the roster because I was a walk-on.

" That's when Jason Candle, who was Toledo's head coach at the time, told him that they wouldn't be able to take him to camp unless he was willing to make the switch to a "hybrid fullback, tight end role, or H back (halfback). " His answer: "I was like, "Yeah, whatever it takes. '" "So, of course, I made the transition," he added, joking that since he was teammates with Kareem Hunt, Gilliam "wasn't getting on the field.

" However, he got to serve as Hunt's fullback. And with that, he provided some details on exactly what the transition was like. "And it was more hard mentally than it was physically just because I was used to being the guy that had the ball," Gilliam said.

"But the physical part of it, it's just like playing running back, honestly. It's the same keys, the same reads. It's just your a couple steps ahead.