There’s a big smile on Raheem Mostert’s face as he and I begin our conversation. It’d be hard not to smile if you were in his shoes — Mostert, an NFL veteran who is playing about four hours away from his hometown of New Smyrna Beach, is coming off of the very best season of his career. Long viewed as one of the league’s premier burners out of the backfield, Mostert and rookie De’Von Achane formed one heck of a 1-2 punch in the backfield for Miami last season, with Mostert earning his first Pro Bowl nod and leading the league with 18 rushing touchdowns.
Considering his path to the NFL, it’s pretty remarkable that Mostert ended up here. A former three-star wide receiver recruit, he spent his collegiate career at Purdue before moving to running back, going undrafted, and spending his first two years in the league bouncing around before landing in San Francisco, where he was a reliable member of the team’s running back rotation. But since joining the Dolphins in 2022, Mostert has blossomed into one of the most productive backs in the league, going for 2,280 total yards and 26 total touchdowns over the last two seasons.
Now, he’s gearing up for a 2024 campaign where the Dolphins are expected to compete in the AFC — they went 11-6 last season, but got shut down by the Kansas City Chiefs in the Wild Card round. Before that happens, though, Mostert is taking some time to represent his alma mater ahead of the 20th anniversary of College Colors Day on Aug. 30, as he was part of an ad with Quinnen Williams of the New York Jets and Holly Rowe of ESPN.
Earlier this month, Uproxx Sports caught up with Mostert to discuss College Colors Day, this season in Miami, his Purdue Mount Rushmore, and more.
Happy College Colors Day, how are you celebrating that?
Obviously, I’m wearing my colors from my university, Purdue University. And, you know, College Colors Day is something that’s very meaningful to me. Since I’ve been in the league, obviously, for nine, I’m going on year 10 now, I’ve been staying in touch with Purdue University, but it’s hard because I’m all the way in San Francisco at the time during my career, or I was in Miami, like I am now. A little bit away from Indiana, but just trying to represent as best as I possibly can, especially in the locker room against guys that went to different universities, and every time there’s, like, some type of matchup or something like that during the college football season, we always heckle each other a little bit, and then talk trash, but you always got to show love and support, and that’s why I’m doing this.
How does a super accomplished high school football player and track athlete from a town known for surfing and shark bites in Florida end up in West Lafayette, Indiana?
So, first and foremost, I took my visit to Purdue. They were one of the first schools that ever offered me, and so I felt like it was natural to go and visit the first college that that offers you, right? So, I took my official visit, fell in love with the campus, fell in love with the culture, fell in love with the coach and the coaching staff and even the players — a majority of the guys were from Florida, so that made it a little bit easier of a decision. But also, I wanted to get a good degree. I felt like going to Purdue University, with a business mindset, I graduated with a business management degree. I felt like that was the most important thing for me, and at the time, being the first person to graduate in my family was definitely an honor of mine to accomplish and achieve. So that’s why I went to Purdue, that’s the reason why I chose Purdue.
You’re a guy who, earlier in your career, bounced around a few different teams, but you kept grinding and got to a point where you’re now considered a top running back in the NFL. How, in your eyes, did Purdue set you up to be someone who keeps your head down and grinds while you were establishing yourself in the league?
When I went to Purdue, I played right away. Being a freshman, I had some good stats, but I wanted to grow each and every year, right? And so, I come to my sophomore year, I actually tear my PCL and I missed six games, and then I come back for our rivalry game against Indiana, and then I also play in the bowl game. So that, in itself, gave me a little bit of that hard-nosed, just stay focused and keep working, and things will pay off attitude. Then, moving forward, my head football coach who I committed to, got fired, and then a new coach arose and took over the program my junior and senior year, so I felt like I still had an uphill battle, even with that coach and his coaching staff. I went from playing a receiver to playing — I had to make that switch my junior year to playing running back, and ultimately, I decided to run track, too, and did all those accomplishments while I was running track at Purdue, as well. So, just being able to go through that basis and going through those trials definitely helped me out in the NFL as well — being cut several times my first two years in my career, it just helped me mold into the person and the man that I am today, and also the player that I am today.
Let’s talk about this season, and obviously a huge year coming up from Miami. What are the vibes like as camp is going on right now?
Vibes are high. Energy is great. We’ve got a game tomorrow, we’re super excited about it, the starters going to be playing a little bit tomorrow, I believe. But, yeah, it’s just an amazing time right now, we left off last year with a bad taste in our mouth, and now we want to resurrect that winning culture, winning atmosphere that we did last year. And now we got more pieces, more guys that are bought in, and we’re just excited to go.
This is your third season in Miami for this stint with the team, and it’s Coach McDaniel’s third year, too. Does anything feel different this offseason in terms of your comfort level or the overall understanding of how coach McDaniel runs things? Or have you noticed it’s just business as usual?
It’s business as usual, honestly. But at the same time, this is the third year, and I feel like guys are more settled into the offense, especially on the offensive side of your ball. I was speaking with Tua and some of the coaching staff that were here prior to when Coach McDaniel got hired, and one big thing that they mentioned was that it feels good knowing that we have the same playbook that we’ve had the past two-plus years. So, that’s really encouraging. And we’re just excited, we’re excited to roll.
This whole last year was you achieving stuff, whether it’s the Pro Bowl, rushing TDs leader, being named a top-100 player in the league for the first time. You normally don’t see out of a guy when they’re in their 30s what has this last year or so been like for you? And what was it that set you up for so much success this past season?
Yeah, last year, it was phenomenal. It was a great thing, great run. I’m blessed and happy to say that I finally made the Pro Bowl — I could have made it several times when I was in San Francisco, but due to injuries, and I felt like sometimes voting can sway to a different direction, right? Whether you’re a good player or not. But I’m just thankful that everything worked out at the time that it did. And, yeah, me being 31 last year, now that I’m 32, that’s just nothing but a number. I’m still out here running faster than guys that are 20-plus years old, and I feel like I could just pretty much roll with anyone. Plus, I still got tread on my tires, right? I didn’t take that many hits and handoffs early on in my career, which helps me today.
You mentioned the thing that always comes up in Miami, which is speed, namely at running back and at wide receiver. How does the speed in the wide receiver room make your lives easier, and how does the speed in the running back room do the same for them?
Yeah, if you look at it, when you’re dealing with receivers that can run sub-4.3s and can truly run and take the top off of defenses, you’re gonna have to double those guys. With the plethora of weapons that we have that are fast, it makes the box a little bit lighter for the running backs, and the run game, and then vice versa. If you’re dealing with guys that go run the ball like what we can do, it makes it easier for receivers to get open. So, it just goes hand-in-hand with each other. And honestly, it’s a lot of fun when you have that dynamic going, especially with so many different weapons on the field.
My last question, bringing it back to College Colors Day, I need to know who is on Raheem Mostert’s Purdue football Mount Rushmore.
Oh, man. Purdue Mount Rushmore. Obviously, it would have to be Drew Brees, and then we’d have to do Bob Griese. I feel like that’s just another legend. In my eyes, I feel like Ryan Kerrigan, he’s definitely a stud and he made his mark when he was there. Leroy Keyes, a former running back, God rest his soul, he passed away a couple years ago — he’s a true legend.
And last but not least, mmm, that’s gonna be a tough one cause you can go … man, Rod Woodson. And that’d be my Mount Rushmore.