PISCATAWAY -- When he decided to leave Miami last January as a graduate transfer, Gus Edwards considered Syracuse and Pittsburgh.

But Miami officials, citing a school policy prohibiting grad transfers from joining opponents on the upcoming schedule, blocked Edwards' ability to join those Atlantic Coast Conference schools.

So Edwards opted for Rutgers, which is about a 45-minute drive from his Staten Island, N.Y., home. And now, three months after graduating Miami with a degree in liberal arts, Edwards has earned his way to the top of Rutgers' depth chart at running back this summer.

"It's definitely great to be back home,'' said Edwards, a 6-1, 235-pound tailback out of Tottenville High School. "My family is going to be able to make every game. Rutgers is home. It was a big reason why I decided to come here.''

As the head coach at Minnesota, Jerry Kill watched David Cobb follow up a 1,200-yard rushing campaign with a 1,600-yard season in 2013 and '14.

But the new Rutgers offensive coordinator can't help but marvel at what he has at his disposal in the 6-1, 235-pound Edwards.

"The big tailback that transferred in,'' Kill said in a Big Ten Network interview last week, "I will tell you I haven't had one like him in a long time.''

Lester Erb, who as Rutgers' running backs coach has a front-row view of Edwards during training camp, echoed that opinion.

"Gus has been a dependable guy,'' Erb said. "He works his tail off. He has no issues. He understands everything that we're doing. Really, he has very, very few mental errors, if any. He's a mature guy. This is a guy who's been through it. He understands what's expected of him. He's just kind of going about it in a professional way, and I've been very pleased with what he's done so far.''

Even Robert Martin, a Rutgers senior who is Edwards' chief competition for the starting tailback job, is impressed.

"He's a bigger back,'' said Martin, a 5-11, 211-pounder, who was Rutgers' leading rusher with 625 yards in an injury-plagued season last fall. "He just brings more physicality to the room. We have a lot of bigger backs, and I think it's going to just wear teams out down the stretch of a game.''

Chris Ash, not normally a bouquet-giving coach, has offered a few ringing endorsements when assessing Edwards' play this summer.

"Right now, through two weeks (of camp), Gus has shown that he can (be successful),'' the Rutgers coach said. "He's a big back, 230 pounds, got great speed, he's got great balance. He's also demonstrated really good ball security. The ball has not been on the ground with Gus. He's willing (to block) in pass protection, and (has) been a great addition.

"He's a real serious dude. Loves the game of football. Works really hard every single day. That's not one day where you have to say, 'Gus, let's get going.' He shows up to work every single day and it's made that (running backs) room better and it's made our offense better. I love having him here.''

Wait until the Big Ten gets a load of @RFootball RB Gus Edwards, a transfer from Miami (Fla.). pic.twitter.com/0CBbzGNxOw — Tom Dienhart (@TomDienhart1) August 8, 2017

Ash said Edwards is "a guy on a mission,'' acknowledging the NFL could be in his future if he has a big season.

"He's come here, has one last year and obviously would like to have a shot at the NFL,'' Ash said, "and he knows he's got to go out and (have a) great year to do that.''

Hearing that statement, Edwards concedes he's on a mission.

"I'm just definitely trying to take advantage of the opportunity I've been given here,'' he said. "Rutgers took a chance on me and I'm just trying to make the best of that and do much as I can to help the team be better. This is my last chance. It's my last year of eligibility. I have a family. I graduated already. So my main focus is football now.''

Still, for as much potential as Edwards brings to Rutgers' backfield this season, there is still a question of why he wasn't more productive throughout his career at Miami.

For Al Golden's Miami teams in 2013 and '14, Edwards rushed for 687 yards on 127 carries over 14 games. After missing the entire 2015 campaign due to a foot injury, Edwards totaled 290 rushing yards on 59 carries in 11 games, serving as the Hurricanes' No. 3 tailback for most of the season under coach Mark Richt.

While his career 977 rushing yards tally is relatively pedestrian, Edwards' career rushing-yards-per-carry average (5.3) is on par with both Martin (5.2) and Josh Hicks (5.2), the Scarlet Knights' top rushing threats since 2014, who are now competing with Edwards for carries this summer.

"We always had a whole bunch of backs in the backfield that were capable of playing that did play,'' Edwards said. "I just felt I didn't get used enough. It was by-committee all the time.''

While there's a chance that Rutgers could employ a similar tailback-by-committee approach this fall, Edwards is confident in what he brings to the table.

"I think I bring leadership,'' he said. "I'm an older guy that's been around the game a lot more than the other guys. Ability-wise, I think I have speed, I have power. I can be anything the coaches need me to do, as far as pass blocking, outside run, inside run, between the tackles. I think I can do all that.

"I want to do everything I can to help my team be better.''

Keith Sargeant may be reached at ksargeant@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @KSargeantNJ. Find NJ.com Rutgers Football on Facebook.