Ed Orgeron: 'You have to have two good backs' for SEC competition

Tigers Head coach Ed Orgeron is extremely grateful to have two strong RBs on his team this year.

LSU came into this season with RB Derrius Guice set to lead the offense. Guice has put up impressive numbers, but he has also been banged up for part of the year. As a result, his production has been limited at times.

While Guice continued to battle through an injury, the Tigers turned to senior RB Darrel Williams to help carry the load. Williams had not carried the ball more than 64 times in a season coming into this year, but he has carried it over 100 times to give the Tigers another consistent threat out of the backfield.

Orgeron took time to praise both backs during his press conference Monday, and he said teams need two strong RBs to compete in the SEC:

O on Guice and DW combo: "Can't tell you how much Darrel means to our team. Last year, Leonard couldn't play, we had Derrius. This year, Derrius couldn't play, we had Darrel."#LSU

— Ross Dellenger (@RossDellenger) November 20, 2017

Orgeron on Darrel Williams and Derrius Guice combo: "You can't run a running back in this league every down. You have to have two good backs"

— Andrew Lopez (@_Andrew_Lopez) November 20, 2017

Williams has rushed for 670 yards and 8 TDs this season while Guice has produced 1,026 rushing yards and 10 TDs.

The two running back model is one that teams in the SEC look to use effectively. Georgia and Alabama have both had success with multiple strong backs this year. Auburn is another school that deployed two impressive backs before the injury to Kam Pettway forced Kerryon Johnson to shoulder most of the rushing load.

Both Williams and Guice have been vital while helping the Tigers reach eight wins this season with a game against Texas A&M set for this weekend. Saturday’s kickoff is set for 7:30 pm EST on the SEC Network.