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It’s not a stretch to say that Saturday’s showdown in Tuscaloosa may come down to which running game has the most success.
LSU and Alabama boast two backs that are in the running for the Heisman this season in Leonard Fournette and Derrick Henry. However, freshman Derrius Guice has flashed potential for the Tigers this season, highlighted by his 161 yards and a touchdown against South Carolina in Week 6.
Meanwhile, senior Kenyan Drake has always had potential but never quite lived up to it in his time with the Tide. Still, he’s dangerous with the ball in his hands whether it’s in the backfield or out of the backfield, and he proved that against Wisconsin in the season-opener and other times in his career.
Our staff debates which duo will get the job done this Saturday.
WHICH RB TANDEM WILL SHINE THE BRIGHTEST IN TUSCALOOSA?
Christopher Smith (@csmithSDS): Henry/Drake
I don’t think either tandem will enjoy its “brightest” moment Saturday. Alabama is ranked No. 3 and LSU is ranked No. 6 nationally in rushing defense. If this is a back-and-forth game, I expect it to be difficult to delineate the performances of these tandems. But if one team holds a second-half lead for a substantial amount of time, I expect that offense to lean on its star running back. I picked Alabama to win this game by a touchdown, so I think that’ll be Derrick Henry and the Crimson Tide.
Chris Wright (@filmroomeditor): Henry/Drake
Everybody is making a big deal about Alabama only allowing 11 100-yard rushers under Nick Saban. That’s true, but two have come in the past nine games, and Fournette has a similar style to Ezekiel Elliott, who went off for 230 in last season’s national semifinal. The SEC hasn’t seen anybody like Fournette — the size, skill, speed trifecta — since Bo and Herschel. Fournette will get his carries, which almost always means he’ll get his yards.
Christian Malone (@Christian_SDS): Fournette/Guice
This is a tough call. Leonard Fournette and Derrick Henry are both special backs, and Kenyan Drake and Derrius Guice are pretty good, too. LSU averages 309.1 yards rushing per game, and its defense only gives up 93.7 yards rushing per game. Alabama averages 188.5 yards rushing per game, and only allows 78.5. It’s hard to run against these two defenses, and it’s hard to stop these backs when they run the ball.
Ultimately, the deciding factors will be whose offensive line does a better job of opening up holes for the backs and which team’s offensive game plan leads to more yards. I believe LSU offensive coordinator Cam Cameron’s offensive game plan is going to lead to more yards for Fournette and Guice than Henry and Drake will have in Alabama offensive coordinator Lane Kiffin’s scheme. So I’ll pick LSU’s backs. But I wouldn’t be surprised if Fournette and Henry both have big days.
Tom Brew (@tombrewsports): Fournette/Guice
The key to victory for LSU is to use Leonard Fournette successfully early and often to build a lead and then use he and Guise at the end to run out the clock. In between, some big plays off of play-action might catch Alabama off guard. I’m leaning toward Fournette and Guise winning this showdown because I’m expecting some early Alabama turnovers and then a pressing Jake Coker making more late. Fournette goes for about 160 and LSU wins 31-24.
Born and raised in Gainesville, Talal joined SDS in 2015 after spending 2 years in Bristol as an ESPN researcher. Previously, Talal worked at The Gainesville Sun.
