T.J. Yeldon, Derrick Henry, Todd Gurley, Nick Marshall
Jan 6, 2014; Pasadena, CA, USA; Auburn Tigers quarterback Nick Marshall (14) runs against the Florida State Seminoles during the second half of the 2014 BCS National Championship game at the Rose Bowl. Mandatory Credit: Richard Mackson-USA TODAY Sports
Southeastern Conference
With A.J. McCarron gone at Alabama, there’s going to be a new QB under center, no doubt about that. So what does that mean for Yeldon and Henry? Bonafide safety valves for their new and unproven quarterback. Recently Alabama has relied on its running game to bowl over opponents in the likes of previous Heisman winner Mark Ingram and Trent Richardson, both of whom play on Sunday. The problem is: Will both backs cancel each other out by getting an equal amount of carries? Highly doubtful since Saban’s offensive scheme tends to lend itself to more carries for T.J. Yeldon and its apparent with him breaking the 1,000 yard barrier each of the last two seasons. Derrick Henry? 6-3, 241 pounds. A punisher who had only 36 carries last year but…had 382 yards. A 10.6 avg. per carry! Give this kid the ball more and he might be hoisting the hardware in December. With both backs at 20-1 odds to win though, it might be 2015 until we hear another Tide Heisman.
FanSided
In his first season at Georgia in 2012, Todd Gurley brought back the RB ghosts of Herschel Walker and Knowshon Moreno to Bulldog football. I know they’re not dead, but neither is the running back position in Athens. Gurley amassed nearly 1,400 yards and was 11 yards shy of a 1,000 in 2013 for a career yards per carry average of 6.1. Not bad. Is it Heisman worthy though? Gurley can get a head start on the Heisman competition on August 30th by having a breakout game against Clemson, the first game on the schedule. Last year TG had 154 yards rushing and a memorable 75 yard run in the 1st quarter against the Tigers. Do it again and he’ll be at the top of everyone’s list, even at 14-1.
Is there a quarterback left in the SEC? What about Nick Marshall you ask? A duel threat at Auburn, he only took the Tigers to the National Championship in 2013 after Auburn had an abysmal 3-8 the year before, including going 0-8 in conference. Marshall is forever enshrined in Auburn Tigers folklore in “The Prayer at Jordan-Hare” when he threw a 73 yard Hail Mary pass to beat the Georgia Bulldogs with 36 seconds left. What can he do for an encore? Well if you ask his backup at QB Jeremy Johnson, the Heisman trophy is Marshall’s to lose, as Johnson boldly declared last week. With no clear cut QB in the SEC at the forefront and Nick Marshall taking a high ranked team through that conference and at 12-1 odds, Marshall sounds like a smart play…Just ask his backup QB.