Derrius Guice led the SEC in rushing yards in 2016 and he was a backup to Leonard Fournette. With Fournette playing on Sundays this season it’s going to be all slice and Guice for the Tigers in 2017.
LSU’s passing offense was putrid. The Tigers haven’t had a great quarterback since the days of Zach Mettenberger. Danny Etling was ineffective and inaccurate. In fact, LSU hasn’t had a passing offense that ranked in the top 100 since 2013. They’ve only broken the top 50 once since 2009. At LSU it’s always been run first, run second and then run some more. That means a high volume of carries for Guice and plenty of opportunities to do damage with his legs.
Other than an occasional fake field goal under Les Miles, the Tiger offense has been extremely predictable over the past decade. It really hasn’t mattered. They’re going to line up with a few tight ends and run the ball up the gut. They know what they’re going to do. Their opponents know what they’re going to do. And LSU does it anyways. On third down and three yards or less Guice averaged an astounding 10.3 yards per carry.
Guice was able to wear teams down and still remain fully functional late in games. When the defense got tired Guice was just getting started. He averaged 8.74 yards per carry in the second half or overtime, the best mark of any running back in the SEC. His home run power makes him the fiercest running back in college football. Guice had 11 carries of 20 yards or more after half time.
More: Could Derrius Guice already be better than Leonard Fournette?
Elite running backs don’t grow on trees, but it’s quite possible that Guice will follow in Fournette’s foot steps as a first round NFL draft pick. He has the backfield to himself this season and will be asked to carry his team once more. New Offensive Coordinator Matt Canada is going to try to open up the offense. His Pittsburgh team averaged more than 446 yards per game last season. If he can’t get those yards through the air it’s going to fall on Guice to grind them out.