BOULDER – Finding somebody to carry the rock won’t be a problem for Colorado in 2020. In fact, the struggle may be in deciding who to leave on the bench.
“If the game is tight, you probably rotate three guys,” running backs coach Darian Hagan told reporters Wednesday.
The problem is that there are at least four running backs who seem to be deserving of a regular role in the Buffs’ offense. Alex Fontenot leads the group and is entering is junior year as the second-leading returning rusher in the Pac-12.
“Last year was his first year being a full-time starter and the game was a little to him early in the season,” Hagan said of Fontenot. “As we got later in the season, the game started slowing down for him,”
But expecting Fontenot to recreate his final stretch of the year might be setting the bar too low.
“Now, he’s picked up his game,” Hagan said. “He’s a wily veteran. He knows exactly what to do in every situation. He’s a special talent.”
And the praise doesn’t stop there.
“If he was a guy that was on the defensive side ball, he’d still be really good,” Hagan said. “I’m glad he’s on our side of the team.”
Okay, so the starter appears to be set but that leaves two spots left in the starting rotation.
The Buffs’ second-leading rusher from a year ago is also back, and it’s be tough to see Jaren Mangham losing his spot in the rotation as he enters his true sophomore season. Mangham ran for 441 yards on 107 carries in 2019, enough to earn a spot on SB Nation’s Freshman All-Pac-12 squad.
“He was all over the place with his eyes,” Hagan said of Mangham’s true freshman season. “Now, he’s a veteran. He understands the approach. He understands what the line is doing even without great communication. He knows what to do.”
The Buffs’ three-back rotation–at least in theory–was supposed to end with Ashaad Clayton. The true freshman was a force to be reckoned with in the top level of Louisiana high school football. He averaged over 10 yards per carry in his senior season.
And he did that while slowly working his way back from offseason knee surgery.
By the time the playoffs came around, Clayton could not be stopped. He carried his team to the state championship game, putting up 1,186 yards and 18 touchdowns in five postseason contests. Better yet, he was able to up his efficiency to nearly 12 yards per carry.
It’s easy to get excited about Clayton, who was banged up enough to miss the first scrimmage of fall camp but should be fine to play in the season-opener.
“Ashaad is a big back and everything he does in the run game and in the pass game–he’s a naturaly,” Hagan said.
At 6-foot flat and 200 pounds even, Clayton is certainly a big back, but he’s also been clocked at 4.42 in the 40-yard dash. That’s a lethal combination.
“I tell him, ‘I’m gonna line you up, I’m gonna get you started, and I’m gonna back off. You just go out there and you be creative,'” Hagan said. “And that’s what he does. He’s really special.”
So there you have it: the three backs in the rotation are Fontenot, Mangham and Clayton, right?
Well, we still haven’t gotten to the breakout star of fall camp: sophomore Jarek Broussard.
“Broussard has come a long way,” Hagan said. “In the past, he wasn’t very in-tune. He was kind of–I would say–a venus fly trap. He was out there and he was just out there, man.”
Thins seem to have changed for the 5-9 speedster, who has been mentioned by any number of Buffs players and coaches since the start of fall camp.
“He’s playing with a lot of confidence, he knows exactly what he’s doing and he brings a different element to the game,” Hagan said. “He’s a real jitterbug. He’s a guy who can take it to the house and who can make guys miss in the open field. That’s the guy that we’ve been missing; we’ve been missing a back like that.”
And Hagan has a lofty comparison for Broussard, as well.
“Last time we had a back like that, it was Rodney Stewart,” Hagan said.
For those who don’t know, Stewart finished his career in 2011 with 3,598 rushing yards, the second-most in Colorado history behind Eric Bieniemy.
So there’s four guys–and potentially more, like sophomore Joe Davis–to fill three rotational spots.
“The guys probably wouldn’t to hear that,” Hagan said.
The good news is that there’s room for everybody to get their touches in when the Buffs are up.
“If we light the scoreboard up, you can rotate as many as you want,” Hagan said.
No matter how the ball is spread around in 2020, Colorado is lucky to have so many options in teh backfield.
“A year from now, this group has the potential to be the best I’ve ever coached,” said the 11th-year coach. “Every last one of them will have an opportunity to swim at a good pace.”
