Ray Rice was one of the best players in Rutgers history, and he has cast somewhat of a shadow over the position since he left. Heralded incoming running back recruits like De'Antwan Williams and Savon Huggins have had unnecessary extra pressure on them by being declared "The Next Ray Rice," and they have not had that one lead back who is capable of being the bell cow of an offense in the four subsequent years since Rice's departure. As a result, they have had to resort to the wildcat more often than they should, and along with the struggles of the offensive line, that has caused the running game to suffer. Coming into this year, Rutgers has two very capable running backs who will combine to form a formidable duo and become the focal point of the offense. One back may even emerge and become Rutgers' first 1000 yard rusher since Rice.
Savon Huggins struggled somewhat as a freshman, as he had problems holding onto the ball and adjusting to Rutgers' offense and the speed of the college game. Used mostly as a short yardage back, Huggins ran for 5 TDs and 146 yards before going down with a knee injury that cost him 4 games. With a year of experience under his belt, the former 5 star recruit looks to emerge and live up to his billing. Huggins is a big, powerful runner who is at his best running down hill. He is strong with a burst through the line, and he can break tackles. He has also shown good vision, nice footwork, and the ability to juke defenders. He comes into the year a bit under the radar, but he has the talent to be one of the top backs in the Big East this year.
Jawan Jamison had a solid redshirt freshman campaign a year ago, rushing for 897 yards. As a smaller, slashing type of a back, he is a great fit for the zone blocking scheme that Kyle Flood loves to use. He is patient with good vision, and he makes the necessary cutbacks to find the hole. He does not have top end speed, but he can break off some long runs on the outside. He and Huggins should be the "co-starters" at the position, and they complement each other very well. They both give defenses a different look.
Michael Burton starts at fullback after forcing his way onto the field a year ago despite being a walk-on. He is a physical run blocker, who delivers punishing blocks to clear out the hole. As a former tailback, he is very good at leading the way for the runner, and as he showed in the Pinstripe Bowl, he is able to break off some nice runs as well. He's also a solid pass blocker and can catch the ball out of the backfield.
Paul James is the third tailback and the former walk on has earned himself a scholarship after dazzling and turning heads on the practice field. Desmon People will likely redshirt, looking to contribute as a scat back in the future. Sam Bergen, a former linebacker, backs Burton up.
Schematically, the backs will run behind a zone blocking scheme, meaning they have to find the hole running outside on stretch plays, make a cut, and run through it. You need good vision and footwork for it, and both of Rutgers backs have that. Jamison is a great fit for this scheme, but Huggins is more of a down hill runner and not great going east to west. I think they might run more man blocking than they have in the past to accomodate his skill set.
Both of these tailbacks are very good and should form a strong duo. They will likely split carries, so even if neither of them eclipses the 1000 yard plateau, they should both be very productive. One back may emerge, and take the lion's share of the carries, but we'll have to see how things play out. They kind of remind me of the duo the Dallas Cowboys had in 2007, with Jamison playing the role of Julius Jones, the slasher, who got to defenses early, while Huggins plays the role of Marion Barber, who wore down defenses late in the game with his physical running style. This is probably the best RB situation Rutgers has had since Rice left.
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