Backfield Ratings

[Coastal]

Thoughts here? Auburn gets the top nod.

http://southernpigskin.com/page.cfm?story=11190&cat=exclusives

[RWIGG]

I would put Georgia above Alabama, maybe even above Tennessee. I don't have much faith in Ainge.

[PigKahuna]

Too bad the QB position is holding the Hogs back! lol

[cocky4ever]

Too bad the QB position is holding the Hogs back! lol
Dont worry, you wont have that problem for the next three years.

[GeauxTo]

Pretty good assessment. Our running game, I think, will be one of our biggest assets (although we have an outstanding passing game).

Even if Alley Broussard and Justin Vincent are not 100% to start the season, the running back position appears to be in very good shape. Jacob Hester, Charles Scott, Keiland Williams and Richard Murphy are big-time running back prospects as is Steven Korte. We'll run the football very well.

[WDavE]

As of right now, you would have to also include Ben Tate and Mario Fannin to the Auburn list.

[GAMECOCKBOY]

i think florida is ranked too high they should be ranked lower.....

[PigKahuna]

Mustain had a great opening practice. I'm tellin you, he'll be starting vs USC in the opener. I'm not sure if I should be excited by that or scared. heh

[blues_cap]

i think florida is ranked too high they should be ranked lower.....

why is that???

[GAMECOCKBOY]

why is that???
i dont think yalls rbs are as good as people think they r...

[woo_pig_sooie]

Mustain had a great opening practice. I'm tellin you, he'll be starting vs USC in the opener. I'm not sure if I should be excited by that or scared. heh

He had an alright practice. He threw some balls into the ground, but did look good throwing the ball deep. I still think Dick is the starter.

[AUFootball24]

IDK about Auburn being #1, LSU's QB's are so good. I'd put them as a tie with Auburn.

Hell at this point I consider Auburn and LSU 100% team wise. We'll see who gets the better end in week 3. I could see these teams going into infinate overtimes, haha

[GeauxTo]

IDK about Auburn being #1, LSU's QB's are so good. I'd put them as a tie with Auburn.

Hell at this point I consider Auburn and LSU 100% team wise. We'll see who gets the better end in week 3. I could see these teams going into infinate overtimes, haha
Ought to be real close and real good. Both very talent-laden. The Barn will have the home-field advantage, which is a big plus for them. However, I do feel that LSU has more overall depth, which could become a factor should the game get into multiple overtimes.

[BAMA NATE]

Bama is way too low. While the QB is new we have possibly the best situation at FB in the nation and arguably the best back in the SEC in Ken Darby and plus great depth behind him. LSU gets the nod at #2 because of two decent QBs and another who hasn't taken a college snap? Something is wrong with that. Don't even get me started on Arky. They need a decent QB before they get all this hype. With McFadden out those guys belong in the bottom half.

[blues_cap]

i dont think yalls rbs are as good as people think they r...

hmm, that's funny...i dont recall many people hyping our running backs.

[cocky4ever]

hmm, that's funny...i dont recall many people hyping our running backs.
So then Chris Leak alone gives UF the 3rd best backfield in the conference?? Geez, if some of these writers were hanging onto Leak's johnson any harder they'd be his nutsack :ohmy: :laugh:

[AUFootball24]

cocky, that's racist! You wouldn't say that about tebow! ;)

[azamugg]

i think florida is ranked too high they should be ranked lower.....

Bama should be 3rd, Florida 6th.............gators have no proven tailbacks or at least a track record that warrants a 3rd ranking, Arky just lost the meat and potatos of their strength

[blues_cap]

appearantly you guys didnt see the side by side production comparison that gatorhunter did on georgia's awesome 3 tailbacks compared to florida's horrible 3 tailbacks......for those who didnt, the numbers are extremely close, it actually shocked the hell out of me.

people jumped on this "florida's rbs suck" after meyer challenged them to step up or he would play w/o a running back. i am pretty sure meyer was just wanting to motivate the backs and get one to step up and be "the guy". they dont suck that bad as shown when doing comparisons to other sec backfields(im not gonna do the #s, but i would bet you would be surprised when comparing).

i cant see who would be above them other than the 2 that are there...uga has no qb and the rbs are no better than uf's.... no way in hell is alabama 3rd with a qb that hasnt thrown 20 passes, they arent even in contention....usc has a shaky qb and a decent set of rbs, not the complete package....all of these schools have deficiencies bigger than uf's so maybe uf is 3rd b/c of default.

here's the thing to me....running backs are a dime a dozen, imo. they are everywhere, so there is no way in hell florida, with their talent pool to choose from, has running backs that just suck compared to the rest of the league. it isnt like that in any other postion on the field and there are a lot more scarce positions to try and fill other than rb(dt and cb being the main 2).

[blues_cap]

So then Chris Leak alone gives UF the 3rd best backfield in the conference?? Geez, if some of these writers were hanging onto Leak's johnson any harder they'd be his nutsack :ohmy: :laugh:

well, compared to the other qb's in the league at this point(not many proven quite yet), yes. leak may not be the best in the world, but he is the best in the sec so i think with the #1 qb and the #5 or 6 rbs, third place is a decent spot for uf.

[Hawgwild]

You guys make it sound like mcfadden is out the whole season, its just one game, and he says he isint missing any time on the field.

[blues_cap]

Bama should be 3rd, Florida 6th.............gators have no proven tailbacks or at least a track record that warrants a 3rd ranking, Arky just lost the meat and potatos of their strength


remember, this is the whole backfield, not just rb....yes, bama probably has the 3rd best cast of running backs but the fact you have no proven qb has to balance that out.

sorry bro, 3rd is a pipe dream right now. we may have to re-evaluate at the end of the year, but with the lack of experience under center, no way do i think that bama comes in 3rd.

[GAMECOCK_FAN]

You guys make it sound like mcfadden is out the whole season, its just one game, and he says he isint missing any time on the field.
If he's missing one game he's missing time on the field.

On a side note, if he will be back after the first game, that is good news for Arkansas fans. He is truly an outstanding player and Arkansas is a much better team with him.

[woo_pig_sooie]

If he's missing one game he's missing time on the field.

On a side note, if he will be back after the first game, that is good news for Arkansas fans. He is truly an outstanding player and Arkansas is a much better team with him.

The coaches are saying he's "doubtful" for the USC game, whereas McFadden is saying he won't miss any time. All depends on how fast he can get back on the practice field.

[cocky4ever]

well, compared to the other qb's in the league at this point(not many proven quite yet), yes. leak may not be the best in the world, but he is the best in the sec so i think with the #1 qb and the #5 or 6 rbs, third place is a decent spot for uf.
I guess you make a good enough point. Maybe its just the fact the UF didnt have a "star" back that some of of the other schools had. People are more likely to get a higher ranking if the have an Irons, McFadden, Darby, etc. I remember the #'s comparison someone did with UF and UGA and they were pretty similar.

[GAMECOCK_FAN]

The coaches are saying he's "doubtful" for the USC game, whereas McFadden is saying he won't miss any time. All depends on how fast he can get back on the practice field.
That makes sense. It wasn't clear from Hawgwild's original statement that McFadden was saying one thing and the coaches something else.

[Hawgwild]

yeah, sorry, im just used to posting at razorback forums so you dont have to put as much info down to get your point across. Ill have to work on that.

[GeauxTo]

leak may not be the best in the world, but he is the best in the sec.
Questionable, my man, questionable!

[blues_cap]

Questionable, my man, questionable!

the #s speak for themselves. he hasnt won a championship, but neither has any other starter in the sec. it may be questionable, but it would be a pretty tough argument.

[Dr. Pepper]

Mr. Bennett does a good job, but he is taking a pretty safe effort. Who can really argue anything at this point. I will say that QB's still have to have receivers to make them look good. My hope is USC will be well above #8 when all is said and done, and it doesn't look like Mr. Bennett has taken into consideration the return of Syvelle Newton and the addition of some pretty good receivers to go along with Rice. No arguments at this point, but look for this list to look a lot different come December.

[zorak34]

Bama should be 3rd, Florida 6th.............gators have no proven tailbacks or at least a track record that warrants a 3rd ranking, Arky just lost the meat and potatos of their strength

You can say the same for your unproven QB so that means you guys should be somewhere around 5th or seventh huh?

[GeauxTo]

the #s speak for themselves. he hasnt won a championship, but neither has any other starter in the sec. it may be questionable, but it would be a pretty tough argument.He's definitely good, and would probably be even better if allowed to be a pocket passer. His arm, however, is not as strong as that of JaMarcus Russell and he can't take a hit like JaMarcus can. But he is more football savy than Russell is, at least to this point. They are both super QBs and I don't think you can say that either one is the best in the SEC right now; they more or less share that role. That could change once the season gets underway, with one or the other pulling away. But, that could also happen with some others, like Brandon Cox, Erik Ainge, Schaeffer, etc. One good thing this season, both of our QBs play each other as well as some of the other interloper QBs in the SEC. By December, we should have a definite candidate for the best QB in the SEC.

[Jrama]

While the QB is new we have possibly the best situation at FB in the nation and arguably the best back in the SEC in Ken Darby and plus great depth behind him..


UTs Arian Foster will be the best in the SEC maybe one of the best in the nation. Behind him is another great person yall dont know about by the name of Lamarcus Coker. He will be a pretty scarey guy too. Not takin nothin from bama, but I dont even think UGAs TBs will have anything on Foster :whistle:
Dang I cant wait for kick off. this bored will be coverd with more UT heads like myself :laugh:

[nooneLT]

UTs Arian Foster will be the best in the SEC maybe one of the best in the nation.

isn't that what they said about gerald riggs jr?

[Jrama]

Sure is but this aint Riggs. Riggs shared tha ball with Houston and avg. around 1000 yrds that season. So he was expected to do a lot last yr. And ended up gettin hurt, but still he was not that great last yr. Foster didnt play til the end of last season and almost broke tha UT freshman record and would have if he would have got to play more last yr. They are comparing him to Jamal Lewis. Hes strong, fast, and can cut. Riggs was too lsow out of tha hole and always tried to bounce outside last yr.

[BAMA NATE]

UTs Arian Foster will be the best in the SEC maybe one of the best in the nation.

Yeah, when Irons and Darby are playin' for pay!! :whistle:

[Jrama]

Yeah, when Irons and Darby are playin' for pay!! :whistle:

Hope somebodys got some money then lol :closedeye

[Wizard of Orange]

I wouldn't have Fla or TN as high. I think either could wind up as conference best, BUT neither has shown me anything yet. Foster was very good in limited play - we all know the Jeckyl and Hyde of Ainge. Leak's #s looked decent, but when I watch him play, he doesn't seem comfortable or something. Obviously the fla backfield continues to look for SOMEONE, anyone, to step up.

As far as the rankings above, it looks like the Author is putting a whole lot more weight on the QB than the RBs.

I've never understood why you lump them together anyway. Lumping the OL and the RBs together and the QB w/ WRs would make a little more sense.

[Jrama]

Yea UT needs to be lower. I want us underrated in everything lol

[blues_cap]

I wouldn't have Fla or TN as high. I think either could wind up as conference best, BUT neither has shown me anything yet. Foster was very good in limited play - we all know the Jeckyl and Hyde of Ainge. Leak's #s looked decent, but when I watch him play, he doesn't seem comfortable or something. Obviously the fla backfield continues to look for SOMEONE, anyone, to step up.

As far as the rankings above, it looks like the Author is putting a whole lot more weight on the QB than the RBs.

I've never understood why you lump them together anyway. Lumping the OL and the RBs together and the QB w/ WRs would make a little more sense.


would you agree that it is a more important position??? i think it should be weighed more heavily than rb.....in this league, if you have no balance, you dont win(arkansas last year).....ark had the best rbs in the league and one of the best o-lines but news still didnt get to hog nation that the forward pass is now legal.......like i mentioned earlier, i personally think running backs are a dime a dozen...on the other hand, a polished qb that can lead a team is not so easy to find(much less polish).

[goallthewayua]

I agree with most of that. You are definately right about a polished qb being a very large part of the picture for a productive offense. If a team doesn't have a threat of a passing attack then it gets extremely hard to win when facing 8 and 9 guys in the box (as was the case with us last season). Side note McFadden gets his pin out 8/21. I think he'll be able to play against USC. If we were just talking about TB/FB then I would rank us #1, but add qb into the equation and we just aren't proven yet. We deserved 4th. Georgia looked like they got hosed a little bit, but the rest seemed pretty accurate. JMO.

[Wizard of Orange]

would you agree that it is a more important position??? i think it should be weighed more heavily than rb.....in this league, if you have no balance, you dont win(arkansas last year).....ark had the best rbs in the league and one of the best o-lines but news still didnt get to hog nation that the forward pass is now legal.......like i mentioned earlier, i personally think running backs are a dime a dozen...on the other hand, a polished qb that can lead a team is not so easy to find(much less polish).
Oh, yes, a QB is more important. And it is extremely important to have a QB that doesn't give games away. BUT teams win Nat'l. Championships rather regularly w/o top notch QBs. Even in the NFL you have non-marquee QBs winning Super Bowls. Point being STRONG Defense , STRONG running game and an adequate, few mistake QB will win games/ championships.

Anyway, I digress. All I was saying was the rankings seemed overly weighted towards QBs to me.

[kinfolk41684]

I agree with most of that. You are definately right about a polished qb being a very large part of the picture for a productive offense. If a team doesn't have a threat of a passing attack then it gets extremely hard to win when facing 8 and 9 guys in the box (as was the case with us last season). Side note McFadden gets his pin out 8/21. I think he'll be able to play against USC. If we were just talking about TB/FB then I would rank us #1, but add qb into the equation and we just aren't proven yet. We deserved 4th. Georgia looked like they got hosed a little bit, but the rest seemed pretty accurate. JMO.
I really hope to GOD that you guys get McFadden back, and mop USC. Show westside how it's done in the southeast. I obviously have very high hopes.

[GeauxTo]

Side note McFadden gets his pin out 8/21. I think he'll be able to play against USC.
That's great news, man! I hope he's able to run like a horse against the Trojans!