With no proven quarterbacks, the Southeastern Conference will be a league dominated by running backs in the 2011 season.
Historically, the SEC has been known for its great running backs, but this could be a year like none in the past. There are nine backs that have a chance to be the best in the conference this year.
In alphabetical order, here are six of the top running backs in the SEC: Brandon Bolden, Knile Davis, Michael Dyer, Marcus Lattimore, Tauren Poole and Trent Richardson.
Brandon Bolden will be the feature running back for the Ole Miss offense in 2011. In 2010, he carried the ball 163 times for 976 yards and 14 touchdowns. He also had 32 receptions for 344 yards and three touchdowns, making him a threat in the passing game.
In a pass-first offense at Arkansas, Knile Davis still managed to lead the SEC in rushing. He rushed for 1,322 yards and 13 touchdowns on 204 carries. Despite those stats, Davis was only selected for the second team of the Coaches Preseason All-SEC Team.
“I think I’m right up there with the rest of the great backs in the SEC, and we do have some very good ones,” Davis said. “My main thing is just to get out there and compete with them and see how it turns out.”
Michael Dyer’s productive freshman season at Auburn was somewhat overshadowed by quarterback Cam Newton. Dyer carried the ball 182 times for 1,093 yards and five touchdowns. With Newton gone, Dyer will be the main focus of the Tiger offense in 2011.
As a freshman, Marcus Lattimore led South Carolina with 964 yards and 14 touchdowns on 202 carries. He carried the Gamecocks to the SEC Championship game, where they lost to Auburn. Lattimore is an early candidate for the Heisman trophy.
“I’ve got a great offensive line,” Lattimore said. “I think the game has slowed down a little bit more; I’ve been in the film room a little bit more. I think I’ve got a shot.”
Tauren Poole rushed for 1034 yards and 11 touchdowns on 204 carries in his first year as a starter at Tennessee. He did not make the Coaches Preseason All-SEC team due to the depth at running back in the league.
Last year for Alabama, Trent Richardson was the definition of an all-purpose running back. He had 1600 all-purpose yards and 10 touchdowns. With the departure of Heisman Trophy winner Mark Ingram, Richardson will be the feature back for the Crimson Tide in the 2011 season.
“Trent probably played his best football of the season when he was in that sort of A-back role, being ‘the guy,’” head coach Nick Saban said. “Mark [Ingram] missed a couple, three games in the beginning of the season. Trent probably had his best games then.”
Other notable running backs include Vick Ballard from Mississippi State, Jeff Demps from Florida and Onterio McCalebb from Auburn.
Ballard had 186 carries for 968 yards and a league-high, 19 touchdowns. Demps carried the ball 92 times for 551 yards and three touchdowns. McCalebb was arguably the most explosive player in the country. He had a least one carry of 20-plus yards in 10 of the 14 games he played in, on his way to 810 yards and nine touchdowns on 95 carries.
“In my opinion, you can’t put us one, two, three or four overall,” Ballard said. “Now, in one aspect of our game, that might be better. For me, I try to be as balanced as I can so I can stay on the field as long as I can. [SEC backs] have all got God-given ability, that’s for sure.”
