Gators vs. Tide Matchup Could be Determined by Running Backs
Tuesday, September 27, 2011 | Football, Scott Carter
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – No one has to tell Gators coach Will Muschamp how difficult Alabama running back Trent Richardson is to bring down.
Twenty months ago in the BCS National Championship Game at the Rose Bowl, Richardson ripped off 109 yards, teaming with former backfield mate Mark Ingram (116 yards) to help Alabama shred Texas' No. 1-ranked defense in a 37-21 win over the Longhorns.
Muschamp's defense adjusted and was able to contain the duo some in the second half – Alabama had only 57 of its 205 rushing yards after halftime – but by that time Richardson already had a 49-yard touchdown run and Alabama a comfortable lead.
With another shot at slowing down Richardson on Saturday when the No. 3-ranked Crimson Tide visit The Swamp for a showdown with the 12th-ranked Gators, Muschamp knows what the Gators must do against the powerful 5-foot-11, 224-pound Richardson.
“You've got to gang tackle him,'' Muschamp said. “You've got to get a lot of guys around the ball.”
On the opposite sideline, Crimson Tide coach Nick Saban must devise a way to slow down Florida's backfield duo of speedsters Chris Rainey and Jeff Demps. A year ago in Tuscaloosa, Alabama won 31-6 without Rainey being a factor – he missed the game due to off-the-field issues – and Demps hobbled by a foot injury.
Both are at full speed, which reminds Saban of his days as an NFL assistant and trying to slow down former world-class sprinter Willie Gault.
“In the NFL, people played off of him 13 or 14 yards,'' Saban told reporters Monday. “He would just run down the field. He only ran three routes. The guy was a really good player for a long time because everybody was afraid that he would run by them.''
With Demps a two-time NCAA 60-meter indoor champion and Rainey perhaps as fast, there may not be a faster backfield in the nation. While Alabama's Richardson and sophomore Eddie Lacy provide a mixture of speed and power, Rainey and Demps are more pure speed threats. Florida has 36 runs of 10 or more yards in the first four games.
That provides a unique challenge for an opposing defense.
“I think that when you have that kind of speed, especially on the perimeter, that it's so important defensively to keep leverage on the ball,'' Saban said. “I call it side boards on the defense, so people can't run around you. Those are the kind of plays that you've got to really guard against.''
In Saturday's highly anticipated matchup, both teams' running games figure to play a prominent role. The Gators, coming off a 48-10 win at Kentucky in which they ran for a season-high 405 yards, lead the SEC in rushing (259.0 yards per game). Alabama is second at 230.8 yards a game.
Meanwhile, Alabama's run defense (45.8 yards per game) tops the league with the Gators (56.5 ypg) ranked third. The matchup features four of the SEC's top eight rushers. Richardson (441 yards, 8 TDs) is second in the SEC behind South Carolina's Marcus Lattimore, while Rainey (411 yards) is tied with Georgia's Isaiah Crowell for fourth, Lacy is seventh and Demps' career-high 157-yard performance at Kentucky moved him to eighth with 320 yards.
While Gators quarterback John Brantley will need to be productive in the passing game to take some pressure off Florida's rushing attack, the Gators will likely need a big play or two from Rainey and Demps to keep Alabama's physical defense from taking control.
“Obviously, those are two of our better playmakers,'' Muschamp said. “They're going to touch the ball. What different ways will they touch the ball – whether it's from the slot, from outside, matching up on a linebacker on a vertical route – the touches we get them could be different and not as conventional as we've seen to this point.''
Saban is gearing up for a chess match against not only his former assistant in Muschamp, but first-year Florida offensive coordinator Charlie Weis. From what Saban has seen on film, Weis has taken what the defense has given him and left the rest of his tricks in the bag.
“Their strength as a team has been their ability to run the ball and consistently make big plays running the ball,'' he said. “They're a great screen team. They haven't thrown the ball down the field a whole bunch, but when they have, they've been pretty effective doing it. They do a great job of featuring the talent and the players that they have and what they can do well.''
In the first four games, either Rainey or Demps has rushed for more than 100 yards, Florida's longest stretch of games with a 100-yard rusher since 1999. Rainey has three consecutive 100-yard games, the first UF back to run for 100 yards in three straight games since Fred Taylor in 1997.
As good as Florida's rushing attack has been Alabama's has been equally effective. Richardson enters with three consecutive 100-yard rushing performances and Lacy, a 220-pound sophomore who has helped ease the loss of former Heisman winner Ingram, has 365 yards in four games and is averaging 8.9 yards per carry.
While Lacy will certainly be a factor, slowing down Richardson will be a must for Florida. In last year's loss in Tuscaloosa, Richardson led the Crimson Tide with 63 yards on 10 carries as Alabama rushed for 170 yards.
“You prepare a lot different for facing a back like Rainey or Demps than you do for Trent Richardson,'' Gators linebacker Jelani Jenkins said. “It's certainly not easier. I think facing guys like Demps and Rainey you make to make sure they don't get outside because they can easily beat you with speed. Facing guys like Trent Richardson, he's a special back because he can do speed and power.''
There will be a lot of good players on the field Saturday night, but based on what we've seen early in the season from both teams, the running backs could be the best.
They may attack defenses differently, but both offenses rely on the running backs to make things happen. Knowing what he knows from past experience, Muschamp said there's little secret in what Florida's defense must do to give it an edge.
“More than anything, playing blocks well up front, disengaging and then tackling,'' Muschamp said. “It's going to come down to tackling. Trent Richardson is a really good player and Eddie Lacy is a really good player. This is certainly the best running team we have faced, there's no question about that.''
