Southern Pigskin's ranking of the top five SEC backfields for 2019
May 20, 2019, | southernpigskin.com
1. Alabama -- Tua Tagovailoa, the likely number one overall pick in the 2020 NFL Draft, now holds college football's single-season passer rating record at 199.4. Remarkably, he completed 69% of his passes for 3,966 yards with 43 touchdowns and just six interceptions this past year. The powerful Najee Harris was the Crimson Tide's second-leading rusher last fall, rushing for 783 yards and averaging an impressive 6.7 yards per carry. Alabama, among all the five-stars, added Trey Sanders in its latest recruiting class, the number one running back prospect in the nation.
2. Georgia -- A very strong argument can be made for the Bulldogs having the top offensive backfield in the SEC and certainly a top three group nationally. After finishing 8th in the nation in passer rating as a true freshman, Jake Fromm jumped to 5th as a sophomore. He has averaged nine yards per pass attempt both years and improved to 30 touchdown passes in 2018. From mid-October on, dynamic running back D'Andre Swift had over 100 yards in each of the five games where he had double digit carries. As usual, Georgia has incredible running back depth with the likes of James Cook, Brian Herrien and Zamir White.
3. Florida -- The Gators are stacked at running back with the return of Lamical Perine, Dameon Pierce and Malik Davis, all of whom are capable of being featured offensive playmakers. Perine has 15 rushing touchdowns the last two years. Quarterback Feleipe Franks improvement dramatically under Dan Mullen, throwing 24 touchdown passes and rushing for seven more. Franks was named Offensive MVP of the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl. There is also excitement around reserve signal caller Emory Jones.
4. Mississippi State -- Stepping in for Nick Fitzgerald due to injury, Keytaon Thompson has done a very nice job the past few years. He, as a dual-threat talent, scored ten total touchdowns in 2018, with only one interception. Thompson should continue his progression into a prominent front-line starter. Kylin Hill is an explosive running back who averaged nearly 6.3 yards per carry last fall. Reserve Nick Gibson can be a home run threat.
5. Missouri -- Former Clemson quarterback Kelly Bryant brings quite the resume to the Tigers of the SEC East, most notably a 15-1 record in games he has both started and finished. Bryant scored 24 total touchdowns in 2017. Larry Rountree III should pair quite well with Brant. With 1,216 yards, Rountree just recorded the third-highest single-season rushing total in Missouri history. He rushed for 458 yards over the team's final three games. In career games where Rountree has topped 90 yards, the Tigers are 7-1.
May 20, 2019, | southernpigskin.com
1. Alabama -- Tua Tagovailoa, the likely number one overall pick in the 2020 NFL Draft, now holds college football's single-season passer rating record at 199.4. Remarkably, he completed 69% of his passes for 3,966 yards with 43 touchdowns and just six interceptions this past year. The powerful Najee Harris was the Crimson Tide's second-leading rusher last fall, rushing for 783 yards and averaging an impressive 6.7 yards per carry. Alabama, among all the five-stars, added Trey Sanders in its latest recruiting class, the number one running back prospect in the nation.
2. Georgia -- A very strong argument can be made for the Bulldogs having the top offensive backfield in the SEC and certainly a top three group nationally. After finishing 8th in the nation in passer rating as a true freshman, Jake Fromm jumped to 5th as a sophomore. He has averaged nine yards per pass attempt both years and improved to 30 touchdown passes in 2018. From mid-October on, dynamic running back D'Andre Swift had over 100 yards in each of the five games where he had double digit carries. As usual, Georgia has incredible running back depth with the likes of James Cook, Brian Herrien and Zamir White.
3. Florida -- The Gators are stacked at running back with the return of Lamical Perine, Dameon Pierce and Malik Davis, all of whom are capable of being featured offensive playmakers. Perine has 15 rushing touchdowns the last two years. Quarterback Feleipe Franks improvement dramatically under Dan Mullen, throwing 24 touchdown passes and rushing for seven more. Franks was named Offensive MVP of the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl. There is also excitement around reserve signal caller Emory Jones.
4. Mississippi State -- Stepping in for Nick Fitzgerald due to injury, Keytaon Thompson has done a very nice job the past few years. He, as a dual-threat talent, scored ten total touchdowns in 2018, with only one interception. Thompson should continue his progression into a prominent front-line starter. Kylin Hill is an explosive running back who averaged nearly 6.3 yards per carry last fall. Reserve Nick Gibson can be a home run threat.
5. Missouri -- Former Clemson quarterback Kelly Bryant brings quite the resume to the Tigers of the SEC East, most notably a 15-1 record in games he has both started and finished. Bryant scored 24 total touchdowns in 2017. Larry Rountree III should pair quite well with Brant. With 1,216 yards, Rountree just recorded the third-highest single-season rushing total in Missouri history. He rushed for 458 yards over the team's final three games. In career games where Rountree has topped 90 yards, the Tigers are 7-1.