2. Derrius Guice, LSU Tigers running back
On comparison with Leonard Fournette for season… “I tend to block out the comparison.” – Derrius Guice, LSU Tigers running back.
Of all the players returning to SEC gridirons this fall, few will have the expectations placed on them quite like LSU Tigers junior running back Derrius Guice. This will be his first year as the starting tailback at LSU. He backed up Leonard Fournette his first two years in Baton Rouge.
Now that Fournette plays in the AFC South for the Jacksonville Jaguars, the loathsome burden of carrying the stagnant LSU offense rests on Guice’s shoulders. While his own head coach did compare him to Warren Sapp at SEC Media Days for his punishing running style, Guice seems to have a level head on his shoulders and isn’t worried about filling Fournette’s shoes.
It’s not like Guice hasn’t held his own at LSU before. He did rush for over 1,300 yards as a sophomore for the Tigers last fall. Fournette may have shown moments of brilliance on the gridiron, but his three-year tenure in the SEC didn’t live up to the massive hype he brought with him out of New Orleans. Should Guice put together another season like last year, he’ll end up having a better career for the Bayou Bengals than Fournette.
Guice showed up to SEC Media Days humbled to represent his school as a junior. He did rock a crazy suit that the late Craig Sager would have been proud of. LSU may not be favored to come out of the SEC this year, but an outstanding junior season from Guice definitely puts the Bayou Bengals in the dark horse college football playoff conversation.