Jones making a push in crowded backfield

By Hunt Palmer

On a roster marked by turnover, LSU’s running back situation was stable in January.

Caden Durham and Harlem Berry returned to form what appeared to be the feature one-two punch in Lane Kiffin’s offense. Quarterback and wide receiver were completely overhauled, and the offensive had to be retooled.

Still, Wisconsin running back transfer Dilin Jones called LSU an easy decision for him despite the returning production at the position.

“I mean, really playing under Kiffin, I don’t think anybody really wants to pass that up,” Jones said. “And then I’m saying (running backs) Coach Kevin Smith, I feel like he’s probably the best in the game. You see what he’s done. I mean, when he played football and then you see what he did with the previous running backs that he had. So, I feel like it was a no-brainer. Why not LSU?”

The job on arrival was to differentiate between the two incumbent backs as well as three other transfers in. First, Jones tips the scales at a listed 211 pounds, 10 more than Durham and 24 more than Berry. He’s also taller than both.

That physical presence is obvious when the group runs through drills on the practice field. Kiffin has noticed.

“He has come in and been good in protection, with his vision, with his feet, and running the ball, and has really been a bright spot,” Kiffin said. “For a guy that wasn’t a headliner (transfer), he’s played like it. That’s really critical.”

Protection is a critical piece to playing the position. Jones takes it seriously and has a background that helps him engaging with rushers and winning those collisions.

“My dad, he put me in wrestling.” Jones said. “So, I wrestled all the way through high school, and then I just I feel like it’s more of a being physical than a technique thing. If you go out there and strike first, you’re pretty much good. You get a QB time to throw the ball.”

Kiffin’s offenses have spread the ball around at times and featured a back others. Kewan Lacy became a workhorse for LSU a season ago. This contingent feels more likely to divvy the carries a little more evenly than the Rebels did a season ago.

Jones had to figure that would be the case when he transferred in.

“I say all of us are good, but there’s only one football,” Jones said. “And I do think we’re going to rotate and have a good rotation going, but there’s only so many people that can play, and competition is great. We compete. We still come in meetings. We talk about plays that we had. We still sit there talk with each other, but we just push each other.”

It’ll be up to Smith and Kiffin to find the utilize the skillsets in the right spots to optimize the production from the position.

Durham has a lower center of gravity and has been able to force missed tackles and hit big plays when healthy. Berry has a way of gliding through open space. when asked about his strengths, Jones feels his attributes will fit right inn.

“I mean really I feel like I can do it all,” Jones said. “So, like a do-it-all back. It’s a tempo offense, so having to do a lot of substitutions will slow it down. And I feel like I can stay in all four downs. I can pick up the blocks. I can run the ball. I can catch out the back field. Also, I just feel like my speed is also there, too.”

Kiffin’s team have generally run the ball exceptionally well. The Rebels led the SEC in rushing touchdowns a season ago. Prior to Lacy’s arrival Quinshon Judkins came from off the radar to become a star in Oxford.

Jones believes in the system.

“I feel like it’s great for the running back because it gives you a lot of opportunities to get one-on-one chances with the linebackers,” Jones said. “The pass game opens up the run game a lot. So, you see we can pass the ball, we got the receivers, and then I feel like that just helped me out a lot more and me being able to get one-on-one with the backer. I gotta make them miss.”