Mario Fannin

[StatTiger 3,188]

Let me say this...

  I love Mario Fannin. He is a "team" player and it would piss me off when people questioned his heart when he stepped out of bounds or would not put a shoulder down to get that extra yard. I defended him because I knew he was playing hurt. I wish Al Borges would have utilized him more in the passing game in 2007 but that's an old story. I have no doubt Fannin (healthy) could put up the same type of numbers Ben Tate did in 2009 if he was indeed the starter.

  Malzahn did a splendid job with Fannin last year. I know he regrets not using him more in the running game but some of the games dictated otherwise. They threw the ball to him 74 times last season and if some of those pass attempts had been more accurate, he would have easily hauled in close to 50 passes last season. We got 17 impact plays out of his limited touches and 10 came through the passing game. He is a nightmare to cover for a LB or safety. Including the passes attempted to Fannin, Malzahn attempted to get the ball to him about 8.3 plays per game. He wants to expand that to 10-15 times but it will all depend on how the new players develop in the offense.

  I can tell you Coach Luper, Coach Malzahn are sold on Michael Dyer and what he will bring to this offense. They truly feel he will be something special and I'm not talking about a typical 1000-yard rusher. But this staff is smart in terms of having a plan B and a plan c in the event plan A falls to pieces. You will see Aycock get a strong look in the Spring. They will continue to work Fannin at RB, simply because they want him to know his assignment in the event he has to be the starter. I wish McCalebb could put some more meat on his body but he will always be in that 165-170 range because of his body type.

  There is no way to predict what will happen in the Spring or in the Summer but I know the coaches are expecting Dyer to be the starter. Does that mean he will carry the ball 20-25 times on opening night? It all depends on how comfortable they are with him. I've been covering AU football for a long time and this my friend, is the best offensive scheme Auburn has ever fielded. It's not about one playmaker making the offense work. It's about putting the best 5-6 skill players on the field and attacking the opponent at their weakest spots. When you go down our roster of skill players for 2010, the sky is almost the limit, playing behind a veteran OL. The more skill players involved in this offense, the better. This is why keeping Fannin at HB is so critical. It's not that he can't play RB but who do you replace Fannin with at HB. The plan is to eventually work Aycock into the Fannin role so we shall see.

  It's funny how the offensive and defensive coaches argue about moving certain players to their respective units. That alone tells me how much skill we have on this roster. It's going to be a great year on the offensive side of the football and I believe the defense is close to turning the corner too.

By the way.... I sorted all the top rushers since 1966 with at least 250 carries. Here is the list of the top 50 by yards per carry. This is why I suggested being realistic about Fannin's 8.4 yards per carry last season.

Year Player Team Gm Yards Att TD APC YPG

1983 Mike Rozier Nebraska 12 2148 275 29 7.81 179.0

2002 Larry Johnson Penn State 13 2087 271 20 7.70 160.5

1988 Barry Sanders Oklahoma St 11 2628 344 37 7.64 238.9

2004 JJ Arington California 12 2018 289 15 6.98 168.2

1999 LaDainian Tomlinson TCU 11 1850 268 18 6.90 168.2

1994 Rashaan Salaam Colorado 11 2055 298 24 6.90 186.8

1997 Ricky Williams Texas 11 1893 279 25 6.78 172.1

1997 Ahman Green Nebraska 12 1877 278 22 6.75 156.4

2002 Quentin Griffin Oklahoma 14 1884 287 15 6.56 134.6

2000 Damien Anderson North Western 11 1914 293 22 6.53 174.0

1977 Earl Campbell Texas 11 1744 267 18 6.53 158.5

1978 Obie Graves Cal State Full 12 1789 275 9 6.51 149.1

2003 Darren Sproles Kansas State 15 1986 306 16 6.49 132.4

1994 Brian Pruitt Central Mich 11 1890 292 20 6.47 171.8

2004 Garrett Wolfe Northern Ill 11 1656 256 18 6.47 150.5

1987 Thurman Thomas Oklahoma St 11 1613 250 18 6.45 146.6

1985 Bo Jackson Auburn 11 1786 278 17 6.42 162.4

2007 Rashard Mendenhall Illinois 13 1681 262 17 6.42 129.3

1987 Elbert Woods UNLV 11 1658 259 10 6.40 150.7

1984 Ruben Mayes Washington State 11 1637 258 11 6.34 148.8

1971 Robert Newhouse Houston 11 1757 277 12 6.34 159.7

2005 DeAngelo Williams Memphis 11 1964 310 18 6.34 178.5

1999 Trung Canidate Arizona 12 1602 253 11 6.33 133.5

2004 Jamario Thomas North Texas 10 1801 285 17 6.32 180.1

1996 Ron Dayne Wisconsin 12 1863 295 18 6.32 155.3

2007 Jamaal Charles Texas 13 1619 258 18 6.28 124.5

2006 Garrett Wolfe Northern Ill 13 1928 309 18 6.24 148.3

2004 DeAngelo Williams Memphis 12 1948 313 22 6.22 162.3

2002 Willis McGahee Miami 13 1753 282 28 6.22 134.8

2006 Ian Johnson Boise State 12 1714 276 25 6.21 142.8

1995 Tim Biakabutuka Michigan 12 1724 279 12 6.18 143.7

1971 Lydell Nitchell Penn State 11 1567 254 26 6.17 142.5

2005 Jerome Harrison Washington State 11 1900 308 16 6.17 172.7

2007 Anthony Alridge Houston 13 1597 259 14 6.17 122.8

2004 Ryan Moats La. Tech 12 1774 288 18 6.16 147.8

2009 Donald Buckram UTEP 12 1594 259 18 6.15 132.8

1979 Charles White Southern Cal 10 1803 293 18 6.15 180.3

1992 Marshall Faulk San Diego St 10 1630 265 15 6.15 163.0

2007 Jonathan Stewart Oregon 13 1722 280 11 6.15 132.5

1996 Byron Hanspard Texas Tech 11 2084 339 13 6.15 189.5

1999 Lamont Jordan Maryland 11 1632 266 16 6.14 148.4

2002 Chris Brown Colorado 12 1841 303 19 6.08 153.4

1999 Ron Dayne Wisconsin 11 1834 303 19 6.05 166.7

1993 LaShon Johnson Northern Ill 11 1976 327 12 6.04 179.6

1995 George Jones San Diego St 12 1842 305 23 6.04 153.5

1995 Eddie George Ohio State 12 1826 303 23 6.03 152.2

2008 Shonn Greene Iowa 13 1850 307 20 6.03 142.3

1994 Lawrence Phillips Nebraska 12 1722 286 16 6.02 143.5

1980 George Rogers South Carolina 11 1781 297 14 6.00 161.9

1968 Eugene Morris West Texas State 10 1571 262 17 6.00 157.1

[IManAUBURNlifer 0]

StatTiger, that is one heck of a post. I appreciate all the info on Super Mario. He has always been one of my favorite players because of his unlimied athleticism and potential. Everytime he touches the ball I hold my breath because I honestly think he is about to take it all the way. Case in point, the little swing pass he took to the house against West Virginia. He and Dyer are gonna make a tandem to drool over. Can't wait to see the 3 headed monster in the backfield; Dyer, Fannin, and Newton. 

[guerra aguila 0]

Regardless of how many yards Fannin accounts for... all of our backs are going to be good in their own way. Its going to be fun to watch.

[around4ever 4,139]

It should be a fun year.  I still think we go over 7,000 yards of offense in 13 games.  If we play a 14th game we will be over 7,500 yards.  Don't be surprised if we have 3 rushers go for more than 1,000 yards and over 3,500 yards rushing as a team.  Optimistic?  You are right, I am.   

[StatTiger 3,188]

It should be a fun year.  I still think we go over 7,000 yards of offense in 13 games.  If we play a 14th game we will be over 7,500 yards.   Don't be surprised if we have 3 rushers go for more than 1,000 yards and over 3,500 yards rushing as a team.  Optimistic?  You are right, I am.     

I'll agree with over 6000-yards in 13 games or about 466 per game.  7000 in 13 games would be sweet but 538.5 per game might be too much to obtain. There has been 25 teams to average over 500-yards per game from 2000-2009. Gus made it twice... 

Year School Gms Ply Yards Avg TD YPG

2003 Texas Tech 13 1088 7576 6.96 76 582.77

2005 Southern California 13 1006 7537 7.49 87 579.77

2008 Tulsa 14 1097 7978 7.27 90 569.86

2009 Houston 14 1150 7887 6.86 77 563.36

2008 Houston 13 1016 7316 7.20 71 562.77

2006 Hawaii 14 913 7829 8.58 89 559.21

2000 Florida St. 12 924 6588 7.13 67 549.00

2008 Oklahoma 14 1106 7670 6.93 99 547.86

2007 Tulsa 14 1126 7615 6.76 79 543.93

2001 Brigham Young 13 991 7057 7.12 82 542.85

2004 Louisville 12 893 6468 7.24 80 539.00

2008 Texas Tech 13 979 6903 7.05 79 531.00

2007 Texas Tech 13 1009 6885 6.82 70 529.62

2001 Florida 11 788 5803 7.36 61 527.55

2005 Arizona St. 12 940 6229 6.63 59 519.08

2005 Texas 13 941 6657 7.07 88 512.08

2007 Hawaii 13 942 6657 7.07 76 512.08

2008 Nevada 13 1011 6611 6.54 64 508.54

2004 Bowling Green 12 904 6076 6.72 69 506.33

2009 Nevada 13 900 6573 7.3 69 505.62

2001 Marshall 12 880 6060 6.89 61 505.00

2007 Houston 13 1036 6525 6.30 59 501.92

2002 Boise St. 13 950 6519 6.86 79 501.46

2003 Miami (Ohio) 14 1053 7016 6.66 82 501.14

2005 Northwestern 12 974 6004 6.16 51 500.33

[guerra aguila 0]

6,000 seems to be the most realistic.

If we go over 7,000 yards then we should win a national title. I dont care what anybody says. That is offensive over kill.

[around4ever 4,139]

I know that is an extreme number but like Stat posted, CGM has gone over 500 yards two times, with much less talent.  True, the defenses were not SEC caliber either but I still think it can be done. 

[AU4ME81 0]

If we avoid injuries, and let's face it, that is hard to do in the SEC, the AUBURN backfield is going to look like the line up for the Kentucky Derby.  Fresh legs late in the half are going to put a lot of pressure on the opposing defenses.  This is where a lot of yardage is racked up during ball games.  Think back to the number of times CGM directed the offense on scoring drives late in the first half of the games played early in the season last year.  I see the same for our WR and TE as well.  Exciting times are coming in 2010.  War Eagle!!

[Turtle_Tiger 13]

Everything has pretty much been covered on Fannin. I agree he will utilized more at RB, but still playing much of his role from last year. Did anyone find the 40 times of Fannin, Aycock, and others?  Does anybody know the specifics of Fannins shoulder?  He looked so ripped last year he must have been working it out hard. Is it possible to muscle up his injury and not have needed surgury?

[wfields15 0]

I heard Fannin was in the 4.45 range... take it or leave it.

he looked fast enough against west virginia when nobody touched him for 82 yards

[guerra aguila 0]

I heard Fannin was in the 4.45 range... take it or leave it.

he looked fast enough against west virginia when nobody touched him for 82 yards

agreed

[STLEAGLE 0]

The most exciting thing about Fannin is his ability to do multiple things: run catch throw, etc. It will be nice to see him run behind this OL& Eric Smith.

[weegleweegle 0]

Super Mario for Heisman!!!!

[mfh0004 0]

I have always heard that he's not the best locker room personality, i.e. a difficult person for other players to get along with. Has anyone else heard about this? Over the past several years he's has been electric but often has gotten lost in the fold even when injury was not a problem. This might have just been the case with Tubs and his staff but I thought I'd ask for what its worth

[millejb 0]

This is awesome news IMO, Mario has a chance to be a MONSTER runningback, you'll be hard pressed to find a recent 40 but I know in high school he ran a 4.44 and I know one's speed doesn't peak until about 20 years old so I imagine he is still in the 4.4 range and at 230 that is NASTY, and you can ask the Clemson defender from the Peach Bowl how nasty that combo is. IMO Mario can be a really special player and I would hate to see him marginalized like we did Carl Stewart, I'm not sure if he's had much of a fumbling problem since that one game a couple of years ago. I really hope we get to see Mario not only because he is a great talent but as a student I can tell you he is one of the most humble student athletes at the university.

[War Eagle77 0]

Mario is gonna break some people in half this year its gonna be awesome watching him in the backfield with Cam Newton

[MarcAntony 0]

Stat, you really feel that MD will be the starting back going into 2010?  I take your opinions with more weight than almost anyone’s, but that surprises me to hear.  You’d think a team with Mario Fannin, Aycock, & OMac would not rely on a true freshman to be the starting tailback……but I guess MD will almost be 20yrs old by the time the season rolls around.  And I guess my hope that Mario’s shoulder problems are a thing of the past is simply wishful thinking – I know that was a serious set of injuries to it.

I just feel like, if healthy, Mario would be the ultimate weapon for Gus as our feature-back.  And I’d hate to see his career go by without ever seeing what he is truly capable of.  But if being the feature-back puts him at too large of risk to be injured, then I guess being the HBack/Slot WR is better than nothing.  Ideally, I would love to see Mario be the feature-back and have one of the team’s fastest players (ie PPL) be the primary slot WR. 

Speaking of PPL, do you know how he’s doing?  Is he in the coaches’ Tub-house (doghouse), or was it simply as issue of him not being back to PPL, pre-injury?  That guy, pre-injury, had superstar written all over him.  I hope he can become a big part of the offense in 2010 – that kind of speed and unreal ability to make people miss in the open field is a truly rare and valuable quality. 

Thanks Stat

[War Eagle77 0]

This is off the topic but didn't Mario miss the pretty much winning catch against Georgia or was that someone else

[MarcAntony 0]

Hard to say he missed that catch - he took one helluva hit right as the ball arrived.  Now its possible a more polished WR would have taken a more aggressive approach to catching that pass instead of allowing it to lead him into the endzone, but fact is, he got nailed right as the ball arrived.

[War Eagle77 0]

Yeah I no that but i was just wondering if it was him that got hit and missed the catch (way to ruin ben tates dreams) I'm JK

[AUDynasty 632]

This is off the topic but didn't Mario miss the pretty much winning catch against Georgia or was that someone else

yeah, but it was a badly thrown ball and Mario had to reach for it before being knocked down badly.

Every Mario needs Luigi. I nominate O-Mac to be Luigi.

[War Eagle77 0]

Ha yeah me too

[Lynx34 0]

This is off the topic but didn't Mario miss the pretty much winning catch against Georgia or was that someone else

yeah, but it was a badly thrown ball and Mario had to reach for it before being knocked down badly.

Every Mario needs Luigi. I nominate O-Mac to be Luigi.

Not to mention, the uga player needed to break his collarbone to win that game.  He just threw his body at Mario as hard as he could with no regard for his own safety.  I wouldn't blame Superman for dropping that pass.