Florida football: Gators could have their first 1,000 yard rusher in years this season
By Will Thomas
![Florida Gators running back Trevor Etienne (7) and Florida Gators offensive lineman Austin Barber (58) celebrate after scoring a touchdown during the first half against the South Carolina Gamecocks at Steve Spurrier Field at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium in Gainesville, FL on Saturday, November 12, 2022. [Matt Pendleton/Gainesville Sun]Ncaa Football Florida Gators Vs South Carolina GamecocksSyndication Gainesville Sun](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_fill,w_1080,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/shape%2Fcover%2Fsport%2Fa0a6674ffb8eb14c07766e8251da69690a81f35420a68c0be0d909709fc774fe.jpg "Florida Gators running back Trevor Etienne (7) and Florida Gators offensive lineman Austin Barber (58) celebrate after scoring a touchdown during the first half against the South Carolina Gamecocks at Steve Spurrier Field at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium in Gainesville, FL on Saturday, November 12, 2022. [Matt Pendleton/Gainesville Sun]Ncaa Football Florida Gators Vs South Carolina GamecocksSyndication Gainesville Sun")
Florida football’s offense is going to be better than a lot of people think this year, especially on the ground. They have a two-headed monster in the backfield in Montrell Johnson and Trevor Etienne. The addition of Cameron Carroll from Tulane was big for their depth in the backfield.
The biggest improvement from last season is going to come on the offensive line. The Gators lose O’Cyrus Torrence, and the unit wasn’t bad at all last season. But the transfers that Napier was able to bring in will transform the trenches.
The transfer O-linemen coming in, are in the most literal sense, a huge addition to the team. The average size of Micah Mazzcua, Damieon George, and Kiyaunta Goodiwn is 6’7”-341. That’s a lot of mass.
And if you guys thought that the offense this year was built around the run, it will be even more ground-heavy this season.
No disrespect to Graham Mertz, but opposing teams don’t look at him and think “Oh man he’s about to throw for 300 yards and four touchdowns.”
With the offensive line that the Gators will be fielding next year, partnered with the two elite backs, the ground game will excel in Gainesville.
With all of these factors in mind, this could be the season that the Gators have their first 1,000-yard rusher in seven years.
The last guy to do it was Kelvin Taylor in 2015 when he ran for 1,035 yards.
The biggest hurdle that one of these guys will have to clear is just getting enough carries to eclipse that 1,000-yard mark. In Taylor’s 1,000-yard season, he averaged four yards a rush on 259 carries. Etienne averaged 6.1 YPC last year, and Montrell averaged 5.4, on 118 and 155 carries respectively.
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Despite not having the carries that Taylor had, both guys made a semi-decent run at 1,000. Etienne got up to 719 yards, but he wasn’t even seeing consistent carries until halfway through the year.
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Montrell got to 841 yards on the season. After Nay’Quan Wright stopped getting carries, both of these guys saw their usage go up.
This season, even with the addition of Cameron Carrol, Etienne and Johnson should both see increased carries. With all of this in mind, the question isn’t can one of these guys get to 1,000 yards.
Maybe it’s just which one will do it.
Keep up with Florida football at Hail Florida Hail.