FSU Football: Comparing Cam Akers to first year of Dalvin Cook

FSU football is seeing another star in the backfield – but how does Cam Akers compare in his opening season to the last great running back.

For FSU Football this past weekend, the 27-24 victory over Syracuse was more than just a great day because they got their third win of the season and stayed in contention to get a bowl berth, but it was also a fun day to watch the new man in the backfield do his thing and show why Cam Akers was one of the top names in the 2017 recruiting class.

By the time the day was over, the true freshman from Mississippi finished just one yard shy of 200 for the day with two touchdowns – both records for him just eight games into his college career. During both runs, commentators made it very clear that the man wearing No. 3 looked a lot like the man who was wearing No. 4 in the backfield the last three seasons.

Yes, in the current world of sports it’s almost always going to be people comparing one person to another. In this case, there is a decent argument that Akers might end up being better than the all time leading rusher in FSU football history – if he can keep on his current pace.

Through eight games, Akers has ran for 695 yards and three touchdowns for the Seminoles. During his freshman season in 2004, Cook finished the year with 1,008 yards and eight touchdowns through 13 games so Akers could have as many as five games to get a total of 313 yards and five touchdowns – both of which are extremely doable.

The one area where Cook has a clear advantage was that he had some of his best days against better defenses. So far this season, Akers has faced three rushing defenses ranked in the top 32 nationally (Alabama at No. 1, N.C. State at No. 20 and Syracuse at No. 32) and he has combined for 284 yards on 44 carries with two touchdowns – most of that coming this past weekend.

In his freshman season for FSU football in 2014, Cook faced six defenses in the top 30 nationally and finished with 491 yards on 82 carries with three touchdowns.

Right now, Akers will face at least two more FBS teams in the regular season with Clemson ranking 19th in rush defense and Florida coming in at 42nd – with a chance to face Louisiana Monroe at the end of the season, which would be awesome since the Warhawks rank 111th in rush defense this season.

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It’s almost unfair to compare Akers after just two thirds of a season with FSU football to maybe one of the best to ever suit up for the Seminoles. That being said, it is a legit question and one that we should know more of an answer to as each game goes on. One thing is for sure – the Seminoles are going to rely on his legs if they want to finish 2017 with a winning record.