FSU Football could face serious obstacles from run defenses in 2018

FSU football has one of the best running back groups in college football, but one look at opposing run defenses could have the Seminoles worried.

When FSU football takes the field for the upcoming season, there is little doubt that they have some of the best running backs not just in the state of Florida or the ACC – but maybe the entire country. It starts with Cam Akers coming off a 1,000 yard freshman year along with senior leader and former five star Jacques Patrick.

Add in Khalan Laborn, another former five star who showed out during the spring game, and the Seminoles have a trio of backs that could play for nearly every FBS team in the country – a group that still averaged over 155 yards a game last season with that swiss cheese offensive line former position coach Rick Trickett put on the field each week.

There is just one thing standing in the way of FSU football having the top running back group in the country by season’s end – a schedule that includes some of the top run defenses in all of college football.

Last season, eight of the Seminoles’ 11 opponents who play in the FBS gave up less rushing yards per game than what the Noles averaged – including three teams who ranked in the top 16 nationally in yards allowed (No. 11 Northern Illinois at 112 YPG, No. 13 Clemson at 113 YPG and No. 16 Virginia Tech at 118 YPG).

Now, sometimes you can’t look at what took place a season before as a barometer for what will take place in 2018 – but all three of those teams returned a bulk, if not all, of the players in their front seven. Clemson was the only team out of that trio that FSU football faced last season, and the Seminoles got just 21 yards rushing the whole game.

The jury is still out on what the Seminoles’ run game will do this season – with some saying Akers could be the best player in the ACC and others asking if he will be one of the most overhyped players in college football this season.

One thing is for certain: Akers, Patrick, Laborn and the rest of the unit will be challenged early against the Hokies and they are going to have to do something this year they didn’t in 2017 – show up against the best teams they play.

Next: ACC Kickoff: Akers, Burns representing the Noles

Getting 200 rushing yards won’t work when it’s just against 93rd ranked Wake Forest of 102nd ranked Boston College – FSU football and their running game are going to have to be the best against the best.