Column: LSU coach Les Miles has zero incentive to save Leonard Fournette’s legs

LSU fans love watching tailback Leonard Fournette run the rock, as he is the Alpha of an old-school offense and the frontrunner for the Heisman Trophy, but some are beginning to worry that he is being subjected to too much punishment.

Fortunately, Fournette and Co. have a much-needed bye in Week 9, meaning the Tigers get an extra seven days to lick their wounds ahead of another Game of the Century-type showdown with Alabama on Nov. 7 in Tuscaloosa. Because it took longer than expected to put overmatched Western Kentucky out of its misery last Saturday – the 48-20 final was closer than the score suggests – coach Les Miles kept calling Fournette’s number well into the fourth quarter.

For the Bayou Bengal backers still hoping that Miles leaves a little gas in Fournette’s tank for the long haul, here’s some sobering news: He won’t.

According to Brent Holloway, who covers LSU for Saturday Down South, giving Fournette 20, 25, even 30 carries week after week has been out of necessity thus far.

“I think Miles would probably prefer not to overload his star running back, but circumstances are dictating his usage to some extent,” Holloway told me via e-mail. “The Tigers have failed to put away teams like Syracuse, Eastern Michigan and Western Kentucky until well into the second half, and often Fournette has been their only reliable source of offense. Better to play it safe and keep feeding him than rest him and open up the possibility of an unthinkable upset.”

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Following the bye, LSU’s schedule is back-loaded with four potential bloodbaths against SEC West foes, meaning Miles likely has no plans to get reserve ball carriers Darrel Williams and Derrius Guice into the huddle more often. Look for a heavy dose of Fournette to the left, Fournette to the right and Fournette up the middle, as that’s the most sound strategy to get through this gauntlet unscathed.

The harsh reality in the system we have created in big-time college football these days is that players – even a once-in-a-decade dream like Fournette – are more disposable than ever. Miles is paid to win as many games as possible, so in order to do so and preserve his $4.3 million salary, it’s in his best interest to run his prized 6-1, 230-pounder into the ground until he inevitably leaves Baton Rouge a year early for the NFL draft.

In only seven games, Fournette has already accumulated a season’s worth of eye-popping statistics: 176 carries for 1,352 yards (7.7 yards per attempt) and 15 touchdowns.

Not only has he posted no less than 150 yards on the ground in any game, but he has also been the proverbial workhorse of the Tigers offense. Five times Fournette has had at least 26 carries — including 31 in a Week 6 triumph over SEC East-favorite Florida –and he’s just 11 shy of matching last season’s total of 187.

At his current pace, if the Tigers run the table, win the SEC Championship Game, get selected for the College Football Playoff, win the semifinal and reach the national title game, Fournette will carry the football a jaw-dropping 377 times, run for a record-shattering 2,897 yards and score a video game-like 32 TDs. (Herschel Walker ran an SEC-record 385 times as a sophomore in 1981.)

The sophomore would shatter the sport’s single-season rushing mark – Oklahoma State legend Barry Sanders registered 2,628 in 1988, albeit in fewer games and not including his bowl stats – and surely win the Heisman in landslide fashion, plus LSU more than likely captures the national championship if Fournette proves to be that unstoppable from September to January.

Even if the burden ends up being too much for the New Orleans native to bear in the long run and he’s a shell of his former self in 2016, most everyone in purple and gold not wearing No. 7 (season-ticket holders, his teammates, Miles and his staff, etc.) will have no regrets.

The aforementioned Guice, by the way, was the No. 5 running back recruit in the country for 2015 according to 247 Sports, so perhaps the heir to the throne is already on the roster.

According to Holloway, the 45-24 trouncing of South Carolina on Oct. 10 was the blueprint for how to protect Fournette going forward, but Miles hasn’t enjoyed an insurmountable lead often enough.

good. god. @_fournette is right. we are #savages #ForeverLSU #UFvsLSU #LSU #GeauxTigers https://t.co/5ww5f7kZ6U

— ?(ツ)? (@bouillabae) October 20, 2015

“I think the gameplan shown against South Carolina would be preferred: Establish a three-touchdown lead by the midway point of the third quarter and let the rest of the backs shoulder the load from there,” Holloway said. “But the actual game flow hasn’t allowed that to happen as often as the final scores might indicate.”

Finding a way to limit Fournette’s pitch count the rest of this season may be wise if Miles wants to keep his bell cow fresh for a championship run, but worrying about the young man’s long-term health, callous as it may sound, just isn’t his concern.

Whether Fournette arrives at the next level a budding superstar like Adrian Peterson or a broken-down mess like Blair Thomas, Pop Warner fields across the Pelican State will remain littered with future five-star studs.

During his 11-year tenure on the bayou, Miles has produced the likes of Jeremy Hill, Alfred Blue, Stevan Ridley, Keiland Williams, Jacob Hester and Joseph Addai at running back, with each earning their fair share of NFL paychecks. Whether Fournette turns out to be the best of the bunch by far – he’s being mentioned in the same breath as Walker, the SEC icon – it’s safe to say the LSU backfield will always have talent.

Miles shouldn’t care what this Fournette eventually does on Sundays, as ultimately his future will be more secure if he finds the next Fournette currently playing on Fridays.

John Crist

John Crist is an award-winning contributor to Saturday Down South.