RB Respect Month Vol. 3, Day Ten: Rudi Johnson runs roughshod on Louisiana Tech (2000)
A salute to the late, great Rudi Johnson.
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Welcome to day ten of Running Back Respect Month! Yesterday, Alabama put on ground game masterclass in the 2012 SEC Championship with Eddie Lacy and TJ Yeldon. Here's where we're at today, and how the rest of the month looks:
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Today: Rudi Johnson vs. Louisiana Tech (2000)
RB Respect Month Vol. 3, Day Ten: Rudi Johnson runs roughshod on Louisiana Tech (2000)
Rudi Johnson was my favorite kind of running back to watch. He was short (5'10), but not a burner. He was wide (228 pounds), but had more agility and quickness than you'd think. Johnson was built like a mini tank, which is exactly how he ran. He could physically take on all three levels of a defense, while also surprising linebackers and DBs with just enough speed, quick feet, and a lethal spin move.
Before his one season of major college football, Johnson had Hall of Fame JUCO career at Butler Community College (Kansas). In just two seasons, he ran for 4,007 yards and 46 touchdowns, leading the Grizzlies to back-to-back national titles. In the 1999 title game, Johnson capped his career by ripping top-ranked Dixie (Utah) for 370 yards and 7 touchdowns in Butler's 49-35 win. If you think he was just taking advantage of lesser opponents, it's not like SEC defenses fared much better against him when he arrived at Auburn.
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Johnson was dominant in his lone season on The Plains. He was the driving force in Auburn's jump from 5-6 to 9-4 in 2000. He became the first Tiger to cross 1,000 yards rushing in a season since Stephen Davis in 1995. In fact, he ran for an SEC-best 1,567 yards and 13 touchdowns, unanimously winning SEC Offensive Player of the Year. His tenth-place finish in Heisman voting was Auburn's highest finish since Bo Jackson's 1985 win! If you include their bowl, his 1,652 yards are still third-most in single-season in Auburn history. Simply put, Rudi Johnson was the one-year superstar in Auburn history prior to Cam Newton. His best performance that year was a 249-yard, 4-TD gem in the Tigers' 38-28 win vs. Louisiana Tech:
In a game the Tigers needed to reach bowl eligibility for the first time in three years, Johnson put his whole skillset on display. He flashed the trademark spin early on:
