Mile High Maniac
Fansided

Breaking down the Rocky Mountain Showdown: RBs

By Daniel Schalk

BOULDER, CO - OCTOBER 1: Colorado Buffaloes players, including, from left, quarterback Steven Montez #12, running back Beau Bisharat #35, and place kicker Chris Graham #15, sing the fight song after a 47-6 win over the Oregon State Beavers at Folsom Field on October 1, 2016 in Boulder, Colorado. (Photo by Dustin Bradford/Getty Images)
BOULDER, CO - OCTOBER 1: Colorado Buffaloes players, including, from left, quarterback Steven Montez #12, running back Beau Bisharat #35, and place kicker Chris Graham #15, sing the fight song after a 47-6 win over the Oregon State Beavers at Folsom Field on October 1, 2016 in Boulder, Colorado. (Photo by Dustin Bradford/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit

The Rocky Mountain Showdown is set for Friday, August 31st 7:30 P.M. MT. Leading up to the game, Mile High Maniac will be breaking down each position head-to-head as the in-state rivals prepare to battle. RB’s are on the clock.

We’ve gone through the quarterbacks, now we move onto the running backs.

The Buffaloes are coming into this season with relative unknowns at the running back position. Gone is team leader and one of the best backs to ever come to Boulder, Phillip Lindsay.

To replace him will likely be a committee approach with Virginia Tech transfer Travon McMillian leading the way. Alex Fontenot and Beau Bisharat will also be involved, but the real weapon is McMillian.

McMillian is a former 1,000-yard rusher at Virginia Tech as a freshman–and has over 2,100 rushing yards during his collegiate career.

At 6’0, 210-pounds McMillian has the power to run inside the tackles, but has the burst to be able to get to the edge, outrunning opposing defenders.

I can’t wait to see how the Buffs offensive staff utilizes the talent in the backfield.

Colorado State played this past Saturday, a 43-34 loss at the hands of Hawaii.

The game didn’t turn out well for the Rams, but it was a win for the Buffaloes who now have game film on the 2018 squad along with some newcomers to the team (I highlighted transfer quarterback K.J. Carta-Samuels earlier–and he went off for 537 yards and five touchdowns).

Colorado State was trailing for most of their opening week game, so they abandoned the running game fairly early, but we saw a glimpse of Izzy Matthews the senior running back who will be the leading rusher for the Rams this season.

Matthews has seen his playing time increase each year on campus–and has totaled 2,000 rushing yards during his career.

The Rams do have a talented sophomore who figures to be an important part of their backfield. Marcus McElroy only received four carries against Hawaii, but averaged seven yards per attempt. With a more balanced attack–McElroy will see more playing time.

The assumed starters for both clubs (McMillian and Matthews) come with a lot of collegiate experience and both squads have capable backups who will see touches during the Rocky Mountain Showdown.

It’s not easy to give one side the advantage in this positional matchup, but if I had to choose one, I’ll go with the Buffs based on the Travon McMillian tape I put on from his days at Virginia Tech.

Edge: Colorado Buffaloes–slightly

Home/Colorado Buffaloes