Best Running Back College Tandem Ever?

CajunCrimson

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Mar 13, 2001
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Please forgive me for some I may forget.......and I know that this is probably Mark's last year, and we should have one more with Trent, so it's hard to gauge their ultimate contribution.

However, I was interested in your opinion of the best Running Back Tandem ever.....in College Football......

I forgot to do the poll.........help?

Doc Blanchard and Glen Davis - Army
Eric Dickerson and Craig James - SMU
Darren McFadden and Felix Jones - Arkansas
Roger Craig and Mike Rozier - Nebraska
Reggie Bush and Lendale White - USC
Mark Ingram and Trent Richardson - Alabama
Barry Sanders and Thurman Thomas - Okie State
Cadillac Williams and Ronnie Brown - Auburn
 
Last edited:

selmaborntidefan

TideFans Legend
Mar 31, 2000
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Please forgive me for some I may forget.......and I know that this is probably Mark's last year, and we should have one more with Trent, so it's hard to gauge their ultimate contribution.

However, I was interested in your opinion of the best Running Back Tandem ever.....in College Football......

I forgot to do the poll.........help?

Doc Blanchard and Glen Davis - Army
Eric Dickerson and Craig James - SMU
Darren McFadden and Felix Jones - Arkansas
Roger Craig and Mike Rozier - Nebraska
Reggie Bush and Lendale White - USC
Mark Ingram and Trent Richardson - Alabama
Barry Sanders and Thurman Thomas - Okie State
Cadillac Williams and Ronnie Brown - Auburn

One of the problems with a poll like this is the tendency to read pro stats back into the college game. If you do that then it's Thurman Thomas and Barry Sanders and nobody else is even close.

Another one that nobody considers - but should be - is Auburn's triumvirate back in 1978 of Joe Cribbs-William Andrews-James Brooks, all of whom were All-Pros later on. I saw a MNF game where Howard Cosell said, "With those three in the backfield, how did Auburn ever lose?"

The best in college was probably Dickerson-James.

ADD EDIT

Another one that deserves consideration is LSU's Dalton James gang of Dalton Hilliard and Gary James.
 

Chukker Veteran

Hall of Fame
Feb 6, 2001
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Finebaum had a sportswriter from the Wall Street Journal...Alan Berra? :conf2: He's written a book or two on Bama football...

anyway he says Ingram & Richardson are the two best backs playing. That's a little different from being an all time tandem, but still it's tall cotton.
 
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TiderMan

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Feb 5, 2005
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One of the problems with a poll like this is the tendency to read pro stats back into the college game. If you do that then it's Thurman Thomas and Barry Sanders and nobody else is even close.

Another one that nobody considers - but should be - is Auburn's triumvirate back in 1978 of Joe Cribbs-William Andrews-James Brooks, all of whom were All-Pros later on. I saw a MNF game where Howard Cosell said, "With those three in the backfield, how did Auburn ever lose?"

The best in college was probably Dickerson-James.

ADD EDIT

Another one that deserves consideration is LSU's Dalton James gang of Dalton Hilliard and Gary James.
Auburn also had another good group in the early 80's
Bo Jackson, Lionel James, and Tommy Agee.

Alabama had a good group in the late 70's with Tony Nathan, Major Ogilivie, & Johnny Davis, & Steve Whitman.
 

Probius

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I think Ingram and Richardson have the potential to be the best runningback duo ever, but time will tell. If Richardson really breaks out next season and is a Heisman finalist or wins it I think that clinches it.
 

FitToBeTide

All-American
Aug 19, 2001
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Agree, GrayTide.

Glenn Davis-Heisman 1946 - He still holds the all-time record for most yards averaged per carry in a season, with 11.5 yards in 1945.

Doc Blanchard-Heisman-1945 (as a Jr)

Together with Davis, they set a then-record 97 career touchdowns by a pair of teammates. (The record was broken by University of Southern California backs Reggie Bush and LenDale White, who had 99 career touchdowns.)

I lean toward these two.
 

Catfish

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Oct 11, 2005
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I might have to go with Marcus Allen and Charles White at USC. Both won Heismans and both deserved it, IMO. In 79, Allen was White's fullback! LOL!
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TideFan in AU

Hall of Fame
Marion Barber and Laurence Maroney at Minnesota should at least be mentioned as one of the best tandems. Barber and Maroney were the first duo in NCAA history to each rush for 1,000 yards in consecutive seasons. They pretty much ran all over a pretty dang good Bama D (ranked #2) in 2004.
 

45longcolt

All-SEC
Dec 30, 2007
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Definition of TANDEM:

An arrangement of two or more persons or objects placed one behind the other!

Now name the tandems as I don't remember many but I don't remember a whole lot - I just enjoy the DAY!:BigA::BigA::BigA:

I want to hear it from you pros now.
 

ecra-joe

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Dec 16, 2006
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there was an article in the bham news about this just a week ago or so. its said that beano guy from espn said the army guys were the best hands down but i mean.....in todays game i cant imagine theyd be doing much of anything. i think thurman and barry sanders at okie st take the cake. more bc of barry sanders. when i was a kid it was wayne gretzkey(sp?), frank thomas, barry sanders, and michael jordan. i mean barry was just fun to watch. i used to watch lions games and hope theyd hand it off to him every play. itd be 3 and 15 and id be mad i didnt get to watch him try for 15 yards. i was so bummed when he retired outta nowhere.

as far as ingram and richardson go...theyre good and have the oppurtunity to be one of the great tandems but they arent there yet. i think carnell and brown are still a schmidge better and i dont know that any two will be better than felix jones and mcfadden. those two were sick.
 

Ditsy911

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Jun 29, 2010
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My friend made a good point...those two push each other big time. Not only with friendly encouragement though. Richardson works hard to try to get the starting job...and Ingram in turn has to work hard to keep it. Each is fresh because one takes duty while the other rests. It's very safe to assume they wouldn't be as good without each other.

Great time to be a Bama fan hehe
 
S

superbamashane

Guest
Something that no one has mentioned is the fact that almost all of the duos mentioned spent a lot of time on the field together which greatly improved their chances of sucess. Trent and mark do it one at a time.
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