When the Auburn Tigers began this season, coach Tommy Tuberville was unsure who would replace the tailback tandem of Carnell Williams and Ronnie Brown, who were both chosen within the first five picks of the NFL Draft.
“The biggest thing that we had going into the season was that we had young running backs,” said Tuberville during the Southeastern Conference Football Coaches press conference. “We were trying to learn as much about our players as they were about the offense going into the season.”
After seven games, junior Kenny Irons has emerged from Auburn’s crowded backfield to lead the team with 87 carries for 514 yards.
“He’s a hard, physical runner,” LSU senior defensive tackle Kyle Williams said. “He gets behind that offensive line and runs behind his pads. He’s going to run hard and fight for every inch.”
Though junior Tre Smith started Auburn’s first two games, Irons started three of Auburn’s last four games and has carried the ball 75 times for 467 yards and five touchdowns.
Although Irons was not the starting running back in Auburn’s 34-17 win over Arkansas last weekend, he ended up rushing the ball 33 times for 182 yards. Both were career highs.
“I’m usually getting 10 to 12 carries a game,” Irons said after the game in a news release. “But 33, I would have never imagined that. Our offensive line did a great job. I get stronger as the game goes on. I had 33 carries, but I wanted more.”
Redshirt freshman Brad Lester started for Auburn against the Razorbacks but left in the first half with a strained groin after rushing seven times for 32 yards.
“We felt that Brad Lester in the previous games had played [with] better technique,” Tuberville said. “There’s not a lot of difference in either one of them. Brad might be a step faster and quicker.”
Tuberville said Irons will start this weekend against LSU with Lester’s groin injury keeping him sidelined.
“Obviously, now with Brad Lester out, Kenny will move back into the starting lineup,” Tuberville said. “If it would have happened where Kenny would have come in last week and done what he had done with Brad not being injured, this would be Kenny’s start anyway.”
In January 2004, Irons transferred from South Carolina to Auburn where his brother, David Irons, is currently a senior defensive back. Irons redshirted last season because of NCAA transfer rules.
During his freshman and sophomore seasons at South Carolina, Irons played sparingly. He had 47 carries for 201 yards as a true freshman for the Gamecocks in 2002, but he only had 19 carries for 51 yards his sophomore season in 2003.
“Kenny’s a very tough physical player, and he loves contact. He was a fullback in high school. That’s what we recruited him as,” Tuberville said. “He’s slimmed down, he’s gotten faster and quicker, and he’s got good peripheral vision as a running back.”
Contact Clinton Duckworth at [email protected]