LaMichael James, Oregon's supremely talented running back, was just named to the Walter Camp All-America Team, making him a consensus All-American, and today on ESPN he was announced as the winner of the Doak Walker award, given annually to the nation's top RB. Here are the details from goducks.com:
To be considered a consensus All-American, a player must make two of the five teams recognized by the NCAA. The other three All-America teams, which are still to be announced, are selected by the Associated Press, Football Writers Association of America and Sporting News.
James is Oregon's first consensus All-American since defensive tackle Haloti Ngata, now of the Baltimore Ravens, in 2005. UO's other consensus AAs were cornerback Alex Molden in 1995 and halfback Mel Renfro in 1962.
With the BCS National Championship game still ahead for the No. 2 Ducks, James needs 40 yards to tie Jonathan Stewart's single-season mark of 1,722 and stands only 68 yards away from Derek Loville's UO career record of 3,296.
Two things stand out about this award. One, James is only a sophomore. If he returns to Oregon for his junior year rather than leaving for the NFL, he will be by any measure the greatest running back and arguably the greatest player in Oregon history. Previously he's stated he wants to graduate, and make Academic All-American, so there's a decent chance he returns for at least his junior year. The Ducks figure to have a dazzling offense in 2011. They return Thomas, James, Barner, Tuinei, Paulson and Huff, and the current and preceding recruiting classes are loaded with potential contributors. Today they added tight end/wide receiver Christian French from Iowa, 6'6" 230 with 4.5 speed.
The second thing is, James looked banged-up in Oregon's last few games. It's a testament to his toughness and heart that he maintained a high level of productivity without his normal speed and elusiveness. Look at the video of his last several games, and he doesn't have the top gear he had in wins over Stanford and USC. His long play from scrimmage in each of his first seven starts: 72, 66, 40, 76, 84, 27, 45. The first five of these were all tds, and in the seventh, at USC, he rushed for 239 yards and a 42-yard touchdown. Here are his long carries in the last four: 16, 13, 37, 31. None of these went for a touchdown. James was still effective; he ran for 121 yards or more in three of those games, and scored seven touchdowns, but he clearly was 75-80% physically.
Hard to say what impact that will have on his decision to return for another season. The immediate impact, however is clear. LMJ has five weeks to get fresh and healthy. Auburn will see a much better player than the country did in the last few weeks of the season. And LaMichael James at his best is as good as anyone ever.
LaMichael has had 2 amazing years as a Duck. I wholeheartedly believe he absolutely comes back for at least one more season. I know he values academics so I think that's a primary driver.
ReplyDeleteOn the other hand, knowing that he's got some great backs coming in behind him, he will most likely share more of the load next year and with so many accolades the money might be too tough to resist. The challenge for him I think will be the perception that he's not big enough (at 5' 7" and 185 pounds) to be a durable back in the NFL.
Whatever happens, we've been blessed with having him at the U of O.
GD58--
ReplyDeleteHe is amazing to watch, and I'm looking for him to bust out with a big game against Auburn. My speculation is the depth at running back is a plus for him coming back. He'll be able to stay fresh and healthy, reduce his workload to maybe 20 carries a game, avoid some of the pounding. Dontae Williams has potential in the Thunder back role, and Barner, now fully recovered, has spelled him nicely in the last three games. Seastrunk has huge potential also.
Another year might benefit his draft status. The collective bargaining agreement will be settled, and he can continue to work on getting stronger and developing as a pass receiver coming out of the backfield.
How big was Barry Sanders? I don't follow the NFL closely (it bores me to tears) but as great as LaMichael is, he'll face some scepticism at the next level. Even a four-year college career might not be a bad move.
Good to hear from you, and thanks for commenting.
Dale