Best of the decade
CLEMSON, S.C. – Travis Etienne will forever be “the one that got away” for LSU coach Ed Orgeron – something akin to losing a hefty redfish while fishing Lake Pontchartrain.
“I get asked about him all the time,” Orgeron said. “And every time I watch Clemson play or every time I’ve seen him having success, I’m sick to my stomach.”
Etienne, a native of Jennings, Louisiana, would like nothing more than to induce a little more nausea for “Coach O” when Clemson and LSU battle in the College Football Playoff national championship game at the Superdome in New Orleans on Jan. 13.
“I just can’t wait to go out there and play the best four quarters of my life,” Etienne said.
That’s saying a lot for a running back who in only three seasons has staked a claim as the best running back in Clemson history.
He’ll enter the national title game only 7 yards shy of surpassing Raymond Priester as the school’s all-time leading rusher, but as he demonstrated in the Tigers’ Fiesta Bowl victory against Ohio State, it’s his emergence as a receiver that might turn out to be key as Clemson attempts to win its third national championship in four years.
“I felt all along when he came out of high school that his ability to run the ball would be there and he’d have a quick impact,” said Rusty Phelps, Etienne’s coach at Jennings High School. “But just to see how hard he’s worked at catching the football, that was really great to see. And it showed the other night.” And how.
Etienne had a modest three receptions against the previously unbeaten Buckeyes but turned two of his catches into touchdowns covering 53 and 34 yards.
The second score provided Clemson’s winning margin with 1:49 remaining in the game.
The junior became the first Clemson running back to have two receiving touchdowns in a game since Jamie Harper in 2010 at Auburn, and his careerhigh 98 receiving yards were the most by a Clemson running back since C.J. Spiller had 104 at Miami in 2009.
Not since Spiller has a running back been this big of a factor in Clemson’s passing game. Etienne, who had a total of 17 catches for 135 yards his first two seasons, has 32 receptions – the third-highest total on the team – for 396 yards and four touchdowns so far this season.
“What Travis is doing catching the ball puts pressure on a defense, particularly in some third-down situations,” Clemson co-offensive coordinator Tony Elliott said. “For Travis, we said all along that that’s really his next step – becoming a viable threat out of the backfield if he wants to continue to play at the next level and play for a long time.”
Clemson coach Dabo Swinney has been impressed with Etienne’s newfound skill set.
“We’ve had some unbelievable backs around here, and to see what he’s done is pretty special,” Swinney said. “He needed to develop as a receiver and he’s worked hard on that.
“He’s become more of an allaround player. He’s blue-collar, likes to be coached, never complains. He just shows up and works every day.”
Now Etienne is poised to show up – and perhaps show out – against his home state team. And maybe give Coach O another round of indigestion.
“We should have recruited him at an earlier age, like we do all our great Louisiana backs, and keep them in state,” he said. “He’s the one that got away.”