Fontenot Stepping Up For Buffs In Backfield
April 18, 2019 | Football, Neill Woelk
BOULDER — Just a couple of weeks ago, Colorado running backs coach Darian Hagan said of sophomore Alex Fontenot, "He has home-run ability. If he can stick his foot in the ground, he's gone."
Fontenot has shown that knack this spring, including a long touchdown run in Wednesday's full-speed team drills. Fontenot went to his left, turned the corner, avoided one tackle, then went the distance, showing the game-breaking speed his coaches hope to see more of.
"Once I see the hole, I hit it and I have a chance to be gone," Fontenot said.
Even though he is only a sophomore, Fontenot is the "elder statesman" of CU's running backs corps. With the move of Beau Bisharat to tight end, he is the only scholarship running back on the roster to have a carry in a college game. But even his experience is limited, as he last season had just 11 carries for 43 yards (including a 15-yard touchdown run).
It means the competition at the position is wide open. Also pressing for playing time are redshirt freshmen Deion Smith and Jarek Broussard and true freshmen Jaren Mangham and Joe Davis. All are getting their opportunities this spring to show their stuff — and all have had their moments.
"You can tell everybody wants the number one spot," Fontenot said with a grin. "Competition is huge. We're all friends, we all want everybody to do well. When somebody makes a big run, we're all happy for them. When someone makes a mistake, you critique them and help them learn what they could do better. We all help each other and pull for each other, but we all want that spot."
What the running backs have learned under head coach Mel Tucker is that there is more to the position than simply taking the ball and running. Tucker wants his backs to earn their keep in pass protection as well, along with being able to pick up tough yards.
"They have to be physical in pass protection," Tucker said. "That's critical to those guys, to protect our quarterback, know what to do. We want our runners to run hard and run through arm tackles, yards after contact, and always fall forward."
At 6-foot, 195 pounds, Fontenot isn't the biggest back on the roster. But he can run with power, and his speed and acceleration are weapons. But in offseason conditioning, he concentrated on other areas of his game to become a more complete back.
"Pass blocking and catching, those two things," he said. "I think I already had the running part down. Those were two things I really training hard for in the offseason and I think I'm improving at both of them."
In last Friday's first scrimmage of the spring, Fontenot had 12 carries for 30 yards and a touchdown, along with two receptions for 17 yards.
While each of the backs brings a little something different to the table, they can all agree on one thing — they love the new offense that not only promises to be more balanced, but also lends more support to the run game with a regular tight end.
"It's a lot more running downhill and more freedom and things to do for the back," Fontenot said. "It's way more balanced. We have the tight ends in there more often and we can move the ball around more."
Coordinator Jay Johnson's offense does indeed utilize the tight end — oftentimes two — on a regular basis. Their presence not only adds additional help in blocking for the run game, but also keeps linebackers occupied.
"You can tell the difference with the tight ends," Fontenot said. "It definitely helps the running backs."
Next fall will be Fontenot's third with the Buffs. While he has added muscle and speed since his arrival, his biggest gain may be his mental approach. He had the benefit of playing one season with former star running back Phillip Lindsay, who Fontenot said helped him improve his game.
"He would always give me pointers, tell me what to do, try to make me better as a player," Fontenot said. "He was great to learn from."
But now Fontenot is the veteran of the bunch.
"Everybody's learning," he said. "We just have to keep being physical like coach says, keep working to get better. We have a lot of good backs and we'll have a good running game."
Contact: Neill.Woelk@Colorado.edu
