Sept. 27, 2017
By Greg Ostendorf
AuburnTigers.com
AUBURN, Ala. -- The band is getting back together.
For the first time this season, Auburn is expected to have running backs Kamryn Pettway and Kerryon Johnson both healthy and available for Saturday's Mississippi State game.
"[Pettway] did practice yesterday, and we do expect him to play," Auburn coach Gus Malzahn said on Wednesday's SEC teleconference. "We'll just see how much and all that as it gets later in the week."
Regardless, that's a positive sign for Auburn. Pettway and Johnson haven't played in the same game since last year's Sugar Bowl loss to Oklahoma, and even then, neither was 100 percent. Injuries kept the duo from regularly playing together last year, and yet, they each finished in the top 15 of SEC running backs in rushing yards and rushing yards per game.
"When they're both healthy, it's a great one-two punch," Auburn safety Tray Matthew said. "Pettway is a dynamic runner, as well as a bulldozer. People don't really want to tackle him that much. Kerryon is a more shifty guy, but he also can punish some linebackers and safeties as well. When they're both healthy, it's a crazy tandem."
This past weekend at Missouri, it was Johnson who got the start in place of an injured Pettway and finished with 48 yards rushing and five touchdowns. The week before, with Johnson still nursing a bad hamstring, Pettway rushed for 128 yards and three touchdowns against Mercer.
Each of them are difficult enough on their own and present different challenges to opposing defenses. Together? They can be a nightmare.
"I think any defense will tell you that when you have two backs and they're both different, that puts you on constant edge," Johnson said. "When a new guy comes in, you have to start thinking `Oh, what about this play now? What about this style?' I think it poses a great challenge for defenses, and it keeps them on their seat and makes them have to think about a lot more things differently.
"Like we've always said, it's a lot easier when you have two."
Malzahn hasn't had the luxury of Johnson and Pettway playing in the same game very often, but during Tuesday's press conference, he said he felt "blessed" just to have two running backs of that caliber on the roster.
"What really got us towards the end of last year was both of them got banged up," Malzahn said. "So you would like to see what they can do when they are both healthy."
Malzahn also expects Kam Martin, the team's leading rusher to this point in the season, to still be a part of the offense moving forward. The sophomore running back rushed for a team-high 136 yards and a touchdown in the season opener, and he led the team again this past Saturday with 74 yards on only nine carries.
"Kam has always been more than capable," Johnson said. "He's a great running back. If he was at another place, he'd probably be playing a lot more. But he's a patient guy. And Kam just loves to play football. So any chance he gets, he's going to go out there and give his 100 percent."
With all three players healthy, the sky is the limit for this Auburn backfield.
Since Malzahn has been head coach, the Tigers have finished first or second in the SEC in rushing three of the past four seasons. They currently sit sixth in the conference, averaging 199.5 rushing yards per game, but that number could easily move up now that Johnson, Pettway and Martin are all healthy.
The band is back, and that's bad news for opposing defenses.
Greg Ostendorf is a Staff Writer for AuburnTigers.com. Follow him on Twitter: Follow @greg_ostendorf