Replacing Mendenhall? Juice and Co Look to Fill a Large Hole

When practices began in Rantoul twoweeks ago, one of the hottest topics for the Fighting Illini was how they would replace Rashard Mendenhall, who was drafted by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the first round last April.

If Monday’s scrimmage was any indication, it won’t be as hard as previously thought. Illinois won’t replace Mendenhall with just one back, instead they will adopt a committee approach.

Leading the way is junior Daniel Dufrene, who often spelled Mendenhall at times. After adding some muscle, he seems ready to take a good number carries. In the scrimmage he rushed 10 times for 60 yards and a touchdown.

Dufrene also made some impressive runs straight through the lines, a skill many claimed he lacked. While he may not have a 1,000 yard season, look for Dufrene to make a big impact this year.

Another returning back is redshirt freshman, Troy Pollard. In three games as a true freshman, the Jacksonville native had a 6.3 ypc average. The scat back was a great change of pace who showed great promise before injuring his knee against Indiana.

The experience at tailback is meshed with two talented freshmen. Mikel Leshoure, the Champaign-Urbana area’s all time leading rusher from Champaign Centennial and Jason Ford, who became the IHSA’s all time leader in rushing yards at Althoff Catholic in Belleville.

Both backs have powerful builds and showed them off well in the scrimmage. Mikel also has great hands, so look for him to contribute as a receiver. Ford has excellent speed to complement his strong build which makes him a great down field threat. Look for immediate contributions from both.

Of course Juice is still the quarterback, which gives Illinois one of the best running threats in the Big Ten. While he may not rush for over 700 yards this season, he will still call his own number on many plays.

If Williams shows even more improvement on his passing, defenses won’t be able to load the box. This will make the running game even more effective out of the spread.

All in all, while losing Rashard to the draft seemed to spell the end of Illinois’ dominance in the Big Ten rushing wise, the running game is in good hands with Juice and four capable running backs.

Will they lead the Big Ten in rushing for a third straight season? Probably not, but they have just enough talent to have yet another effective season on the ground.