Alabama vs Auburn: Will Michael Dyer Ruin Trent Richardson's Heisman Hopes?

There aren’t many players on Auburn’s offense that exactly "strike fear" in the Alabama defense, but there is one player in particular who the Tide will be keeping a close eye on all game long.

Auburn RB Michael Dyer may only be a sophomore, but he’s already notched his spot amongst the best backs in college football.

The former 5-star recruit has been an instant impact player for the Tigers, rushing for over 1,000 yards in each of his first two seasons, and he already has plenty of clutch runs on his resume.

Dyer will face the toughest test of his career this weekend when the talent-stocked Tide defense comes to town.

Alabama leads the country in rushing defense, allowing just 2.5 yards per carry this season.

Mark Barron, Courtney Upshaw, Dont’a Hightower—they all remember what the Tigers did to them last season.

They remember the collapse well. But that was with Heisman-winner Cam Newton leading the charge.

Now, with Newton gone, it’s Dyer’s turn to carry the offense on his shoulders.

It’s a daunting task to say the least, but if there’s any back in America that’s up for it, it’s Dyer.

The 5’9’’, 205-pound sophomore only ran for 27 yards in last year’s meeting, and he’s going to be looking to redeem himself on Saturday.

The only problem is, his offensive line hasn’t exactly been the most consistent unit recently, and the inexperienced group could have some severe struggles with the Alabama defensive front seven.

If Dyer can find a few holes, though, he’s the type of back that can quickly make something out of nothing, and he has no problem breaking his way through tackles.

Dyer will be looking to upstage his SEC counterpart, Trent Richardson, who has received the most attention and acclaim out of any of the conference’s top backs this season.

Richardson is the one who looks to be in the Heisman driver’s seat right now, but all it takes is one poor performance to potentially knock him out of the running.

Dyer may not want to wait another year, after Richardson has left, to take over the SEC. On Saturday, the young sophomore will be looking to show the world that he’s college football’s top back.

If Dyer does indeed outperform Richardson, it will likely be a severe hit to his Heisman hopes.

Richardson has yet to go up head-to-head against a running back as talented as Dyer this season, and it should be interesting to see how he handles a little rushing faceoff.