Saylor Lavallii - CMU tailback

[Jimmy Chitwood]

at the beginning of the year if anyone talked about MAC football and big time players, the name Zurlon Tipton undoubtedly came up. Tipton (6-0, 221) ran for almost 1,500 yards a year ago (while averaging 5.9 yards-per-carry) and was touted as one of the top returning backs in the country. so when he went down in the Chippewas' season opener against Michigan with a broken ankle and was lost for the season, the media "experts" said the CMU rushing attack was finished. you see, the media "experts" insisted that there was no one on the roster who could fill his shoes.

not so fast ...

enter sophomore tailback Saylor Lavallii (5-9, 213). since being named the CMU starter in Week 2, Lavallii has proven more than capable of filling those shoes and running wild in them. if his last two outings are any indication, the swift sophomore (4.48 in the 40) is just hitting his stride. against Miami (OH) he went for 151 yards and 2 touchdowns on 25 carries, and against Ohio he raced for 184 yards on 26 carries and scored on a touchdown catch-and-run.

at the midway point of the season, he's amassed 705 yards and 5 touchdowns on 138 carries (a 5.1 avg), good enough to rank 13th in the nation in rushing. he is averaging over 100 yards rushing per game and is a threat in the passing game, as well, having snared 11 passes for 62 yards and 1 touchdown.

if he continues this pace, in his first season as a starter Lavallii has a shot at breaking the "irreplaceable" Tipton's mark from a year ago.

 

[Leonardfan]

Nice write up once again J.C. spotlighting an under the radar white athlete.

I was totally unaware of him until someone mentioned him in the week 7 thread (might of been you).

 

[Jimmy Chitwood]

things have gone downhill for this downhill runner, of late. since the "real" starter has returned to health, Lavallii has been relegated to mop-up duties. in CMU's three most recent games, Saylor has received 9, 3, and 9 carries. all good tailbacks thrive on getting in a rhythm, yet the sophomore's scant and rare touches haven't allowed him to do so. consequently, he's averaged an anemic 1.7 yards-per-carry.

of course, the "dynamic," "explosive," "electric," player who returned to his "rightful" starting position is lighting up the football world, right? wrong. in those three games, Tipton has 50 carries for a mere 172 yards (an underwhelming 3.4 yard average).