Auburn Flashback - Carnell Williams first signature win

[StatTiger 3,188]

This Auburn Flashback goes back nearly 20 years to 2001 when Carnell Williams had his first signature victory as an Auburn Tiger. Though Williams rushed for 177-yards the week before against Arkansas, his 167-yard performance against the Georgia Bulldogs resulted in a victory. Williams was highly touted coming out of high school but his career at Auburn began slowly. The 5-11, 193-pound freshman, rushed for only 231-yards during his first six games as an Auburn Tiger, averaging just 4.2 yards per attempt. (He was limited by injuries early on.)

Against the No. 17 ranked Georgia Bulldogs, Carnell Williams totaled 238-yards of total offense on 45 offensive touches, scoring two touchdowns. During his last four games of the 2001 season, Williams rushed for 461-yards, while averaging 5.7 yards per carry. He began living up to his preseason hype before going down with a shoulder injury against Alabama. After the 2001 Georgia game, Carnell Williams rushed for 3256-yards and 39 touchdowns during the remainder of his collegiate career.

The 2001 Georgia game displayed Carnell Williams talent at running back. He had the patience to follow his blockers but could also explode through the slimmest of holes to gain valuable yardage. He possessed outstanding footwork, which allowed him to avoid initial contact, rarely being tackled on the first contact with the opposition. Even under 200-pounds, Williams ran with authority and never shied away from contact.

Carnell Williams was on his way to a 1000-yard season in 2002, before a leg injury against the Florida Gators sidelined him for the season. Prior to the Florida game, Williams averaged 123.0 yards per game (First 6 games). He was named All-SEC during his junior and senior seasons and is considered one of the greatest running backs in school history. He finished his collegiate career with 4179-yards in total offense and 46 touchdowns as an Auburn Tiger.

 

https://youtu.be/QVWfEmKhIDg

[McLoofus 35,182]

2 hours ago, StatTiger said:

The 5-11, 193-pound freshman

Obviously not an every-down back. We should've let Ronnie tote the rock 25x a game instead. 

[alexava 6,974]

5 hours ago, McLoofus said:

Obviously not an every-down back. We should've let Ronnie tote the rock 25x a game instead. 

Caddy was THE man. 

[Tiger Refuge 6,692]

1 hour ago, alexava said:

Caddy was THE man. 

I really think he may be my all time favorite player. He was a beast!

[Texan4Auburn 1,626]

8 hours ago, McLoofus said:

Obviously not an every-down back. We should've let Ronnie tote the rock 25x a game instead. 

If I remember right they tried to use both. Brown was having ball security issues and not seeing holes and lost playing time. Carnell going down and him moving to the front flipped the switch on him.

Maybe I'm wrong, but some reason I remember Brown struggling that year till he went to the front.

[gr82be 14,643]

8 hours ago, Texan4Auburn said:

If I remember right they tried to use both. Brown was having ball security issues and not seeing holes and lost playing time. Carnell going down and him moving to the front flipped the switch on him.

Maybe I'm wrong, but some reason I remember Brown struggling that year till he went to the front.

I believe you're correct because I remember being somewhat surprised by Brown when Williams was injured. Carnell was special but I loved watching Ronnie play a little bit more. 

[McLoofus 35,182]

7 hours ago, Texan4Auburn said:

If I remember right they tried to use both. Brown was having ball security issues and not seeing holes and lost playing time. Carnell going down and him moving to the front flipped the switch on him.

Maybe I'm wrong, but some reason I remember Brown struggling that year till he went to the front.

I was being a smartass. Poor taste on my part.

Agree with your assessment.

[fredst 9,064]

1 hour ago, McLoofus said:

I was being a smartass.

That was what threw us off. We’ve never seen that side of you.

[McLoofus 35,182]

12 minutes ago, fredst said:

That was what threw us off. We’ve never seen that side of you.

Printing and framing this.

[Brad_ATX 13,654]

I was at this game with my step-dad.  First road game I ever attended.  When Richt decided to run the ball from our 1 with no timeouts left and we stuffed them, I about lost my mind.  Kept screaming "lay on em!" while nervously watching the clock run out.  That play happened right in front of where we were sitting.

Snagged myself a piece of the hedges and took a picture with my AU hat placed on their mangy mutt statue in front of the UGA burial grounds inside the stadium.  

And yes, Caddy was a beast that day.

Good times.

[auburn4ever 1,266]

Go Cadillac Go!!

[Texan4Auburn 1,626]

12 hours ago, McLoofus said:

I was being a smartass. Poor taste on my part.

Agree with your assessment.

Oh lol. I thought you were asking why we didn't do that before Borges showed up.

[Texan4Auburn 1,626]

12 hours ago, gr82be said:

I believe you're correct because I remember being somewhat surprised by Brown when Williams was injured. Carnell was special but I loved watching Ronnie play a little bit more. 

Same. That was the same year he showed up that kid out of PSU also in the bowl game wasn't it? Johnson?

[gr82be 14,643]

1 hour ago, Texan4Auburn said:

Same. That was the same year he showed up that kid out of PSU also in the bowl game wasn't it? Johnson?

That he did!

[alexava 6,974]

21 hours ago, Texan4Auburn said:

If I remember right they tried to use both. Brown was having ball security issues and not seeing holes and lost playing time. Carnell going down and him moving to the front flipped the switch on him.

Maybe I'm wrong, but some reason I remember Brown struggling that year till he went to the front.

Brown redshirted and had a year of experience on Cadillac. Cadillac still overtook him as the obvious go to back in 01. Cadillac remained the man until his injury at the Florida game his sophomore season. Then Brown stepped up huge. The last two years they were an awesome pair. Brown was more built to last but Cadillac was the best inside running back we have ever had( I don’t count Bo). Awesome vision and power of a player of 40 lbs heavier. 

[aubiefifty 17,492]

i have caddies autographed football card. i got it on ebay for around ten bucks with tax and shipping. they have some great cards out with some of the older guys. i got a lil train auto card as well. cheap. collecting auburn players is fun and cheap unless you are talking sir charles. this is a shout out for my sports card peoples.........