In his first five games last season, Leonard Fournette was Herschel Walker reincarnated—-that rare combination of bruising size and breakaway speed that translated into home runs from anywhere on the field, at any moment.
Those gifts were perhaps no more evident in 2015 than they were against Auburn. His 225 yards and 3 TDs marked just his 3rd best outing of the season, but on touchdown runs of 40 and 29, the world watched in awe as Fournette morphed from an 18-year-old freshman phenom in 2014, to the best running back in college football virtually overnight.
His 29-yard run in the third quarter, though, was the perfect embodiment of a man playing against boys. On Fournette's side of the coin, it was jaw-dropping. On the other side, Auburn safety Tray Matthew's side, humiliating would be the most apt description. Fournette took a pitchout left, made the first defender miss, leaving Matthews with a clean shot at a one-on-one tackle. But for some reason, Matthews decided to go high and dove at Fournette's shoulders, only to be sent twirling through the air heels over head like a gymnast.
Asked about it Friday, Matthews called it a "business decision."
"That's not me at all," he told 247Sports. "When I was going in — and that was my first game back from popping my shoulder out of place — actually didn't hit that whole week and I ain't gonna lie that was probably the worst feeling I ever had in my life when I popped my shoulder out of place. Going into that game, I really didn't know what I was going to do. I saw him coming and I was, like, it was kinda like a business decision because I didn't want to pop my shoulder all the way out of place and miss the whole season. I was like, OK, let me hit him up high and try to grab him and bring him down. I actually jumped too high. My adrenaline was running."
Unfortunately for Matthews, the play will live on forever as one of Fournette's greatest highlights, and one of his greatest low ones.
