Provo • He was the last one out on the field.
Each of this teammates had already finished making a lap around the stadium to thank the fans in attendance. Everyone else had made their way into the locker room to celebrate a win, but Aidan Robbins stayed out.
He smiled and shook hands. He signed helmets when he could. At the end, one fan asked him to pick up a football he dropped on the field. Robbins put on a grin and obliged.
He didn’t have to do all of this. But he did. And right when he finished talking to every person, he took a deep breathe and surveyed the emptying stadium. Then he slowly made his way up the tunnel and into the next week of uncertainty and questions.
The whole scene served as a metaphor. About how lonely it can be when you are the starting running back not producing. Robbins finished with six yards on three carries and didn’t get a touch after the first quarter.
About how Robbins has tried to put a brave face on the situation — even as he hasn’t had the opportunities and his offensive line has been suspect. Robbins’ first two game have amounted to 10 carries for 29 yards.
And about how taxing this next week will be as the inevitable narrative mounts about how much of an issue this running game is for BYU.
“I don’t know all the answers right now. I just want to see the ball carried with more intensity and get more yards,” head coach Kalani Sitake said. “I don’t know. I’d have to watch the film. But we need somebody that can carry the ball and do it the right way. We need someone that can block for them and make sure we get yards.”
BYU might have won 41-16 over Southern Utah on Saturday. It threw for 348 yards and had four touchdowns through the air. But the main takeaway is what will the Cougars do will if the running game never appears?
It is back-to-back weeks now where the rushing attack withered. Against Sam Houston in Week 1, BYU averaged 3.3 yards per rush. That was with freshman LJ Martin going for 91 yards on 16 carries.
This time, it got worse. BYU totaled 46 rushing yards and had just two yards per carry. BYU’s main trio of backs — Robbins, Martin and Deion Smith — had 55 yards and a touchdown. It forced quarterback Kedon Slovis to account for nearly 90% of the offensive production. That will be a nearly impossible ask for the rest of the year.
The first two weeks of the season were supposed to be the easy part of BYU’s schedule — a new FBS team and an FCS opponent in SUU. If BYU can’t get something going now, what will happen against Arkansas and the nine Big 12 teams after?
Not to mention, a lot of BYU’s offense is predicated on play action. Without the run, it is limiting.
“What we got is not good enough,” a frustrated Sitake said, knowing the challenge that awaits. “... We have to find ways on offense to complement what [Slovis] can do so we’re not predictable. We’re not just relying on his arm, you know what I mean? "
It can’t all be blamed on Robbins. The offensive line has struggled to run block consistently. It is why it isn’t just Robbins struggling.
When Smith came in, his longest rush was seven yards. When Martin came in, he broke off one carry for 17 yards that required him to shed three tacklers. Other than that, he was limited to two yards per touch.
Slovis tried to give some explanations for it. He said Southern Utah was stacking the box and BYU didn’t have the numbers to run it.
“People see the stats and stuff and say, ‘Oh the run game isn’t going well,’” Slovis said. “Well, look at the pass game. There is some give and take there. That’s a reason why. … A lot of it’s a numbers game. I’m sure there will be some games where teams are dropping a lot of guys on us. And our guys [in the run] will get going a little bit more.”
But Sitake didn’t find that to be an acceptable answer. Against SUU, BYU was bigger across the line. Same with Sam Houston. But it was the same result.
“It doesn’t matter who the defense is, I think we’re better than that,” Sitake said. “... We expect to have an advantage up front. For whatever reason, we’re not getting it in the first place.”
It is unfair to put all the blame on Robbins. He had had fewer chances than Martin and an equal number of carries to Smith. Martin, the third-string running back, has 22 carries to Robbins’ 10.
But as the starting running back, the questions go to Robbins first. It is why the rumblings are already starting about whether BYU will make a change ahead of Arkansas.
He knows it. And he made his way down the tunnel alone, the feeling was there too.
“We got to figure it out,” Sitake finished. “Whether it’s Aidan running it, or Deion‚ or LJ. We feel really good about all three of those guys, but we’re not giving them a chance right now.”
