Dillon Returns to Louisville, Site of "The Run"
October 03, 2019 | Football, #ForBoston Files
It's AJ Dillon's first game against the Cardinals since his 272-yard performance in 2017.
Mention AJ Dillon's name and one moment inevitably comes to mind.
The Eagles were 2-4 after losing to No. 16 Virginia Tech. Hopes for a bowl bid faced an uphill struggle, especially with a brutally-difficult ACC schedule remaining.
Florida State struggled, but still had enough raw ability to defeat anybody. NC State was a one-loss team entering the Top 25. Syracuse was .500 and already battled LSU to a tough defeat. BC had to come up with wins, and it began immediately with a game at Louisville, a team with the reigning Heisman Trophy winner at quarterback.
Lamar Jackson, who torched BC for 400 yards and seven touchdowns the year before, accounted for two first half scores as the Cardinals built a 21-7 lead in the second quarter. Dillon began rallying the team shortly thereafter, and BC scored before the end of the half as part of a four-score unanswered run. It helped flip the score to a 14-point Eagle advantage before Jackson connected with Dez Fitzpatrick on a 40-yard touchdown pass, cutting the deficit to 35-28 early in the fourth.
That's when Dillon created his signature highlight. He stood alone in the backfield with tight ends stacked left, but took a hand off before the blocks fully created a hole. He plowed into the line, steamrolled a defensive back and bounced outside. Safety Chucky Williams came flying into the mix, engaging Dillon around the shoulder pads with a burst of speed. Instead of going down, Dillon threw him two yards to the side, hitting the gas pedal with all of his momentum. Seventy five yards later, he was in the end zone.Â
Touchdown Eagles. Legend status unlocked, and BC won that game, 45-42, the first of three straight victories as part of a 5-1 finish to the season.
"I don't think anyone could match Lamar," Dillon said of that game. "I did a good job, looking back. I wound up meeting him that year at the ACC awards ceremony. He's a great guy and he gave me some advice. He's a tremendous player, so being able to battle him was pretty cool."
It's been nearly two full calendar years since Dillon went head-to-head with a reigning Heisman Trophy winner, and things changed as much as they stayed the same. He's a little bit of a different player, owing to an evolved maturity, but this week allows for a unique reflection as he returns to the Bluegrass State for the first and likely only time since that game.
"That was a red stamp game for him," BC head coach Steve Addazio said. "He crashed onto the scene as a dominant tailback with some of the runs he had, and the way he flung a couple of defenders off. That was a big day for him down there for sure."
Dillon's journey is an interesting, well-publicized series of waves, beginning with that game. His 272 yards against Louisville placed third all-time in BC program history, behind two games by Andre Williams. It provided an instant push for his season, which, with 1,589 yards, is the fourth-best year by an Eagle running back. He became only the fifth running back with 300 carries and became something of a bell cow, scoring 14 touchdowns. The dominance was over approximately a half of a season since he only had one game prior to that point with more than 20 carries and over 100 yards.
It created a crest of momentum, placing Dillon among a Heisman Trophy hopefuls list entering last season, but it never really panned out. He still ran for 1,108 yards, which led the ACC, and 10 touchdowns, and he finished with good enough numbers to again place in the BC record books. It fell well short of hopes and expectations, though, because of an ankle injury sustained during a 160-yard game against Temple.
It created not-so-silent murmurs about his potential. His freshman year created assurances about Dillon at the next level, but his sophomore year's subsequent injury cast a shadow over that first year. He was healthy enough to play without aggravating further injury, but he was never really 100%. He had flashes against Miami and Florida State, but Clemson and Syracuse both bottled him up.
"When you're young, you ride the rollercoaster," Addazio said. "It's hard to handle that. Everyone loves to hear great things said about you, but then you have to deal with it when they aren't saying great things about you. You deal with the ups and downs of it, and that's called maturity. I see it year-in and year-out, and it's not a negative swipe. It's a process, and it's hard. Maturity comes with getting whupped a couple of times at something, and you learn."
"My freshman year, I knew where I was supposed to go and where I was supposed to be," Dillon said. "I didn't know the blocking scheme or how to wait a couple of seconds for anticipation. There's still stuff to learn, but I understand the totality of the game. That allows me to set up blocks and be a little bit more patient on a run because I'm anticipating a safety or a corner on the outside."
It helped reinstate Dillon's legend status this year. He became a more complete runner and made himself a complete piece of the offense. The raw horsepower is still there, as is the speed and strength, but it's now part of a larger purpose. It helped change Dillon's use, adding pieces of play action and play fakes in two-back sets. His presence is enough to convince defenses to stack boxes, drawing primary attention for options, passes or jet sweeps.
It also created more opportunity for his runs. Dillon has at least 150 yards in each of the last three games to push his per-game average back over 100. It put him on pace to match his freshman year output and has him on a trajectory to join Andre Williams, Montel Harris, Derrick Knight and Troy Stradford as the all-time greatest Eagle runners in the record book.
"Consistency has been a big part of this season," Dillon said. "I just really want to be dependable. Each game, I've been able to put up rushing numbers, but have (also) been able to contribute in a fake or a decoy or pass-blocking game. I've been able to open up parts of the offense for other players. It's a testament to (Anthony Brown) passing the ball or (David Bailey) coming in, and it's not just a one-man team. It feels good when you're putting in extra stuff."
That brings the story back to Saturday. Dillon missed the Louisville game at BC last year, so this year represents his first game against the Cardinals since that breakout performance. It could be the only chance to revisit this story, which is why it's such a popular topic of conversation this week. The story was so unique - a freshman against a Heisman Trophy winner - that it warrants as many retells as possible this week, even as Dillon and the offense understands that Louisville is probably sick of hearing it and will bring some wood to game day.
"Teams generally stack the box or key in on the run," Dillon added. "I take it as a sign of respect with David and me back there. We have a bunch of guys that are highly capable. It means yards are (going to be) harder to come by, but that's my key thing. It doesn't matter about the yards. 150 yards is nice, but the 80 against Virginia Tech is great if it's hard to grind through. It allows for things in the pass game. We have playmakers out there."
The Eagles were 2-4 after losing to No. 16 Virginia Tech. Hopes for a bowl bid faced an uphill struggle, especially with a brutally-difficult ACC schedule remaining.
Florida State struggled, but still had enough raw ability to defeat anybody. NC State was a one-loss team entering the Top 25. Syracuse was .500 and already battled LSU to a tough defeat. BC had to come up with wins, and it began immediately with a game at Louisville, a team with the reigning Heisman Trophy winner at quarterback.
Lamar Jackson, who torched BC for 400 yards and seven touchdowns the year before, accounted for two first half scores as the Cardinals built a 21-7 lead in the second quarter. Dillon began rallying the team shortly thereafter, and BC scored before the end of the half as part of a four-score unanswered run. It helped flip the score to a 14-point Eagle advantage before Jackson connected with Dez Fitzpatrick on a 40-yard touchdown pass, cutting the deficit to 35-28 early in the fourth.
That's when Dillon created his signature highlight. He stood alone in the backfield with tight ends stacked left, but took a hand off before the blocks fully created a hole. He plowed into the line, steamrolled a defensive back and bounced outside. Safety Chucky Williams came flying into the mix, engaging Dillon around the shoulder pads with a burst of speed. Instead of going down, Dillon threw him two yards to the side, hitting the gas pedal with all of his momentum. Seventy five yards later, he was in the end zone.Â
Touchdown Eagles. Legend status unlocked, and BC won that game, 45-42, the first of three straight victories as part of a 5-1 finish to the season.
"I don't think anyone could match Lamar," Dillon said of that game. "I did a good job, looking back. I wound up meeting him that year at the ACC awards ceremony. He's a great guy and he gave me some advice. He's a tremendous player, so being able to battle him was pretty cool."
It's been nearly two full calendar years since Dillon went head-to-head with a reigning Heisman Trophy winner, and things changed as much as they stayed the same. He's a little bit of a different player, owing to an evolved maturity, but this week allows for a unique reflection as he returns to the Bluegrass State for the first and likely only time since that game.
"That was a red stamp game for him," BC head coach Steve Addazio said. "He crashed onto the scene as a dominant tailback with some of the runs he had, and the way he flung a couple of defenders off. That was a big day for him down there for sure."
Dillon's journey is an interesting, well-publicized series of waves, beginning with that game. His 272 yards against Louisville placed third all-time in BC program history, behind two games by Andre Williams. It provided an instant push for his season, which, with 1,589 yards, is the fourth-best year by an Eagle running back. He became only the fifth running back with 300 carries and became something of a bell cow, scoring 14 touchdowns. The dominance was over approximately a half of a season since he only had one game prior to that point with more than 20 carries and over 100 yards.
It created a crest of momentum, placing Dillon among a Heisman Trophy hopefuls list entering last season, but it never really panned out. He still ran for 1,108 yards, which led the ACC, and 10 touchdowns, and he finished with good enough numbers to again place in the BC record books. It fell well short of hopes and expectations, though, because of an ankle injury sustained during a 160-yard game against Temple.
It created not-so-silent murmurs about his potential. His freshman year created assurances about Dillon at the next level, but his sophomore year's subsequent injury cast a shadow over that first year. He was healthy enough to play without aggravating further injury, but he was never really 100%. He had flashes against Miami and Florida State, but Clemson and Syracuse both bottled him up.
"When you're young, you ride the rollercoaster," Addazio said. "It's hard to handle that. Everyone loves to hear great things said about you, but then you have to deal with it when they aren't saying great things about you. You deal with the ups and downs of it, and that's called maturity. I see it year-in and year-out, and it's not a negative swipe. It's a process, and it's hard. Maturity comes with getting whupped a couple of times at something, and you learn."
"My freshman year, I knew where I was supposed to go and where I was supposed to be," Dillon said. "I didn't know the blocking scheme or how to wait a couple of seconds for anticipation. There's still stuff to learn, but I understand the totality of the game. That allows me to set up blocks and be a little bit more patient on a run because I'm anticipating a safety or a corner on the outside."
It helped reinstate Dillon's legend status this year. He became a more complete runner and made himself a complete piece of the offense. The raw horsepower is still there, as is the speed and strength, but it's now part of a larger purpose. It helped change Dillon's use, adding pieces of play action and play fakes in two-back sets. His presence is enough to convince defenses to stack boxes, drawing primary attention for options, passes or jet sweeps.
It also created more opportunity for his runs. Dillon has at least 150 yards in each of the last three games to push his per-game average back over 100. It put him on pace to match his freshman year output and has him on a trajectory to join Andre Williams, Montel Harris, Derrick Knight and Troy Stradford as the all-time greatest Eagle runners in the record book.
"Consistency has been a big part of this season," Dillon said. "I just really want to be dependable. Each game, I've been able to put up rushing numbers, but have (also) been able to contribute in a fake or a decoy or pass-blocking game. I've been able to open up parts of the offense for other players. It's a testament to (Anthony Brown) passing the ball or (David Bailey) coming in, and it's not just a one-man team. It feels good when you're putting in extra stuff."
That brings the story back to Saturday. Dillon missed the Louisville game at BC last year, so this year represents his first game against the Cardinals since that breakout performance. It could be the only chance to revisit this story, which is why it's such a popular topic of conversation this week. The story was so unique - a freshman against a Heisman Trophy winner - that it warrants as many retells as possible this week, even as Dillon and the offense understands that Louisville is probably sick of hearing it and will bring some wood to game day.
"Teams generally stack the box or key in on the run," Dillon added. "I take it as a sign of respect with David and me back there. We have a bunch of guys that are highly capable. It means yards are (going to be) harder to come by, but that's my key thing. It doesn't matter about the yards. 150 yards is nice, but the 80 against Virginia Tech is great if it's hard to grind through. It allows for things in the pass game. We have playmakers out there."
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