College football has a ton of dominant running backs this year, with Leonard Fournette and Dalvin Cook being arguably the two best in the country. Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney said he would take Cook over Fournette, which has many surprised, according to Spartanburg Herald-Journal's Eric Boynton.
"It's like comparing Jameis Winston to Marcus Mariota. Both great, I'm taking Cook," said Swinney, via NFL.com. LSU running back Fournette has been the clear front-runner for the Heisman this season, but that does not take away from Cook, of Florida State.
The sixth ranked Clemson Tigers travel to Miami this week, but they face the Seminoles on Nov. 7, and Swinney may be trying to pump Florida State up before deflating them on the field. Swinney could also be making these comments to help the ACC's image, as it is seen as the weakest conference out of the Power Five. If the SEC, Big 12, Pac-12, Big Ten, and the ACC all have undefeated teams, it's likely the ACC will be the odd one out.
The reason there seems to be a motive behind Sweeney's comments is because Fournette has been an unbelievable force on the field. He has rushed for 1,202 yards this season, and has scored 14 touchdowns. Fournette is also doing this in arguably the best conference in college football, the SEC. Fournette has already broken an LSU record, as the fastest player to 1,000 yards rushing, and he doesn't look to be slowing down.
While Fournette looks like the best back in college football, it doesn't take away from what Cook is doing on the field. The Seminoles running back has rushed for 955 yards and is averaging 8.7 yards per carry. Cook has scored 10 touchdowns in six games this season, and will look to add to those numbers this weekend against Georgia Tech.
Cook and Fournette will be NFL running backs eventually, but not quite yet, as they are both sophomores.
"It's a matter of what you're looking for. Fournette is a straight-line runner with long speed, but he won't create as much for you as Cook. If you want a downhill guy in a power scheme, Fournette is your guy," said NFL media analyst Lance Zierlein, via NFL.com. "If you're looking for more of a guy who can fit into any scheme, create yards, Cook is more elusive with better burst."
Both running backs have positives, and while Sweeney would take Cook over Fournette, he would be lucky to have either of them. It seems to be a stretch to take Cook over Fournette, but a case can be made for the Seminoles running back.
