On Tuesday, Stanford head coach David Shaw announced that starting running back E.J. Smith is out for the year. Shaw did not specify what the injury is other than saying it’s an injury that Smith needed to take care of and that it was best for him to get this taken care of now.
“E.J. Smith will be out for the rest of the year,” Shaw said at the beginning of Tuesday’s press conference. “It’s injury related. Not going to go into any detail. I know it’s really disappointing for him. Disappointing for the whole team. I think he’s a special young man and a special football player and was just really coming into his own. The future’s bright, this is something that needs to be taken care of now, and I still expect him to be the special football player that we envision that he envisions sooner or later. Just not gonna happen this year.”
In two games against Colgate and USC this season, Smith rushed for 206 yards and 3 touchdowns on 30 carries for a 6.9 yards per carry average. In the receiving game, he had 63 receiving yards and 1 touchdown on 8 receptions for a 7.9 yards per reception average. In total, that’s 269 yards from scrimmage and 4 touchdowns for an average of 7.1 yards from scrimmage per touch.
As far as whether or not Smith will need surgery, Shaw didn’t comment. The only thing he re-emphasized was that it’s in Smith’s best interest to not play the rest of the year and take care of his body.
“I’m not going to cross that line,” Shaw said when asked about the possibility of surgery. “But there’s a medical situation that it’s unwise for him and I don’t even think there’s an option for him to continue. So, he’s got to get his body taken care of. Trust me, he wishes it was not this way. He was gearing up and he told me last week Coach, I can’t wait to play against Oregon. I’m going to be there for you. I’m just so, I need to get back in there. But, the doctors are right and it's wise for him both now and for his future to get this taken care of and come back in ’23 bigger, faster, stronger.”
This is obviously a big bummer for Smith and Stanford. Smith was looking forward to being the top running back on the team this year and now he’ll have to wait to get that chance until next season. Stanford was basically building their entire running back room around him and was hoping for him to be one of the key faces of the program. The good news is it does sound like with proper rehab, he should be ready to go at the start of next season with an ability to have a strong senior season.
With Smith out, junior Casey Filkins takes over the lead running back role. Filkins had a strong outing against Washington on Saturday with 100 yards on 20 carries. On the season, Filkins has 197 rushing yards and 2 touchdowns on 42 carries for a 4.7 yards per carry average. In the receiving game, he has 6 receptions for 87 yards and a 14.5 yards per reception average. In total, that’s 284 yards from scrimmage and 2 touchdowns for an average of 5.9 yards from scrimmage per touch.
If Filkins stays healthy, which is never a given since running back is such a brutal position, Stanford’s running game should still be an effective weapon for them this year. In a lot of places, Filkins would be the top running back, so there shouldn’t be too much of a drop off or any drop off assuming he stays healthy.
“It doesn’t change the playbook,” Shaw said when asked about how Smith’s absence would change their approach. “It just gives other guys more opportunities. Casey Filkins came in, had a hundred yards on twenty carries, caught the ball well at the backfield, did a good job at pass protection, we put a couple new backs in there, but I think now for the longevity of the season, we’re going to have to play a minimum of three backs just to keep everybody healthy, but Casey’s gonna be the lead dog there, he’s earned that, he deserves that.
“There are a lot of things that I know he’s going to improve on over the next coming weeks, let alone by the end of the year. But, he’s an outstanding talent, he cares a lot about doing it right, he’ll continue to return some punts for us as well and he’s in the depth at kickoff return, that’s the kind of athlete that he is. He’s an all-around great football player, but we got a room full of guys that, this was mentioned earlier, we feel comfortable with our running back room. It’s a blow without E.J., but we got some talented guys in there that you’ll see over the next few weeks.”
Looking ahead to Saturday’s game at Oregon, it’ll be interesting to see how Stanford’s run game does. Filkins performed well at Washington and will look to keep that going again in another late night game. Stanford has the pieces to still have a solid run game this year. It’s just a matter of everyone doing their job and stepping up.
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