Rave reviews for Trevor Etienne: ‘He looks a lot like Travis did at Clemson’
GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Florida Gators running back Trevor Etienne has spent most of his life chasing his older brother, Travis. The younger Etienne is paving his own path. He didn’t follow in his brother’s footsteps at Clemson, chasing to write his own story at Florida.
The younger Etienne watched his older brother excel with the Tigers. As a freshman, Travis Etienne led the team in rushing with 766 yards on 107 carries with 13 touchdowns. As a sophomore, he rushed for 1,659 yards on the year and led the FBS with 24 touchdowns. He was named ACC Player of the Year and ACC Offensive Player of the Year following the regular season. Etienne was also a consensus All-American.
His junior year was even better. He rushed for 417 yards in the first two games. Etienne went on to rush for 1,614 yards and an ACC-leading 19 rushing touchdowns. His 7.8 yards-per-carry were second most in FBS. He returned to Clemson for his senior season, setting more records for the Tigers and went on to be a first-round draft pick.
We go through all of that to give USF head coach Jeff Scott’s comment context. Scott had a front-row seat for all of that while he was on staff at Clemson. As Scott is set to lead USF into The Swamp this Saturday, there’s one player that looks familiar.
“They’ve got three or four running backs. Etienne – Trevor Etienne – Travis Etienne’s brother – he looks just like Travis did at Clemson,” Scott said on Tuesday. “Except I don’t know that Travis looked like that as a true freshman, watching him play this past week. He’s already a big-time playmaker for them.”
Etienne impresses early
Trevor enrolled at Florida for the first summer session. While he wasn’t able to enroll early and go through spring, he made the most of his time. When the first depth chart was released, his name was there. Etienne was second on the depth chart next to sophomore Montrell Johnson.
“When he first got here for workouts over the summer, just watching him run and really seeing how he cuts and stuff like that, I was like, OK, this kid is going to be special,” receiver Justin Shorter said of Etienne. “When we finally got there in camp, he puts the pads on, and that proves to everyone he’s that guy.”
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He stole the attention of Gator Nation quickly as well. He only carried the ball five times but scurried for 64 yards. He’s fast, decisive and full of potential. In week two he was even better. He carried the ball more — nine times — and scored his first touchdown.
Etienne is in a timeshare with Nay’Quan Wright and Johnson. Wright has started both games but Johnson leads the room with 19 carries in two contests. Wright is second with 18 followed by Anthony Richardson (17) and then Etienne (14).
This week the Gators will host USF. The Bulls haven’t been able to stop a nosebleed this season. USF has given up 482 rushing yards in two games this season, 127th in the country. Only four teams have allowed more yards per game than the Bulls.
That’s a recipe for success for the Gators, who should run the ball against USF with relative ease. A great opportunity for the freshman from Jennings to continue a hot start to his college career.
