Football: Freshman Kenny Hilliard shines in Ware’s absence

With his last name, freshman running back Kenny Hilliard had large expectations to fulfill.

As the nephew of former LSU star running back Dalton Hilliard and cousin of 12-year NFL wide receiver Ike Hilliard, the Patterson native began to live up to the family name when called upon Saturday against No. 20 Auburn.

In the absence of sophomore running back Spencer Ware to suspension, Hilliard carried the ball 10 times for 65 yards, second only to sophomore running back Michael Ford, who rushed 12 times for 82 yards.

The 5-foot-11-inch, 240- pound tailback also rumbled his way for the first two touchdowns of his LSU career and the Tigers' first score of the day en route to the 45-10 win — the largest victory in the schools' 46-game rivalry.

"Kenny is huge," laughed senior offensive lineman T-Bob Hebert. "To imagine him playing high school football last year is pretty insane. The way he ran the ball [Saturday], they really just couldn't bring him down. I was really excited for him getting in there twice as a freshman. That's incredible."

Hilliard set the Louisiana high school rushing record with 8,603 yards during his prep career, adding 106 touchdowns to his efforts.

After earning a four-star tag and being pegged as one of the nation's top 10 rushers, Hilliard saw action mostly as a fullback in four of the Tigers' first six games, accumulating seven yards on four carries.

The former Patterson High star also broke a 13-yard run last week at Tennessee, which LSU coach Les Miles said was the moment he knew Hilliard was ready.

Miles added that he wasn't surprised with Hilliard's breakthrough performance Saturday.

"I was expecting it," Miles said. "Especially after he showed what he was capable of at Tennessee. We've seen how he's running and once he had that nice run in the Tennessee game, we said, ‘OK, we're kind of ready to go with this.'"

Ware has been the Tigers' go-to back this season, leading the team with 128 carries, 512 yards and six touchdowns.

With Ware out, the bulk of the load went to Hilliard, Ford, freshman running back Terrence Magee and sophomore running back Alfred Blue.

The foursome combined for 178 yards, but Hilliard was the only back to reach pay dirt.

"Kenny ran very hard for a freshman coming out there in a big game like that," Ford said. "[It's] definitely not surprising. When we go to practice, practice is like a game. We go out there with that mentality and Kenny does a great job at practice."

Miles described Hilliard as "another strong, big tailback" and said after seeing rushing contributions from fellow freshmen Odell Beckham Jr., Jakhari Gore and Magee, he was ready to see more of his young talent shine.

"It's just about time for another young runner to emerge and grow," Miles said. "There's no way to judge how often or how fast somebody is going to come, it just comes at different times. [Hilliard] was right on time, as you might have seen."

Six different Tiger running backs have now seen action this season, combining for 1,375 yards and 18 touchdowns.

While the Tigers' feature runner may change from week to week, senior quarterback Jarrett Lee expressed his confidence in whoever lines up behind him.

"We've got a special group of guys there and coaches do a great job for them," Lee said. "When their opportunity comes, they've got to make the most of it and they did just that.

Kenny has played some fullback for us this year so we know he's going to work hard ... and stick his facemask in there for us."

Senior wide receiver Rueben Randle, who reeled in 106 yards and two scores for himself, said despite Hilliard's young, eight-game LSU career, he sees a bright future for the maturing standout.

"He's powerful and hard to tackle," Randle said. "If Coach Miles gives him more and more opportunities, I think he'll be a great back for us."

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Contact Mark Clements at mclements@lsureveille.com