LSU running back Caden Durham took Baton Rouge by storm during his true freshman campaign with the Tigers in 2024.
The youngster’s rise began in Week 3 after bursting on the scene against the South Carolina Gamecocks on the road. From there, he put America on notice.
“A freshman working through that transition of understanding the playbook and the nuances of playing the game,” LSU head coach Brian Kelly said of Durham. “Just feeling more comfortable in everything we do. Through his play when he was given the opportunity in South Carolina, he made it happen. He’s earned it through an opportunity that was given to him.”
Durham capped off his first season with the program after tallying 753 rushing yards and six touchdowns on the ground. The youngster also logged 260 receiving yards with two more scores through the air.
The 1,013 all-purpose yards ranked him second on the team only behind standout wide receiver Aaron Anderson.
It was a year that rewrote the history books for Durham. He’s the first true freshman to lead LSU in rushing since Leonard Fournette in 2014.
“He’s obviously very special,” LSU quarterback Garrett Nussmeier said during the 2024 season. “He’s like lightning in a bottle. He gets a small crease he can take it and go. I think what’s so special about Caden is his ability to make somebody miss and break a tackle. If you watch a lot of big runs, there’s a guy one-on-one with him and he makes them miss.
“His ability to recognize that and his ability to execute it. He’s been very good for us and I think he’ll continue to do well for us.”
There was a reason Kelly felt the need to keep Durham in the rotation. Rarely do freshmen have that “it factor” at the running back position, but he provided just that for the Tigers.
“He has that — the guys that I’ve started as freshmen handle the moment beautifully. They’re not too high, they’re not too low,” Kelly said. “If they make a mistake, they put it behind them and they move on to the next play. He had that ability to not let something detract him from the next play. I think that’s what the secret is for young players.”
Looking ahead, Durham is the clearcut RB1 for the Bayou Bengals heading into the 2025 season with sixth-year senior Josh Williams departing the program.
LSU will have Durham alongside junior Kaleb Jackson and 2025 signees Harlem Berry and JT Lindsey in the backfield.
It’ll be a young unit for the Tigers, but with Durham in the mix alongside multiple impactful pieces, running backs coach Frank Wilson will have an embarrassment of riches to work with in 2025.