A Tale of Two Tony's
By: Bob Berry
September 7, 1999

South Bend, Ind - Isn't is about time that Bob Davie sees which one of his two Tony tailbacks deserves the bulk of the playing time? Isn't it time now that the rotating running back offense that Notre Dame insists on running stops? After the first two games of the season, Tony Driver and Tony Fisher have been the two running backs getting the bulk of the carries in the Notre Dame backfield. The question starting the season was to find out which one would be better on the field since it was so close in practice that both would see plenty of action. Well, now it seems clear that Tony Fisher has emerged as the better of the two, and is well on his way to becoming the next great Notre Dame running back.

Fisher opened the season with an impressive day in South Bend against Kansas. With less carries than Driver, he nearly doubled the production of his fellow backfield mate. He has shown speed to the outside that we haven't seen since Reggie Brooks, and runs with a good force to break tackles. Fisher broke free for a long touchdown run late in the Kansas game and showed his big play capability again Saturday in Ann Arbor. Taking a long pass from quarterback Jarious Jackson and racing down the sideline before finally being brought down. Then he took an option play pitch and took it for a big gain as well. Later in the game, he had another fairly long run that was called back for an illegal block in the back by receiver Jay Johnson.

On the other hand, Tony Driver has yet to show us he can get out of the pack and into the secondary. While, Driver has not looked bad, its just that Fisher has looked a lot better and more explosive. Tony Fisher should be the man in the backfield this season, but whether Davie will let him be the full time carrier of the ball is still much in doubt. The best thing for the team would be to make Fisher the main back, and stop this rotation where every other series you see a new back in there. Tony Driver's early fumble against Michigan allowed for Tony Fisher to come in the next series and make a big play on the first touchdown drive for the Irish. Seemingly Fisher became the man for the rest of the game, but he also coughed it up once too, making the fumble total for the two even at one a piece. But look beyond the turnovers, and you see Fisher as the leader at this point in the season. With a big game against Purdue in West Lafayette this week, now is the time to let Fisher take the responsibility as the full time starter. If he doesn't handle it well, then Driver can become a factor again, but it seems clear to me that Tony Fisher is ready to step up and take this team to another level.

With two pretty impressive performances in the first two games, Fisher has done well to make up for the loss of Notre Dame's all time leading rusher Autry Denson. In the offseason many people thought the loss of Denson would be a big blow to the Irish offense. However, that void that Denson left in the Irish backfield has fit Tony Fisher quite well. While Fisher may not be the back that Autry Denson was quite yet, he certainly has a little different package that he brings to the table. Irish fans over the past few years have gotten used to seeing Autry Denson make people miss with his great moves and agility. However Denson lacked one thing that Tony Fisher brings to the offense, break away speed. Fisher runs with power, yet has excellent speed that enables him to break for big runs and out run defenders. That ability to get free and outrun the defense to the end zone is something Notre Dame has been missing since the days of Jerome Bettis and Reggie Brooks. With that aspect now in the Irish's backfield, look for a lot more long runs and big plays this year from the Irish offense.

Another new look to the Irish offense is offensive coordinator Kevin Rogers. Irish fans should be very impressed with Rogers's play calling thus far. He has brought some flair to the Irish offense that we saw Saturday in Ann Arbor, that quite frankly has been lacking from the Irish offense for quite some time. The hiring of Rogers may be the biggest move the Irish has made in quite some time. He has already much improved the Irish offense that was limited under former offensive coordinator Jim Coletto. The play call that Rogers made on the 4th and 1 play late in the game was a call you wouldn't have seen at Notre Dame under Lou Holtz. But what a brilliant call it was, as Jackson hit wide open tight end Jabari Holloway for the go ahead score. Overall, Rogers brings some new excitement to the game, and will maximize the talents of his offense much better than former coordinator Jim Coletto. Look for a much more efficient offense this season and in the years to come than what we have seen the past few years. As Jarious Jackson continues to improve in the new offensive system, the use of Tony Fisher as the regular go to running back will surely make this Irish offense the best that Notre Dame has had since the Kevin McDougal year in 1993.

In the upcoming game against Purdue, look for Tony Fisher to be more of the focus in the running game than Tony Driver. Although Coach Davie may not be convinced yet of Tony Fisher's talents, he certainly must be giving him the advantage over Tony Driver at this point. As the season progresses, I think we will see Tony Fisher be the full time running back in the Irish offense. Let's just hope that this number 12 can be as good as the last great running back to where that number for the Irish, Ricky Watters.