Deshaun

Fenwick

Fenwick (6'2/226) has been limited in recent weeks, and he will miss the Beavers’ regular-season finale as a result. The good news for Oregon State is that it has depth in the backfield, as B.J. Baylor and Trey Lowe have both been solid ball carriers.

Fenwick (6'1/230) has been dealing with an ankle issue and it looks like that will prevent him from suiting up this week. He was playing really well in the middle of the season which included 127 rushing yards and two touchdowns against Washington State backing October, but his role has begun to diminish as he’s only seen 11 carries in the last two games. This should give B.J. Baylor and Trey Lowe more opportunities if he can’t play.

Fenwick (6'1"/230) found oodles of space everywhere in this game, and constantly gashed WSU for big gains. Fenwick looked fast, and hit holes with authority. His first TD was a 15 dash to the right, where he easily shed a would-be tackler before waltzing into the end zone. For his second, Fenwick showed good patience and vision on a toss play that had some perfect blocking ahead of him and he got in basically untouched. Unfortunately, despite averaging a whopping 8.5 yards per carry, it wasn’t enough to earn the win. Fenwick has really come into his own the past few weeks, and will take that into a bye.

While Oregon State’s quarterback competition, won by Sam Noyer, was competitive, the running back battle was even more fierce. Redshirt junior Baylor (5'11/205) and redshirt sophomores Fenwick (6'2/230) and Lowe (5'9/191) all performed well enough in fall camp to merit inclusion on the top line of Oregon State’s depth chart. So, how will the reps be divided? That’s the big question, especially given how little the trio has done while in Corvallis. Baylor (381 rushing yards and five touchdowns in his OSU career) is the only back to have recorded any stats in an Oregon State uniform last season, as Lowe appeared in two games after transferring in from Washington and Fenwick is a grad transfer from South Carolina.

With star running back Jermar Jefferson entering the 2021 NFL Draft, Oregon State had a need to fill this offseason. The addition of Fenwick (6'1/230) will help in that regard. The redshirt freshman appeared in eight games for the Gamecocks in 2020, rushing for 297 yards and a touchdown with an average of 5.0 yards per carry. Fenwick also caught 14 passes for another 108 yards. He’ll have up to four seasons of eligibility remaining at Oregon State.

Harris (5'10/225) was tabbed by HC Will Muschamp as the team’s most consistent back, and that’s afforded him the opportunity to start the Gamecocks’ season opener. As for Fenwick (6'1/220), he’s coming off of a 2019 season in which he appeared in five games and rushed for 111 yards on 22 carries. Harris and Fenwick will be the ones shouldering much of the load in the backfield, as South Carolina lost Marshawn Lloyd to a torn ACL and Za’quandre White was limited by a hamstring injury during the preseason.

Kevin Harris (5'10/225) made a big impression last year when he broke six carries for 147 yards and three touchdowns in a 72-10 victory over Charleston Southern week two. Unfortunately he tore a groin muscle that sidelined him for most of the remainder of the season so he was unable to build on his breakout performance. Heading into fall camp South Carolina brought in two highly-touted running backs to compete for the job in five-star freshman Marshawn Lloyd and former four-star Florida State recruit and JUCO All-American Za’quandre White. Lloyd then tore his ACL in early August and White dealt with a nagging hamstring injury, allowing Harris and Deshaun Fenwick to climb the depth chart. The South Carolina RB position has been a committee approach the past few years and will likely be more of the same in 2020.

Fenwick (6'1/230) carried the ball 21 times for 118 yards and a touchdown last year in his redshirt season, and hadn’t touched the ball yet all year up until he carried 18 times in today’s win over the Commodores. It was a one-score game until the fourth quarter so it wasn’t a case of garbage time numbers. Depending on how long Dowdle is out Fenwick could use the opportunity to secure himself a role in 2020 with a good showing the next 3 games. South Carolina hosts Appalachian state next Saturday.

No biggie with this one, as the opponent is a cushy one and Fenwick mostly serves as a depth/reserve cog in the running backs room.

Fenwick was making his collegiate debut, and his first carry didn’t come until the third quarter once Mon Denson went down with an injury. The freshman certainly looked good, but his action was coming with the team already up by double digits against a tired FCS opponent. If he gets carry at Clemson next weekend we’ll get a much better idea about what Fenwick is all about.