RB Respect Month Vol. 2, Day 21: Arian Foster's career highlights at Tennessee

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Welcome to day 21 of Running Back Respect Month™! Yesterday, Tony Temple put up a historic day in the 2008 Cotton Bowl. Here's where we're at today, and how the rest of the month looks:

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Today: Arian Foster's Tennessee Highlights

The story of Arian Foster and Tennessee is a complicated one. How complicated? Enough so that he doesn't have a decent highlight tape of his time there, despite being their second-leading all-time rusher, then running for 6,500 yards and making four Pro Bowls in the NFL. It's complicated enough that me just telling you that he was one of the smoothest runners ever then showing you the 23-minute highlight reel I made of him wouldn't be doing his story justice. I know most of you are bloodthirsty animals who just want to watch the highlights, though - so here you go:

For the rest of you: I won't pretend like I fully understand or can tell the true story of the relationship between Foster and Tennessee. For the Vols fans reading this who I know will yell at me for something: My bad if I missed anything. If somehow Arian Foster is reading this: I hope I didn't misrepresent you or your time at Tennessee. Let's try to piece things together from 2005 onward.

As a redshirt freshman in 2005, Foster had 36 carries for 137 yards and one touchdown through the Vols' first six games. His numbers probably would've continued at that same pace if not for a season-ending injury to starter Gerald Riggs. Riggs' absence meant the final five games were the kid from far away San Diego's chance to shine. Here's what he did with his opportunity:

• 25 carries for 148 yards and a TD in 16-15 loss to South Carolina.
• 28 carries for 125 yards and a TD in 41-21 loss at No. 8 Notre Dame.
• 28 carries for 132 yards in 20-16 win over Memphis.
• 40 carries for 223 yards and two TD, plus four catches for 45 yards in 28-24 loss to Vanderbilt.
• 26 carries for 114 yards, five catches for 44 yards in 27-8 win at Kentucky.

Tennessee's 2-3 record in those games cemented their first losing season (5-6) since 1988, but Foster was a revelation. He totaled 147 carries for 742 yards (5.0) and four TD in that stretch, making him one of the nation's most productive backs to close out the year. He was a beacon of hope in a season of despair, and a main reason why people believed the Vols could improve in 2006.

Tennessee did exactly that (9-4 record), but Foster was far from the driving force behind it. Injuries, offensive philosophy, and decisions that only Foster and Head Coach Phillip Fulmer can accurately elaborate on led to a severely reduced role. Foster finished third on the Vols in carries (91) and rushing yards (322), while scoring five TD. He still found ways to contribute in huge moments, including scoring three TD in a win at No. 10 Georgia, plus the game-winner against hated rival Alabama:

The flashes of late-2005 were there, but it was still fair to wonder if his role would be any different the next season with the same stable of backs returning.

Foster put that question to rest immediately and emphatically in 2007. He ripped off 226 all-purpose yards (89 rushing, 20 receiving, 117 on kickoff return) and a TD in the season-opener at No. 12 Cal. The Vols lost 45-31, but Foster looked exactly like the star he was at the end of 2005:

Foster took control of the lead back role in 2007 and flourished. He ran for 1,193 yards, scored 14 total TD and earned Second Team All-SEC honors as the Vols made a surprising run to the SEC Championship Game. After four up-and-down years (including a redshirt in 2004) he was a mere 685 yards from passing Travis Henry for most rushing yards in program history if he chose to come back for his senior season. He ultimately did just that after receiving a second-round draft grade and being persuaded to return by either Fulmer or his mother. (Two different stories I read mentioned either being the one who convinced him.) That's where the story turned sour for everyone.

Tennessee's 2008 was a full-on calamity. Personnel and coaching decisions flopped. The roster didn't have a functional quarterback. They went 5-7 and Fulmer was forced to resign. At the heart of it all was Foster. A new scheme and offensive coordinator left him with a reduced role yet again. He had crucial fumbles in losses to UCLA and Auburn. Fulmer said he was dealing with injuries, which Foster's family disputed afterwards. He already had a eccentric reputation among fans and reporters based on how he carried himself and for being a philosophy major. Then there was the infamous "pterodactyl" media availability:

By the end of it, he became persona non-grata among most Vols fans, which they'll freely admit themselves. The program was in disarray as a whole, and Foster was an easy target to pin as a microcosm of it all. He ran for just 570 yards and one TD, finishing 114 yards short of the record. He left Knoxville with as confusing a statline as he did a legacy:

His reputation –fair or not– and injuries in the pre-draft process then sealed his NFL Draft fate. Foster wasn't selected with any of the 256 picks, opting to sign with the Houston Texans as a free agent. All anyone could ask when he led the NFL in rushing a year later was, "What the hell happened between this guy and Tennessee?"

Foster's NFL success didn't lighten Vols' fans perception of him, and neither did his comments in 2015 about receiving financial benefits in Knoxville - a statement both Fulmer and David Cutcliffe refuted. (Look at how far we've come in just over a decade!) It felt like there was just always going to be animosity between the two sides, until Foster returned to campus for a game in 2022:

Whether Tennessee fans have patched up their side of that relationship is their story to tell. But the one thing I hope they –and everyone else– gleans from this video is that Foster's NFL stardom wasn't by chance. He showcased the exact same things at Tennessee that made him thrive in the league. The top-tier vision and cutting ability:

The decisiveness to plant his foot and hit a hole:

And more underratedly than anything else - a wicked stiff-arm:

Arian Foster's complicated history with Tennessee isn't as unique a story as all of us would like it to be. Plenty of players past and present don't have the fondest memories of playing for the programs we as fans love. Given how nasty the inner-workings of college athletics has always been, I won't be the one to tell them they aren't justified in how they feel - especially in Foster's case. The good news is that it seems like his relationship with Tennessee –Vols fans, in particular– is improving, and I hope it continues to trend in a positive direction.

As for the kind of player Arian Foster was? He's as smooth a runner as anyone I've watched over the past 20 years. He almost glided when he ran with the ball, and that's what made him so enjoyable to watch. Hopefully this video can play a small part in making that his lasting legacy as a player at Tennessee going forward.