Highly touted LSU true freshman tailback Leonard Fournette was widely -- and rightly -- derided for striking the Heisman pose this past Saturday against Sam Houston State, and Tigers coach Les Miles said Fournette basically apologized to his teammates.
Fournette, who received a ton of preseason hype, including being compared to Adrian Peterson, struck the pose after scoring his first college touchdown.
"There's an appropriate time for that," Miles said during Wednesday's weekly SEC coaches' teleconference. "It will always be viewed in the interest of the team. Leonard certainly understands that. He addressed the team and described that's something he wishes he had not done."
Miles also said Fournette "truly is a humble guy. There's nobody that works harder; there's nobody that learns as fast."
Presumably, the lesson Fournette learned fast is that you don't strike a Heisman pose after your first career touchdown, especially against an overmatched FCS opponent.
"You'd rather have a guy who was ambitious and would see the opportunity to win a national award," Miles said. "That being said, you also want to curb that enthusiasm and say there'll be plenty of time for that as we go forward."
Fournette (6-foot-1, 230 pounds) rushed for 92 yards against Sam Houston State and is second on the team with 110 yards after two games. But he clearly is behind senior Kenny Hilliard in the Tigers' pecking order and actually is listed third on the depth chart; he also is behind senior Terrence Magee. Fournette should receive ample opportunity to carry the ball this week against Louisiana-Monroe. If he scores, though, don't expect a Heisman pose.
Mike Huguenin can be reached at mike.huguenin@nfl.com. You also can follow him on Twitter @MikeHuguenin.
