1. Breece Hall – Iowa State
At 6’1″, 215 lbs, the reigning Big 12 Player of the Year has been one of the most impressive players in college football over the past two years. In 2019, Hall was fourth in rushing yards among true freshmen. He followed that performance up with an even more impressive season in 2020, as Hall was the nation’s leading rusher and racked up 1,572 yards and 21 rushing touchdowns. Hall was no slouch in the passing game either, as he caught 23 passes for 180 yards and two TDs. His vision, power, and patience stand out and will likely lead him to being the first RB off the board in next year’s draft.
2. Isaiah Spiller – Texas A&M
One of those three true freshmen to outpace Hall in 2019 is Texas A&M back Isaiah Spiller. In fact, Spiller rushed for 946 yards and 10 TDs on just 174 carries as a freshman. Spiller continued his strong play in 2020, as the young RB rushed for 1,036 yards and nine touchdowns on 188 carries over 10 games. At 6’1″ and 225 lbs, Spiller is well-built and he has excellent vision and contact balance. Spiller lacks the speed to outrun defenders on long runs, but he still breaks long runs often due to his other abilities. Spiller will likely be alongside Hall in the top tier of next year’s running back group.
3. Eric Gray – Oklahoma
Leading the next RB tier in my opinion is former Tennessee RB Eric Gray. As a true freshman, Gray averaged 5.3 yards per carry and broke out as the team’s lead back in their last two games, compiling 366 total yards and four TDs in just those games. He was named to the PFF All-Freshman Team and saw high expectations leading into his sophomore year. He showed continued growth as a sophomore, rushing for 772 yards and four touchdowns despite playing on an anemic offense and sharing time with another NFL hopeful in Ty Chandler. While Gray’s stats may not be as astounding as others in this class, Gray’s tape shows another story, as he effortlessly made defenders miss and showed prowess as both a runner and receiver.
Following the coaching change in Knoxville, Gray decided to take his talents to Norman and join the Sooners. He’ll compete with Kennedy Brooks for snaps and carries, but his talent should be able to convince Lincoln Riley to put him on the field.
4. Kyren Williams – Notre Dame
Unlike the aforementioned prospects, Williams barely saw the field as a freshman, but came on strong as a sophomore. He ran for 1,125 yards and 13 touchdowns on 5.3 yards per carry, but really made his mark in the passing game, accounting for 10% of Notre Dame’s receiving yards. Williams’ receiving prowess didn’t come as a surprise either, as he caught over 100 passes in his last two high school seasons combined. In next year’s draft, Williams is probably already the top available third down specialist, but he’s not limited to that role either, as he possesses the agility and contact balance to break long runs and rarely gets tackled one-on-one in the open field.
5. Kevin Harris – South Carolina
Coming on as a bit of a surprise last year, the former three-star prospect ran for 1,138 yards on 185 carries and was able to find the end zone 15 times in 2020 (while only playing 10 games.) Harris is stocky at 5’10” and 225 lbs, but unlike other running backs with similar builds, Harris has shown some reliable hands, catching 21 passes for 159 yards and a TD last year. In fact, Harris’ 2020 season was so impressive that he outpaced every other RB in the SEC (including Najee Harris, Isaiah Spiller, and Eric Gray) in rushing yards per game. There is some concern for Harris in 2021 though: he’ll be competing with the #5 running back in the country from the 2020 class as Marshawn Lloyd rejoins the Gamecocks after tearing his ACL last season.
Names to Watch:
Sincere McCormick – Texas-San Antonio
At just 5’9”, McCormick may seem like a small back, but he’s filled out his frame, weighing in at 200 lbs. The former Conference USA freshman of the year has been insanely productive in the lower tiers of college football – rushing for 983 yards and eight touchdowns in 2019 before putting up 1,467 rush yards alongside 11 touchdowns in 2020. In addition, McCormick has some receiving chops, as he caught more than 20 passes in both of his two seasons to date. McCormick is incredibly elusive with the ball in his hands, so much so that PFF charted McCormick for 63 forced missed tackles and 3.23 yards after contact per attempt in 2020. However, the concerns for McCormick are his small stature and his small school may lead to him failing to be viewed highly by NFL teams come draft season next year.
Zonovan Knight – North Carolina State
Zonovan Knight isn’t a name that many currently covet and he hasn’t been a hefty stat compiler thus far in his career, but he’s quite the runner on tape. The former four-star prospect was given an 87.1 rushing grade by PFF in 2020 and accumulated 5.5 yards per attempt, which currently makes him the NC State record holder for most yards gained per rushing attempt. “Bam” Knight forced 48 missed tackles on just 143 rushing attempts in 2020. Knight could easily elevate himself amongst other 2022 prospects if he can carve out a larger workload in 2021.
Max Borghi – Washington State
Once a coveted devy asset and lazily compared to Christian McCaffrey, Borghi has seen a bit of a fall from grace since he missed most of the 2020 season due to injuries. However, I think Borghi still has the tools to make the league even if he isn’t quite Christian McCaffrey. In former Wazzu head coach Mike Leach’s air-raid attack, Borghi was a star in the passing game, catching 53 passes as a freshman and 86 (yes, EIGHTY-SIX) passes as a sophomore. However, he’s not just a satellite back – through two seasons and one game, Borghi has ran for 1,278 yards and 20 touchdowns while averaging 6.1 yards per carry.
Among the chief reasons I still have hope for Borghi is current Cougars’ head coach Nick Rolovich. Rolovich runs a run-and-shoot system that will very likely feature Borghi when he’s healthy next season. In fact, Borghi was incredibly productive in his one healthy game with Coach Rolovich, rushing for 95 yards and one touchdown on just 10 attempts.
