Previously: Quarterback 

Part two of The Enemy, Ranked rolls along with running backs, which may end up being the most difficult position I will have to rank this year. There are a couple of high-end groups at the top of this list, but with Wisconsin not on the schedule and Michigan unable to play themselves, there's a steep drop off into a vast gray area of teams who all have decent but not incredible options. After much wrangling and debate, this is my best attempt to rank the RB rooms on this year's Michigan schedule: 

 

12. Bowling Green

One hope for the Bowling Green Falcons this year is that with the RB room returning intact, their putrid rushing production may finally perk up. Last season the team ranked 123rd in rush yards per game (95.0 ypg), and they were 121st the year before. The high watermark in the Loeffler era is still his first season as coach, when the team was 77th at 147.0 ypg. A large chunk of these poor numbers is attributable to their pass-first offense, as the team has ranked in the bottom tier in rushing attempts per game under Loeffler, but it's also not helped by the generally low levels of talent on the roster, questionable OL play, and iffy running backs themselves. The good news is that Jaison Patterson, Jamal Johnson, and Ta'ron Keith all return for 2023, not to mention that 2021's leading rusher, Terion Stewart, is back after sitting out last season. It's hard to rank BGSU anywhere but the bottom being a MAC team with a rushing game that has been anemic even for the MAC, but there is reason to believe that the Falcons could have their best RB room under Loeffler thanks to the returning experience. 

 

11. UNLV  

Each of the next two teams on the list lose their bellcow from last season and have dipped into the transfer portal to find a replacement. The Rebels lose Aidan Robbins (transferred to BYU), who rushed for 1,000 yards at 4.8 YPC and 9 TDs last season, a fine player that will be tough to replace. After losing an up-transfer in Robbins, UNLV brings in a down-transfer in Vincent Davis from Pitt, a 5'8" back with nearly 400 carries to his name with the Panthers. There's nothing spectacular about Davis but experience in the Power 5 with an okay career YPC clip (4.6) and decent PFF grades should be a solid option to help pick up some of the slack. 

Courtney Reese, who rushed for over 7 YPC last season in spot work for the Rebels, is also back. His 124 yard game against Notre Dame last season is something UNLV hopes to see replicated, but given that he's been around four seasons already, I'm not sure how much more there is to get out of him. Farther down the depth chart Jordan Younge-Humphrey also returns, an ex-FCS player who didn't add much to the team last year but perhaps he's more ready to contribute in 2023. I like the options a bit more for the other non-conference opponent than what UNLV offers, but this will probably be decent for a Group of 5 school. 

[AFTER THE JUMP: Many B1G RB rooms that make me say "ehhhh"]

 

[247Sports]

10. East Carolina 

It was very close between UNLV and ECU on my rankings, due to the similarities I mentioned in the UNLV write-up. For the ECU Pirates, the bellcow back who has moved on is Keaton Mitchell, a multi-year star who eclipsed 1,700 all-purpose yards last season. He was projected to go in the NFL Draft but slipped out of it, a UDFA signing by Baltimore. Replacing such a player is going to be a difficult, uphill climb. The team returns their 2nd and 3rd RBs from last season, Marlon Gunn Jr. and Rahjai Harris, both rushing 67 times last season. Harris was more used in 2021 and 2020, so he may have the inside track to be the lead back, but there's also Gerald Green in the picture. Not to be confused with longtime NBAer, Gerald Green, this Mr. Green has 256 career rushes to his name over four seasons with Georgia Southern. 

As of right now, I'd venture to guess that ECU will divide up the snaps among the options here. If someone arises above tandem status, history suggests it would be Harris, but the smart money is on a rotation of the possible names. The non-conference opponents are not exactly loaded with great RB talent this season so even a rather middling ECU room ranks highest among the non-conference opponents (not by much though). This is a substantial step down from where it would've been if we were doing this ranking last year when Mitchell was around, and it's almost a bit disappointing Michigan doesn't get to face him. 

 

9. Rutgers

Now we dip our toes into the B1G portion of the ranking, with Rutgers presenting a major opportunity for movement based around Samuel Brown V. Rutgers struggled to run the ball immensely in conference play last season but the true freshman Brown showed some real promise. I wrote about this last season in FFFF: 

The loss of Samuel Brown V is a very tough blow to the Rutgers offense, as the RBs they have to fall back on are less than desirable. Brown was the one back who was putting up good rushing clips in B1G play and in his absence, there are a bunch of players who are just guys. Here are the YPC clips for Al-Shadee Salaam in the past six games: 1.9, 2.0, 1.5, 3.0, 3.0, 0.3. And here it is for Kyle Monangai: 1.4, 4.2, 1.3, 4.5, 1.7, 4.1. Brown on the other hand was above 3.5 in all those games, breaking the 5.0 line against both Iowa and Ohio State!

As that blurb says, Brown went down with an injury in October and was out for the remainder of the season, so his collegiate experience to this point is just the seven games he played pre-injury in 2022. If Brown showcases that what he put on tape last year was not a flash-in-the-pan and is instead real, I expect to see Rutgers move up the board. I liked what I saw from him and as a 4* in the composite, he has more raw talent than a normal Rutgers RB. The other players are all back too, Kyle Monangai, Al-Shadee Salaam, and receiving back Aaron Young, but I haven't seen much of anything from them in their college career to deserve a higher ranking than this. Brown is the wild card... if he can stay healthy and follow up on what he briefly showed last year, the Scarlet Knights will end up higher than #9. For now, they're here. 

 

Josh Henderson scored a TD against Michigan last year [Bryan Fuller]

8. Indiana 

Any discussion of Indiana's running backs has to start with the receiving component, as the Hoosier RBs play a major role in the passing attack under Walt Bell. Last year they brought in two transfers to fit this scheme, pushing out the remainder of the depth chart. One of those, and the leading rusher from last season (Shaun Shivers), is gone. The other, Josh Henderson, returns. Henderson was a dangerous receiving back who made nearly as much impact in the passing game as the rushing game, 398 yards on the ground to 274 yards through the air, four TDs in both phases. I like Henderson more as a receiver than a rusher, where I didn't think there was much of anything remarkable from him there. 

Jaylin Lucas was the #3 back last season and he returns, 49 carries and 16 catches. A former track athlete with a flair for the big play, the discussion in Bloomington revolves around using Lucas in the slot as well as out of the backfield to get the ball in his hands as much as possible. He's a decent bet for a breakout player, while the remaining carries will likely go to Old Friend/New Enemy Christian Turner, who is now on his third school. Turner was decent at Wake Forest and will give this group a solid option who can provide steady production on the ground. As a whole, I like this RB room more as a pure collection of athletes/playmakers than as RBs. What they offer in the passing game is unique relative to almost any other team on this list and that alone is an argument to be ranked higher, but I never found myself enthused by what they offered as rushers last season (in fairness, they got little help from the OL) and even with the addition of Turner, I felt it was enough justification to keep them at #8. 

 

7. Michigan State

The chunk of teams from 9 to 5 on this list are not separated by all that much and I think you'd be justified ranking them in almost any order. MSU I put in the middle, with an RB room that is turning over yet again, though centerpiece Jalen Berger remains. The ex-Wisconsin castoff is fine to me. He's never done anything that particularly wows me, but I don't have any particular distaste for him either. Last season he rushed it 148 times for 683 yards (4.6 YPC and 6 TD). Jalen Berger to this point has been the epitome of Just A Guy in my view, which isn't really any different than what IU or either of the next two teams on the list offer, to be fair.

The depth beyond Berger is seeing a bit of a shake up, as both Elijah Collins and Jarek Broussard are out the door. To replace them, MSU has gone back to their old faithful (the transfer portal). Out of it they snatched Jaren Mangham from USF, brother of Spartan DB Jared Mangham and originally a player under Mel Tucker back at Colorado. He's also fine, probably a cut below Berger if you made me guess. The player I'm more excited about and what elevated MSU above Indiana for me is Nathan Carter, who devoted readers may recall as one of the few "star" players that UConn brought with them to the Big House last season. I liked Carter quite a bit and he rushed for over 6 YPC for the bowl eligible 2022 Huskies (don't forget about UConn's Myrtle Beach Bowl appearance!!). He'll be a nice add and a decent complement to Berger. Is this RB room better than last year? Not really sure, but it's alright and 7th feels like a decent spot for that sort of talent. 

 

[Carlin Stiehl, MLive]

6. Minnesota 

Not too far in front of MSU are the Minnesota Golden Gophers, who lose forever star RB Mohamed Ibrahim, now fighting it out at Detroit Lions training camp down in Allen Park. Ibrahim was a great player and if he were still around, the floor for Minnesota's ranking on this list would be #3. But like ECU, they lose a true stud and are left trying to replace it through a mix of returners and portal options. From the portal, PJ Fleck went back to the only well he knows, the Western Michigan Broncos, to snatch Sean Tyler. A multi-time All-MAC RB, Tyler rushed for 1,000+ yards each of the last two seasons and added double digit catches to go with it. Smart money is on him being the #1 option for the Gophers, which is very solid, though we have to be a bit cautious with up-transferring and assuming all will go perfectly (though RB is a more projectable spot). 

Beyond Tyler, Minnesota will look in house to round out this room. Bryce Williams was third on last year's depth chart, carrying 51 times for 249 yards. He's shockingly old, having committed to Minnesota a few weeks after your author graduated high school(!!), but he's using his sixth year (RS + COVIDshirt) to suit up one last go around. That's a solid veteran option to have. The other players comprising this room are younger understudies, Zach Evans (Tr Fr last fall, redshirted) and Darius Taylor (incoming 3* Tr Fr), the latter of whom is a Michigander that Michigan briefly poked around on as a recruit. This depth is okay, but there's an element of newness in this RB room that's pervasive. The lead back, who I do like, is a MAC transfer, and two of the three depth options are essentially starting fresh. That's what keeps them below the next team on the list, who returns all their guys, but the presence of Tyler puts them a nose ahead of MSU, though as I said, 9-5 on this list is very close.  

 

5. Nebraska 

The final team in that close range of B1G teams and the one I ranked the highest, is Nebraska. Yes, even I don't feel great about saying those words. The case for this ranking is Nebraska is returning all their production from last season, including a pair of RBs who are pretty solid players. Anthony Grant and Gabe Ervin figure to be the 1-2 punch for Nebraska, though receiving weapon Rahmir Johnson returns after an injury-riddled season, looking to recapture the spark he had back in 2021. That season he carried it for nearly 500 yards and reeled in nearly 200 yards worth of passes, a piece that Matt Rhule will like having in the backfield if Johnson is back to 100%. 

He figures to be more of a receiving weapon than either Grant or Ervin, who project to get the lion's share of the carries on the ground for the Bugeaters Cornhuskers. Ervin dealt with injuries as well last year and now enters the season as the projected "starter" over Grant, who rushed for 915 yards on 218 carries. I am willing to believe Ervin may be the better guy, which is why it's nice to have a "back-up" who just put up that sort of production the year before. All this returning production (relative to Minnesota or MSU in particular) and a coach coming in who has fielded decent rushing attacks in his prior stops in college football (Baylor was middle of the country in rush yards per game under Ruhle) is the main argument here and why I put Nebraska 5th, but man, the gap between Indiana and Nebraska is not large. 

 

[Patrick Barron]

4. Purdue 

Here's where the next tier of RB rooms begins and it's also my biggest disagreement with Phil Steele's rankings, who placed Purdue extremely low in his B1G RB lis. I'm not sure what he's talking about other than Devin Mockobee disrespect, the main reason I placed Purdue in this spot. He was one of my favorite RBs from last season, an unheralded walk-on who became the bellcow for Purdue and helped them win the B1G West. No, the elite talent isn't really there and you're never going to see Mockobee's name called in the first round of the draft, but he works incredibly hard and turned water into wine often last season behind a dreadful run-blocking OL. No other Purdue RB ran for more than 3.8 YPC last year, while Mockobee eclipsed 5. He's legit and the presence of that lead back who I'm sure is at least good is why they slot in at #4. 

The rest of the room is fine, not terribly special, but they do return from last year. Dylan Downing was the second highest YPC finisher in 2022 at 3.8. He carried it 93 times and that's valuable returning production for a new coaching staff to count on. Tyrone Tracy Jr. gets a nominal mention as a receiving back who can rush the ball or catch passes out of either the backfield or the slot. He's decent, giving a different element to this group. The depth as a whole is nothing to write home about and it's the power of Mockobee that elevated Purdue above Nebraska/Minnesota's collections of guys that I think are still mostly fine.  

 

3. Maryland 

Another RB I liked quite a bit last season was Maryland's Roman Hemby. He's the headliner for a Maryland RBs room that brings back every player to carry the ball >5 times last season, immense returning production that slots them into the top half of this list. Hemby is a key cog in the Terps' offense, rushing nearly 200 times for close to 1000 yards last season, in addition to catching 33 passes for nearly 300 yards out of the backfield as well. His 11 all-purpose touchdowns are nothing to scoff at and while he does have room to add some more deception to his game, the speed and ability to affect all phases of the offense put him in a category with Mockobee, legit returning lead backs who I know will be good. 

That puts Maryland in the top four with Purdue, but what nudges them ahead of the Boilers is the presence of a deep volume of returning production. Antwaine Littleton II had 76 carries to his name last season, while Colby McDonald has had a rotational role on each of the last two Maryland teams. Ramon Brown carried it 30 times last season as a true freshman after being a top 250 4* recruit in the 247 composite. This is a decently talented room that brings everyone back and has a lead back that I like, a combination that lands Maryland at #3 on my ranking. 

 

[Bryan Fuller]

2. Penn State 

It was a tough call between PSU and the next team on the list, which is where the elite tier begins. That said, I ultimately decided to land with the Nittany Lions here. They return the 1-2 punch of talented rising sophomores Nicholas Singleton and Kaytron Allen. Both were hyped recruits coming into their freshmen seasons and they asserted themselves as the future of the PSU RB room in a hurry, pushing Caziah Holmes, Devyn Ford, and Keyvone Lee all out. The end result of the season was Singleton rushing for 1,000 yards while Allen fell just short, each notching double digit touchdowns. Allen was a bigger factor in the passing game, while Singleton's breakaway speed let him rush for over 6.8 YPC. They weren't given the most help by their offensive line and so their total production is somewhat impressive. 

However, I chose to rank PSU behind OSU in part because both guys register as "fast in a straight line" sorts of players without displaying the broken tackle or juking ability that truly elite backs show. That's reflected in their production to some degree, elite against lesser squads but not nearly as impressive against the Ohio States and Michigans. For example, regardless of Michigan's DL destroying PSU's OL in the matchup last year, do you remember a single notable cut or broken tackle either back had in that game? I re-watched the game the other day and did not notice any. That's where I'd like to see this group improve, because the raw talent and the ability to torch defenses in the open field is 100% there. 

With PSU's depth being hollowed out thanks to the ascendence of Singleton and Allen, they dipped into the portal to pick up Trey Potts from Minnesota, a fine player who will add more of a beefy element to the backfield at 5'10, 200. He's rushed for >450 yards and multiple touchdowns in each of the past two seasons and with experience against B1G defenses, I think it's a logical fit. Overall, I don't have too many complaints about the PSU RB room, it just lacks a little zest between the tackles and a little depth relative to the next team on this list. 

 

[Patrick Barron]

1. Ohio State

The Buckeyes land in our top spot thanks to an incredibly deep room and my favorite non-Michigan back in the conference, Miyan Williams. So much focus is given to the electricity of TreVeyon Henderson, which definitely lost some of its luster last year, but Williams is the best RB on the OSU depth chart. He's a bowling ball who drags tacklers and always falls forward for extra yardage, a beast for any defense to deal with. Injuries are his one question mark, as Michigan definitely caught a bit of luck that Williams was only healthy enough to shoulder eight carries in The Game last season (of course, the injury to Blake Corum more than made up for it in reverse). He's a tank. 

Henderson is someone I'm not as high on, more of a dynamic north-south runner akin to the two players PSU boasts that I discussed. An injury-riddled second season took some of the shine off of Henderson's phenomenal 2021 season, but this is still an incredibly talented player who, when healthy, can make you pay if you give him space. Almost every other team on this list would die to have Henderson on their team. What really sets OSU apart from PSU, besides the more effective contrast of Henderson + Williams, is the depth. Dallan Hayden was a very talented recruit who had a stellar showing against Maryland when thrust into duty due to injuries on the depth chart ahead of him. Also, once ASU transfer Chip Trayanum was converted back to RB, he had some moments that caught my eye in The Game. They have four quality players and several different types of weapons in this backfield and that's why they are #1 on my list.   

 

Where would Michigan rank?

Do we need to discuss this? Didn't think so. Blake Corum. Donovan Edwards. 'Nuff said.