Who Are The Top 10 Running Backs Heading Into The 2025 College Football Season?

Fox News

4 days ago

Running back was arguably the strongest position in college football last season. Ashton Jeanty seriously threatened Barry Sanders' long-standing single-season rushing yards record. TreVeyon Henderson and Quinshon Judkins teamed up to help Ohio State win a national championship. Cam Skattebo put Arizona State on his back and led the Sun Devils to the CFP behind his 1,700-yard season.
All of those players are now off to the NFL, though, leaving college football without a clear-cut top player at running back, at least in the eyes of some. Penn State has a couple of running backs who can make their case for the honor, while Notre Dame has a running back who might also feel he's the top dog at the position.
While we might not be as certain about who the No. 1 running back in the nation is entering 2025, the depth of talent at the position is still apparent. That's why forming a top-10 list wasn't easy, but we gave it a try. So, here are the 10 best running backs in college football ahead of the new season.
After redshirting in 2023, Washington had a stellar 2024 campaign. He rushed for 1,028 yards on 5.9 yards per carry. He added 217 receiving yards and a touchdown in the passing game as well, helping him earn Freshman All-American honors from multiple publications.
Washington's play really took off at the end of the season, though. He rushed for at least 110 yards in each of Baylor's final four regular-season games and in five of its final six regular-season games. He scored 11 of his 12 touchdowns in that stretch.
The 2024 season might have been disappointing for the Huskies, but it certainly wasn't for Coleman. Following head coach Jedd Fisch from Arizona to Washington, Coleman rushed for 1,053 yards on 5.5 yards per carry and 10 touchdowns. He was productive in ranked matchups against Michigan and Indiana, putting up 184 yards over those two games. He was named third-team All-Big Ten as a result.
Reid made a seamless transition from the FCS to FBS in 2024, putting up better numbers at Pitt than he did in his last season at Western Carolina. The third-year running back rushed for 966 yards on 5.3 yards per carry and five touchdowns, adding an impressive 579 receiving yards and four receiving touchdowns in 2024 on top of those numbers.
Reid's contributions didn't end on the offensive side of the ball, either. He recorded 159 punt return yards and a punt return touchdown, earning second-team All-American honors from multiple outlets as an all-purpose player.
The Longhorns keep churning out quality running backs, with Wisner joining that lineage in 2024. He actually wasn't supposed to be Texas' starting running back entering the 2024 season, earning the job after CJ Baxter suffered a season-ending knee injury during fall camp. Wisner stepped up in Baxter's absence, recording 1,064 yards on 4.7 yards per carry to go with 311 receiving yards and a receiving touchdown.
Baxter will be back in the mix for Texas in 2025, so it might be tough for Wisner to put up over 1,000 rushing yards again. But his talent was too good to leave him off the list.
For the last couple of seasons, Luther Burden III brought the offensive spark for Missouri at wide receiver. This season, Hardy might be responsible for being the Tigers' offensive catalyst. He rushed for an impressive 1,351 yards on 5.7 yards per carry and 13 touchdowns at Louisiana-Monroe last season, winning Sun Belt Freshman of the Year.
Hardy was arguably the best running back in the transfer portal this offseason, with Missouri beating Ole Miss and Kentucky to land him.
After finishing third in the ACC in rushing yards last season, Brown is the conference's leading returning rusher for 2025. In fact, he proved to be one of the ACC's best running backs as a freshman in 2024, rushing for 1,173 yards on an impressive 7.1 yards per carry and 11 touchdowns. He rushed for at least 5.5 yards per carry in each of Louisville's three games against ranked opponents last year, putting up 151 yards in its upset win over Clemson. That helped Brown win ACC Rookie of the Year and earn second-team All-Conference honors.
Allen is the first of two Nittany Lions running backs who'll appear on the list. Returning for his senior season, Allen made incremental improvements in each of his first three years in Happy Valley. He started off as an 800-yard rusher as a freshman in 2022 before rushing for 1,108 yards on five yards per carry and five touchdowns last season, and that was as he split carries with another player on our list.
After losing standout Jordan James to the NFL, Oregon was able to land a quality running back to replace him for the 2025 season. Hughes transferred to Eugene after two strong seasons at Tulane, where he rushed for over 2,700 yards. Last season, Hughes rushed for 1,401 yards on 5.3 yards per carry and 15 touchdowns to be named first-team All-AAC for the second straight year.
The other half of Penn State's dynamic running back duo, Singleton is arguably the most complete running back in college football. His speed helped him rush for over 1,000 yards for the second time in his career in 2024, going for 1,099 yards on 6.4 yards and 12 touchdowns. As a receiver, Singleton had 41 receptions for 375 yards and five touchdowns.
Even though Penn State has struggled in big games in recent years, Singleton has not. In the Nittany Lions' final four games of the 2024 season – the Big Ten Championship and three CFP games – he rushed for 376 yards and five touchdowns.
Love was Notre Dame's offensive catalyst in its surprise run to the national championship game last season. He rushed for 1,125 yards on 6.9 yards per carry and 17 touchdowns, adding two receiving touchdowns as well. While his numbers in the postseason might not look great, Love was battling injury at the time. That didn't stop him from taking a run 98 yards to the house in Notre Dame's win over Indiana.
Not only is Love our top-ranked running back heading into the 2025 season, but he's also one of FOX Sports lead college football analyst Joel Klatt's top players entering the year. Klatt ranked Love as his sixth-best player in college football entering the year, saying that he "gives Notre Dame the ability to compete at the top end of the sport.
"I don't think we've seen the best of Love yet," Klatt said. "He rushed for over 7.0 yards per carry [before the injury] and is a home run threat every time he touches the ball. Those types of running backs who can change the game with one touch are really special."
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