Most of the SEC’s best running backs took it easy or were working hard rehabbing injuries this spring.

Their absence afforded others the opportunity to shine.

Here are six SEC running backs whose spring performances might have surprised you:

Sihiem King, Kentucky: Kentucky’s backfield rotation is deep and led by Stanley “Boom” Williams, who has all-conference type ability. Williams was out this spring, and King made the most of his additional touches.

He ran for 84 yards against Kentucky’s first-team defense in the spring game — part of a 95-yard day in which he added a touchdown.

“He was maybe my biggest surprise out of anybody,” quarterback Drew Barker told the Louisville Courier-Journal after the spring game. “He was really making plays, making something out of nothing. You have to have guys like that in this league.”

Roc Thomas, Auburn: Auburn fans have been begging to see more of Thomas in general, and more of him lined up in the slot, in particular.

They got both wishes during the spring game. Jovon Robinson has separated himself as the true feature back, but Thomas showed off his versatility — which existed but wasn’t maximized last year — in the passing game.

Look for more of that this fall.

Chandler Cox and Kamryn Pettway, Auburn: They’re interchangeable parts and largely ignored as H-backs in Auburn’s running game. In the spring game, they did much more than open holes. Each showed off a surprising combination of power running and speed. Their emergence — assuming it can continue this fall — will allow Auburn even more flexibility with Roc Thomas in the slot. A win-win.

“(Pettway) is a really good athlete and both of those guys bring a lot of versatility for us,” offensive coordinator Rhett Lashlee told the Montgomery Advertiser. “They’re not the tallest guys, but they’re big, they’re strong, they’re physical and they’re instinctive. They both can run the ball. Kamyrn Pettway was a running back in high school. They snapped the dab-gum thing to Chandler and let him run all over people, so they’ve got the versatility I think, in year two, we’ll be able to use.”

Kwame Etwi, Texas A&M: Tra Carson graduated and potential starter Keith Ford missed the spring game, two factors that Etwi capitalized on. James White is certainly in the mix to start, but Etwi might have provided a third option with a surprising effort.

He led all Aggies with 72 yards rushing.

He didn’t play much last season as a true freshman, but he played well. He averaged 7.6 yards per carry and had a long run of 42 yards.

Texas A&M might not have a star in the backfield, but it has depth, and Etwi made his case for more touches in 2016.

Mark Thompson, Florida: Which Florida transfer had the best spring performance? Luke Del Rio all but won the starting quarterback job, and Eddy Pineiro showed why he might win a couple of games with his leg.

All Thompson did was run for 46 yards and a touchdown on five carries as he took another step toward replacing Kelvin Taylor as the Gators’ go-to back in 2016.

Jordan Cronkrite and Jordan Scarlett are in the mix as well, but Thompson offers size and experience that the two sophomores lack. Thompson was regarded as one of the best JUCO running backs available, but you never know until the pads start popping.

It didn’t take coach Jim McElwain long to notice the 6-2, 242-pounder’s impact.

“That’s an SEC back right there,” McElwain told reporters this spring. “He looks the part. Now we’ll find out when we get pads on. I noticed when he was hitting a couple inside zones and cutbacks, the guy that was kind of coming down questioned (himself) a little bit. He could see a bigger body there.”

Chris Wright is Executive Editor of SaturdayDownSouth.com. Email him at cwright@saturdaydownsouth.com.