Productive tailbacks come in all shapes and sizes, as the SEC has proven through the years. Some backs are power backs designed to do their damage between the tackles; others possess a combination of size and speed that makes them productive every-down backs.

But what about the perceived “undersized backs” of the SEC? Those backs, often the smallest scholarship players on an SEC roster aside from perhaps the kickers and punters, are rarely given the respect they deserve for the role they play in an offense.

We pigeon-hole these student-athletes to be “scat backs” with a very particular set of skills (not unlike Liam Neeson in the Taken films), which then leads us to believe these backs can be nothing more than role players on an offense. That couldn’t be further from the truth.

In the last 15 years alone there have been a number of smaller backs to carry the load for their team in the SEC, and even more who may have played a more defined role, but played that role really, really, really well. In honor of Running Backs Week at SDS, we’re giving those tailbacks their due by honoring the big hearts of the small men of the SEC.

(NOTE: To qualify for this list, a player must be shorter than 5-foot-10 and weigh less than 200 pounds.)

Trindon Holliday, LSU

Size: 5-foot-5, 166 pounds

Career highlights: Holliday was a dynamic four-year back at LSU who rarely ever carried the ball out of the backfield but almost always made plays with the ball in his hands. He only amassed 776 rushing yards for his college career, but averaged 6.7 yards per carry in accumulating those numbers, indicating his home-run threat out of the backfield. He could also line up in the slot, and although he only caught seven career passes at LSU he’s since moved from tailback to wideout in the NFL. But his greatest asset, both in the SEC and in the NFL, is his return abilities. With the ball in his hands in space Holliday is nearly impossible to corral given his immaculate speed and small stature. He logged four return touchdowns in four years at LSU, and logged four more in his first five years as a pro.

Rafael Little, Kentucky

Size: 5-foot-9, 195 pounds

Career highlights: Little was Kentucky’s primary back for three years from 2005-07, playing alongside star quarterback Andre Woodson for much of that time. Not only did he rush for more than 1,000 yards in 2005 and again in 2007, but he also served as a deadly pass-catcher out of the backfield during his UK career, amassing more than 1,000 yards for his career. He’s Kentucky’s all-time leader in yards from scrimmage by nearly 400 yards, and he remains the only player in Kentucky history to amass more than 4,000 yards from scrimmage for his career (4,320).

Onterio McCalebb, Auburn

Size: 5-foot-9, 175 pounds

Career highlights: From 2009-12, McCalebb was the quintessential “good at everything, not great at anything” tailback in the SEC, although his array of skills combined together to make one helluva great football player. He never rushed for 1,000 yards at Auburn, but ran for at least 500 yards in each of his four collegiate seasons. Likewise, he never posted 1,000 yards as a receiver in any single season, but amassed at least 600 in all four seasons on the plains. He even ran back two kickoffs for touchdowns during his career, contributing in seemingly every way possible during the Tigers’ rise and fall from ’09-12, better known as the Gene Chizik era. His 3,206 yards from scrimmage rank eighth in Auburn history, and his 27 career touchdowns from scrimmage rank ninth.

Dexter McCluster, Ole Miss

Size: 5-foot-8, 170 pounds

Career highlights: McCluster did most of his damage at Ole Miss as an upperclassmen in 2008-09. He was a lot like McCalebb before McCalebb arrived at Auburn — he could carry the ball like a traditional back, could catch passes out of the backfield, could line up on the outside as a wideout and could return kicks as well. He broke out with 600 yards rushing and 600 more receiving in 2008, all in addition to seven total touchdowns from scrimmage (six rushing, one receiving). As a senior he posted his first and only 1,000-yard season on the ground, and added another 520 yards as a pass-catcher to go along with 11 total touchdowns (eight rushing, three receiving). He’s now a full-time slot receiver for the NFL’s Kansas City Chiefs, but his versatility in college helped Ole Miss transition from the failed Ed Orgeron era and into a brief period of success under replacement coach Houston Nutt.

Marcus Murphy, Missouri

Size: 5-foot-9, 185 pounds

Career highlights: Murphy is the most recent SEC star on this list, only days removed from being drafted by the New Orleans Saints in this year’s NFL draft. (For what it’s worth, he was drafted to replace epic NFL scat back Darren Sproles in the Saints offense, indicating how deserving he is of this spot on our list.) At Mizzou, Murphy was a complementary back who spelled the team’s workhorse back, most recently Russell Hansbrough and before him Henry Josey. As a result, he never amassed high yardage totals, but still made a tremendous impact in his role. He averaged 5.8 yards per carry for his Missouri career, rushing for a career-high 924 yards as a senior on last year’s SEC East championship team, and he posted a career-high 212 yards receiving this year to bring him over the 1,000 yards from scrimmage mark for the first and only time as a Tiger. Hansbrough is back in CoMo for another year, but without Murphy to diversify the backfield he may struggle out of the gate in 2015.

Chris Rainey, Florida

Size: 5-foot-9, 180 pounds

Career highlights: Rainey was Florida’s tailback during its most recent dynasty from 2007-11, headlined by head coach Urban Meyer and from ’07-09 by quarterback Tim Tebow. Rainey played alongside a number of future NFL stars like Percy Harvin, Andre Caldwell, Riley Cooper and the now incarcerated Aaron Hernandez, to name a few, but he had the most unique skill set of the bunch, save for perhaps Harvin. He amassed at least 500 yards on the ground three times during his career, and he also topped the 150-yard receiving mark three times while at Florida. He posted more than 3,200 yards 19 touchdowns from scrimmage in four years, all while sharing touches with that long list of NFL talent, and he returned two kickoffs for touchdowns despite only returning 26 total kicks for his career, a touchdown rate of better than 7.5 percent.