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This might come off as disrespectful, but I keep coming back to the same question whenever I look at the SEC running backs in 2025.
Where are all the elite SEC backs?
Earlier in the offseason, I pointed out how this trend wasn’t just in my head. In the last 2 years, the SEC had a combined 1 returning 1,000-yard rusher (Tre Wisner). From 2014-23, the SEC returned multiple 1,000-yard backs each season. Mind you, that excludes transfer portal guys who had 1,000-yard seasons elsewhere.
Still, though. The top tier of SEC backs isn’t what it’s been. That’s not to say that it lacks potential. That just means that these preseason rankings are a bit more up for interpretation.
That’s a nice way of saying that I fully anticipate you disagreeing with my top 10 SEC running backs for 2025:
10. CJ Baxter, Texas
Let’s start with a guy that I predicted to lead the SEC in rushing last year … and he didn’t play a game after he went down with a season-ending injury in fall camp. Woof. But Baxter shouldn’t be slept on, even though there’s a more established guy in his backfield (we’ll get to Wisner much later). Baxter had all sorts of flashes as a true freshman in 2023, which included having over 100 scrimmage yards in a Playoff game after Jonathon Brooks suffered a season-ending injury. Baxter is an ideal fit in Steve Sarkisian‘s offense, and for a Texas team that’ll be thinking long-term about its backfield usage, he’ll have plenty of touches.
9. Rahsul Faison, South Carolina
South Carolina made a wise investment by getting Rocket Sanders out of the portal last year. This year, the Gamecocks added another former 1,000-yard back by getting Faison from Utah State. He might not have elite breakaway speed, but he still racked up 12 carries of 20+ yards, which was No. 15 in FBS. He forced 69 missed tackles last year, which was 1 behind SEC Offensive Player of the Year Dylan Sampson. Of course, the competition level was different. Faison can be a bell-cow back who benefits tremendously from the eyes that’ll be on LaNorris Sellers.
8. Davon Booth, Mississippi State
Nobody will talk about Booth in preseason All-SEC conversations because he played for a team that didn’t win an SEC game, and like the aforementioned Faison, he transferred from Utah State. Booth was a post-spring transfer last year, and all he did was finish 9th in the SEC in rushing while averaging 12.6 yards per catch with 4 receiving touchdowns. He’s underrated as a versatile back, and maybe he’s even underrated on this list having finished No. 3 in rushing among SEC returning backs. Game flow wasn’t on his side much last year, and while that could still be working against him again this year, he will still benefit from some continuity.
7. Le’Veon Moss, Texas A&M
If not for the knee injury, Moss is a top-2 returning back. Period. But the hit that he took at South Carolina was one of the significant developments of the SEC season that people don’t talk about enough. When he returns, he’s likely going to be in more of a shared backfield with Amari Daniels and Rueben Owens. That’s good for Texas A&M, but it could limit Moss’s upside after he would’ve ripped past the 1,000-yard mark in 2024 had he not gotten hurt. Moss averaged 4.4 yards after first contact, which ranked No. 9 in FBS. If he can make a full return, he can be one of the conference’s best backs for the second consecutive season.
6. Ahmad Hardy, Mizzou
Yes, the Louisiana-Monroe transfer will have to show that he can make the transition to the SEC, but in that scheme, it’s hard not to be bullish on Hardy. In 2024, he finished 12th in FBS with 112.6 rushing yards/game, and he was 11th in FBS with 19.8 carries/game. More impressively, the only 2 running backs who finished 2024 with more forced missed tackles were Ashton Jeanty and Cam Skattebo, and he had 1,012 yards after first contact alone. That’s telling. He had 189 zone-blocking runs, which was 6th in FBS. That’s why he’s the perfect fit in Eli Drinkwitz‘s offense. The Hardy-Beau Pribula ground game duo will be a fun sight for Mizzou fans.
5. Jaydn Ott, Oklahoma
I’m willing to throw out last year for Ott if he looks the part in fall camp, because injuries limited him in his last season at Cal. The post-spring addition could be monumental for the Sooners. When he was last healthy, Ott was one of the top 10 running backs in the sport. He had a 1,300-yard season, and he finished 11th in FBS with 833 yards after first contact. At this time last year, he was in the preseason All-American discussion. It’ll be interesting to see how Ben Arbuckle plugs Ott into that offense, which will still be centered around QB John Mateer. An improved offensive line and a clean bill of health would go a long way toward a bounce-back year for Ott.
4. Nate Frazier, Georgia
We need to pump the brakes on Frazier being in the conversation of some of the great Georgia backs of the 21st century, but there are worse spots to be in. Frazier filled in well for Trevor Etienne amid his midseason injuries. No returning SEC running back had more rushing touchdowns than Frazier (8), which probably wasn’t the plan at this time last year. The reason that Frazier isn’t even higher on this list is that Kirby Smart hasn’t had a 1,000-yard back in the 2020s. It’s not that he’s been lacking talent at the position, either. Frazier will have company in the backfield with Josh McCray coming over as a post-spring transfer from Illinois, which could limit his red-zone work. That was a long-term move. Frazier should still have no shortage of highlight-reel plays that’ll have UGA fans wondering just how special he can be.
3. Jadan Baugh, Florida
For Georgia fans who are mad that Baugh is ranked higher on this list than Frazier, go look at their production and tell me how egregious that is. It’s virtually identical in many areas and Baugh as some key advantages elsewhere. As true freshmen in 2024, they had the same number of carries (133) and the same number of 1st-down pickups (37), with 2 yards different (673 to 671) and 1 touchdown different (7 to 8). I gave Baugh the slight nod because he forced 12 more missed tackles (32 to 20), and he was better in conference play than Frazier (452 yards to 337). Baugh also had 1 fumble compared to 3 for Frazier. Comparison aside, Baugh got the bump because he took off with his opportunity once Montrell Johnson Jr. got hurt. He averaged 74.3 rushing yards in the last 7 games as a 227-pound true freshman. If you’re sleeping on Baugh, consider this a reminder that he’s in for a monster year alongside DJ Lagway, both of whom will operate behind an elite offensive line.
2. Caden Durham, LSU
Here’s the list of true freshmen who finished in the top 10 in the SEC in rushing in the 2020s:
- Caden Durham, LSU
- Quinshon Judkins, Ole Miss
- Tank Bigsby, Auburn
That’s pretty nice company. Durham was the guy that LSU fans argued was getting underutilized, and they had a fair gripe. Not only did he have 5 games with at least 99 scrimmage yards, but he also didn’t have a single fumble on his 140 carries. That had to put him in high favor with Brian Kelly, who has traditionally been much more conservative with playing true freshmen skill-players. Maybe that’ll limit decorated true freshman Harlem Berry a bit, but that’ll benefit Durham’s Year 2 after he had at least 14 scrimmage touches all but once after September (it was the lopsided Alabama game when LSU only had 18 backfield carries). Durham also should benefit from an experienced interior offensive line, as well as the proven Garrett Nussmeier forcing defenses into light boxes. Nobody should be surprised if Durham leads the SEC in rushing in 2025.
1. Tre Wisner, Texas
At this time last year, Wisner was a 3rd-string back who was expected to be used more on special teams. But the aforementioned Baxter got hurt in fall camp and Jaydon Blue fumbled more than any back in America, which opened the door for Wisner to become the next great Sarkisian back. He’s the SEC’s lone returning 1,000-yard rusher — 1,022 of his rushing yards came vs. Power Conference teams — after he helped Texas reach its second consecutive Playoff semifinal. Wisner was slippery — he forced 45 missed tackles and had 695 rushing yards after first contact — and he took over meaningful games. He was unstoppable late against both A&M and Clemson, and unlike some of the more 1-dimensional backs on this list, he hauled in 44 catches (17 more than any returning SEC back) as an every-down player. Wisner will have company in the backfield with Baxter returning from injury, and it’s worth mentioning that it’s an offensive line with 4 new starters, but Arch Manning will be at the top of every scouting report. Lock in another 1,000-yard season from an elite Texas back.
Connor O'Gara is the senior national columnist for Saturday Down South. He's a member of the Football Writers Association of America. After spending his entire life living in B1G country, he moved to the South in 2015.
