Power ranking the SEC's RBs after Week 3
In an effort to track the SEC’s best running backs, we’ll release a running top 10 each Monday. The criteria will involve a mix of talent, recent past performance, 2015 production and outlook. Often times, there will be some deserving snubs, or at least omitted players for which one can build a credible argument.
After Week 3, here are the SEC’s 10 best running backs.
POWER RANKING THE SEC RUNNING BACKS SINCE WEEK 3
10. Ralph Webb, Vanderbilt — The sophomore is much more involved in the passing game this season. Webb never had a game with more than two catches in his freshman campaign, but he’s had at least three in every game this season. Against Austin Peay, he accounted for three touchdowns (two rushing, one receiving). Through Week 3, defenses have been able to focus on taking Webb out of the game, but the Commodores are hoping that will change with the emergence of receiver Trent Sherfield and the chemistry he showed with QB Johnny McCrary on Saturday against Austin Peay. Any semblance of a passing game can help free Webb up to make plays like Vandy knows he’s capable of doing.
This Week: 15 carries, 54 yards, 2 TD; 3 catches, 22 yards, TD
Season: 58 carries, 192 yards, 2 TD; 13 catches, 106 yards, TD
9. Sony Michel, Georgia — It’s time to start giving Michel some love. The sophomore enters the rankings after accounting for three touchdowns against South Carolina (one rushing, two receiving). He’s scored in all three games so far this season, showing himself to be dangerous in the flats and at the goal line. It’ll be interesting when Alabama and Georgia collide in Week 5 as we get to see Henry/Drake vs Chubb/Michel to prove which school has the better one-two punch.
This Week: 8 carries, 51 yards, TD; 3 catches, 32 yards, 2 TD
Season: 26 carries, 148 yards, 2 TD; 7 catches, 141 yards, 3 TD
8. Kenyan Drake, Alabama — Drake had a rough game against Ole Miss, only posting 33 yards on 11 carries and was not a factor in the passing game. Still, Drake is second on the team in receiving yards, and he has the team’s longest play from scrimmage this season: a 69-yard reception against Middle Tennessee State. That was a week after his 43-yard touchdown run against Wisconsin. He’s proven himself to be a versatile playmaker.
This Week: 11 carries, 33 yards
Season: 27 carries, 150 yards, TD; 7 catches, 139 yards, TD
7. Peyton Barber, Auburn — The sophomore will see better days than the one he had against LSU. Barber only touched the ball a total of seven times for 34 yards in the beatdown in the Bayou, a place where nothing worked for Auburn. After all, LSU held Mississippi State to just 49 yards on the ground the previous week. Barber will look to get back to rushing for 100 yards like he did in each of Auburn’s first two games this season.
This Week: 7 carries, 34 yards
Season: 54 carries, 274 yards, TD
6. Jalen Hurd – Tennessee didn’t need Jalen Hurd to shoulder his normal workload, but Hurd still finished with 68 yards on just 11 carries in a 55-10 blowout of Western Carolina. There’s no doubt that Hurd is looking forward to this week’s matchup against Florida, which held him to 39 yards in a devastating 10-9 loss a season ago.
This Week: 11 carries, 68 yards, TD
Season: 58 carries, 300 yards, 5 TD
5. Boom Williams, Kentucky — The only thing consistently working for Kentucky against Florida’s stifling defense on Saturday was Williams, who had 80 yards on just 16 carries. Those 80 yards accounted for a little over 33 percent of the Wildcats’ offense. It wasn’t a dazzling performance running the ball, but it was against a stifling Gators defense. Kentucky may live to regret not getting Boom more carries in that contest.
This Week: 16 carries, 80 yards
Season: 40 carries, 322 yards, TD
4. Alex Collins, Arkansas — Collins had 170 yards and a touchdown in Arkansas’ loss to Texas Tech, proving that the infection that sent him to the hospital for treatment and kept him out of practices was probably the reason for his poor performance against Toledo in Week 2. Collins has 351 rushing yards up to this point, well on his way to a third straight 1,000-yard season.
This Week: 28 carries, 170 yards, TD
Season: 60 carries, 351 yards, 3 TD
3. Derrick Henry, Alabama — It didn’t help Bama’s bell cow that Ole Miss jumped out to an early lead. Otherwise, Henry may have finished with even more than his 23 carries against Ole Miss. He finished with 127 yards and reached pay dirt for an eighth straight game. His seven touchdowns are tied with Boise State’s Jeremy McNichols for the most in the FBS.
This Week: 23 carries, 127 yards, TD
Season: 54 carries, 370 yards, 7 TD
2. Nick Chubb, Georgia — It’s incredible that the No. 2 back on our list is a player that’s rushed for 100 yards in every game he’s ever started. On Saturday, Chubb rushed for 159 yards, extending his streak of 100-yard games to 11, tied with Toledo’s Kareem Hunt for the longest active streak in the FBS. While his streak certainly gets attention, Chubb has also found the end zone in 10 of those 11 career starts. The only time he didn’t score was in Week 2 against Vanderbilt. Chubb averaged 7.6 yards per carry against the Gamecocks, who were tortured by the Bulldogs’ backfield all game.
This Week: 21 carries, 159 yards, 2 TDs
Season: 56 carries, 468 yards, 4 TDs
1. Leonard Fournette, LSU — The Bayou Bruiser. Freight Train Fournette. The sophomore sensation not only moved to the top of this list, he’s now the front-runner for the Heisman Trophy. Actually, the top three on this list are all Heisman candidates, so that’s almost the same thing. Fournette moves up to No. 1 from No. 3 after his 228 rushing yards and three touchdowns against Auburn. Vision, speed and power were all on display, the ingredients of a great running back. Even if you chalk it up to Auburn’s defense being bad, Fournette clearly has the skill-set to break out any given week. Some players have Heisman moments. Some players have Heisman games. That’s what Fournette had on Saturday.
This Week: 19 carries, 228 yards, 3 TDs
Season: 47 carries, 387 yards, 6 TDs
Dropped Out: Brandon Wilds, South Carolina
Wait, Derrick Henry transferred to Georgia?! We are STACKED.
We could use a 4th string running back.
Wait wasn’t he committed to Georgia for about 5 minutes before switching to Bama?
Somehow, Sony Michel scored 3 times Saturday, has scored in every game so far this season, and still only has 3 touchdowns on the year.
He has scored 3 Rushing TD’s, but has score either a Rec. TD or Rushing in all 3 games.
I don’t know that I’d be able to call a number 1 between Fournette and Chubb. Fournette has 2 more TD’S but Chubb has 81 more yards on 9 more carries. I would honestly have to go 1a and 10 on this one. And it isn’t close after that. Henry is 3rd and rightly so, but a distant one.what a great RB class this has turned out to be. Glad we got Nick and Sony!
You forget LSU cancelled their first game, so this is for 2 games, versus Chubb’s 3.
Exactly, Fournette could have at least 160+ more yards if McNeese game wasn’t cancelled. That’s the scary part.
It’s okay, Chubb took it easy in his first game… :-P
While I agree that Fournette would almost definitely have more yards without the cancelled game, it would still be hard to determine who would be having the better season. The best statistic we can gauge that on is yards per carry. At this point, Chubb has averaged 8.4 YPC to Fournette’s 8.2. However, then you get into the discussion of “who has played the better opponents.” Either way both backs have had an incredible first few games and really have set themselves apart from the rest of the pack.
yea… I don’t think Chubb wants to go to “who has played the better opponents”… #18 Aub and #25 MSU…. ULM, Vandy, SC… while McNeese’s defense is actually way better than most people would expect, Fournette still might have increased that 8.2 ypc, and obviously added TDs…
But yea its hard to say who is a better player. I think Fournette is having a better season, but thats mostly because he shares less time than Chubb and because he’s had some plays that were visually more impressive (this doesn’t matter bottom-line… a win is a win, an 8 yd run is an 8yd run)…would love to have either ha
Did you just accidentally skip over Tra Carson and 292 yards?
I would say Fournette is #1, and not just because I’m biased. One major factor that no one is talking about is the passing game. Georgia is throwing a lot more passes than LSU, and completing over 70% of them. That takes some pressure off the running game. With LSU, defenses know what they’re going to get, and they still can’t stop him.
Every game the box has been stacked, regardless of how well the passing game was doing. Safeties have crept up, the whole nine. You haven’t particularly watched the games, if that’s your conclusion, which is fine.
The fact remains, most of Lambert’s passes are short, easy, throws, and a lot of glorified runs. Despite them stacking the box, I think the longest pass of the season for Lambert was to Michel on like a 5-7 yard route?
Lambert hadn’t scared any team into not stacking the box, and considering most of his passes are short, teams will continue to stack the box until he becomes a vertical passing threat. I like fournette, but I’ve seen him miss big holes/cutbacks. He benefits greatly from athleticism.
I’m really pretty tired of the criticism of not getting Boom more carries, especially in the Florida game. Just watch the games, or watch closer if you do, and you’ll see why. Kemp and especially Horton are good backs and are just straight up more effective in short yardage and in pass protection. What carries he doesn’t get UK almost always makes up for in passes to him out of the backfield.
Boom is great, but Jojo and Mikel Horton have more than earned the carries they’ve gotten. Each deliver when called upon.
Also…Boom doesn’t have any touchdowns this year? Lol smh, come on, man! Get it together.
Running back A “26 carries, 148 yards, 2 TD; 7 catches, 141 yards, 3 TD”
Running back B” 27 carries, 150 yards, TD; 7 catches, 139 yards, TD”
Why is back B ranked ahead of A? Identical yardages except one found the end zone 3 more times in as many games…