Ranking Tennessee’s five best running backs ever requires two things: a leeway with the definition of the position and a strong sense of history.

Many of the Vols’ best-ever “halfbacks” ran Tennessee’s single-wing offense, throwing more or less as often as running in addition to handling other duties on defense or special teams.

UT also has produced a cadre of backs that deserve heavy consideration for the Top 5 and don’t quite make it. With those players, listed below, often it’s a matter of personal favorites in terms of deciding which one ranks highest, because each of them produced admirable careers.

Here are our picks for the five best all-time.

Also considered: Jamal Lewis, James Stewart, Johnnie Jones, Jay Graham, Travis Stephens, Charlie Garner and Arian Foster.

5. George Cafego (1936-39): One of several multi-purpose standouts under coach and General Robert Neyland, “Bad News” was just that for opposing teams. A two-time All-American, Cafego was a colorful personality and a great kick returner and punter, and solid quarterback, to boot. The Chicago Cardinals made him the No. 1 overall pick in the 1940 NFL draft, and Cafego twice finished in the Top 10 of the Heisman Trophy voting. The Vols compiled a record of 21-1 in Cafego’s final two years, including the ’38 Vols, which Athlon Sports in 2009 named the third-best college football team ever.

4. Gene McEver (1927-31): Tennessee’s first inductee into the College Football Hall of Fame, “The Bristol Blizzard” formed half of the “Touchdown Twins” along with Buddy Hackman. He finished the 1929 season with a blistering 18 touchdowns. Neyland called McEver “the best I ever coached,” and the results bear out that stamp of approval: the Vols compiled a record of 27-0-3 with McEver on the field. (He missed the ’30 season due to injury.) His 37 career rushing touchdowns remains the all-time record at Tennessee.

3. Hank Lauricella (1948-51): Another engineer of Tennessee’s single-wing offense, “Mr. Everything” was the Vols’ best offensive player on two national championship teams for Neyland in ’50 and ’51. His winding 75-yard run helped set up a game-winning touchdown against Texas in the Cotton Bowl after the ’50 season. The next year, Lauricella finished as the Heisman Trophy runner-up after keying Tennessee to a No. 1 ranking most of the year. After football, he launched a significant political career in Louisiana.

2. Travis Henry (1997-00): A punchline late in his NFL career, mostly due to off-field issues, Henry was the one delivering the blows as a UT running back. Nicknamed “Cheese” by the strength coach for his uncommon strength, Henry shared the backfield with Jamal Lewis during the ’98 national championship season. By the time he left Knoxville, he owned school records for rushing yards (3,078) and 100-yard games (14). He may have gobbled up even more yards if he didn’t also share carries with Travis Stephens in ’00, but Henry earned All-American status in his final college year.

1. Johnny Majors (1953-56): One of the last great players to operate as a triple threat from the single-wing offense, Majors’ raw stats aren’t jaw-dropping by today’s standards. He ran for 1,622 yards and threw for 1,135 more during his career in Knoxville. Majors led UT to an SEC championship in 1956 and, similar to Peyton Manning many years later, got jilted for the Heisman Trophy, finishing runner-up to media darling Paul Hornung on a 2-8 Notre Dame team. Later, Majors won a national championship as a head coach.