Quinshon Judkins on splitting reps at Ohio State: 'I don't really focus on how many carries I get'

Quinshon Judkins and TreVeyon Henderson are two of the top running backs in the country — and they’ll both be in Ohio State’s backfield this season.

Judkins, who transferred into the program from Ole Miss this offseason, isn’t worried about a drop in production or splitting time with Henderson. Instead, he’s focused on what he can control.

“My job is to come in and run football and just be the best teammate that I can be to my teammates and support my team overall,” Judkins said after practice on Wednesday. “I don’t really focus on how many carries I get or you know, things like that I just come in and just do my job.”

That was exactly the mindset that Judkins took heading into his true freshman season with the Rebels.

Coming out of high school, Judkins was ranked as a three-star prospect and the No. 493 overall player in the country in the class of 2022, according to the On3 Industry rankings, a proprietary algorithm that compiles ratings and rankings from all four primary recruiting media services. On paper, he wasn’t expected to be the instant-impact performer he quickly became in Oxford.

Judkins went on to become the On3 National Offensive True Freshman of the Year and a first-team All-SEC selection after rushing for 1,567 yards and 16 touchdowns in 2022. He finished with the second-best rushing season by a freshman in SEC history, trailing only Herschel Walker’s 1,616 yards at Georgia in 1980.

He followed that up by rushing for 1,158 yards and 15 touchdowns in 2023, while averaging 4.3 yards per carry. He also had 149 receiving yards and two scores. For Henderson, he rushed for 926 yards and 11 touchdowns for Ohio State last season while splitting time with Chip Trayanum, who has since transferred to Kentucky.

Now they’re together at Ohio State in the new-look Big Ten Conference. Both running backs — who were each named on the preseason watch list for the 2024 Doak Walter Award — be tasked with leading a Buckeyes program that finished 11-2 in 2023 after starting 11-0 last year. Ohio State will lean on both Judkins and Hendserson for big-time snaps in 2024.

They’ll kick off the season on Aug. 31 in Ohio Stadium against Akron before beginning Big Ten play on Sept. 28 against Michigan State. Matchups against Oregon, Nebraska, Penn State, and of course, Michigan loom as well.