Charlie Weis Jr. evaluates Ole Miss running back depth behind Quinshon Judkins

Quinshon Judkins is one of the best running backs in the SEC. Because of that, Ole Miss offensive coordinator Charlie Weis Jr. is going to call his number a lot. Still, having depth behind Judkins is going to be very important.

As Fall Camp marches on, Weis Jr. broke down the team’s running back depth behind Judkins.

“Obviously got a new addition with Jam [Griffin],” Charlie Weis Jr. said. “So, that’s been a heck of a deal, but [Ulysses Bentley IV] has been fantastic. He’s done some really good things at Camp. He’s a super explosive player. So, I think we’ve got a great compliment.”

Last season, Quinshon Judkins was part of a two-headed monster in the backfield for Ole Miss with Zach Evans. Now, Evans is a Los Angeles Ram and Judkins will need another teammate to pick up where Evans left off.

“Jam and Kedrick [Reescano] one of our freshmen backs is doing good things as well. So, we’ve got some quality guys in that room. It’s a really good competition for those guys to compete for carries.”

Still, given Judkins’ production, it’s going to be hard to take away carries from him. In 2022, he rushed for 1,567 yards while averaging 5.7 yards per carry. He also had 16 rushing touchdowns.

With a tough schedule ahead of Ole Miss, Judkins knows the team needs to stay focused.

“I would say this year, the thing that will help us the most with keeping the main thing the main thing and not losing certain games,” Judkins said. “At one point we were 7-0. I think the biggest thing for us is just stay focused and not get distracted by certain things that we can’t control.”

Lane Kiffin on how Quinshon Judkins will take the next step

One of the biggest goals for Ole Miss in 2023 will be finding a way to get Quinshon Judkins to take the next step forward. Head coach Lane Kiffin believes he knows how this is going to happen.

I think, in year two with players, you take a next step. Everybody says that. The player has got to get better, these little things. But you can also take the next step in doing more things, whether that’s a quarterback or a running back,” Kiffin said.

“You can use a guy more in the passing game. Things that, in my opinion, when you first get him? You don’t want to do all that because you never really get at being just a normal running back.”