Kentucky's running back-by-committee approach provides versatility

15 years ago, nearly every NFL team utilized a bell cow running back. They might insert the occasional change-of-pace tailback on third down who specialized in catching screens, but not necessarily on every drive. Now, almost every NFL team utilizes two or even three ball carriers in addition to a screen-catching specialist. Some teams even employ a back only for goal-line situations, much to the frustration of the team’s starting running back’s fantasy owners.

During the Mark Stoops era, Kentucky football has been more in line with the old-school style of running back depth chart utilization, and for good reason. With stud power backs like Chris Rodriguez, Benny Snell, and Boom Williams, Kentucky has not felt the need to spread the rock around aside from a couple of seasons when Asim Rose split carries within the run-heavy offense behind Lynn Bowden and a young C-Rod.

This year will feature the deepest running back room of Coach Stoops’ career and that will only serve Kentucky well.

They say if you have two quarterbacks, then you actually have zero, but that doesn’t translate to tailback. If you have two running backs, you have two running backs, and well, Kentucky has six.

The Returners

Losing Chris Rodriguez hurt, and Kavosiey Smoke, who transferred to Colorado, played better than he was often perceived. However, Kentucky returns two guys who showed flashes of excellence last year in JuTahn McClain and La’Vell Wright.

McClain actually finished second in total yards behind Chris Rodiguez, picking up 278 yards on the ground on 58 carries. He also led all backs in receptions with 18 and tallied 100 scrimmage yards through the air, including a touchdown.

At 5-foot-9 and 198 pounds, he served as a quality change-of-pace third-down back in obviously passing situations and that is likely a role he will resume this season.

La’Vell Wright is another guy too talented to not see the field. He was the only running back last season to play in all 13 games and amassed 148 scrimmage yards on 45 total touches. Clearly, Mark Stoops trusts him.

And let’s not forget about Ramon Jefferson. Stoops brought in the 5-foot-10, 210-pound bowling ball from Sam Houston State last season to provide some depth at the running back position, but the near-2,000-yard rusher at his previous stop suffered a season-ending injury on the first series of the first game with his new team. Granted an astonishing seventh year of eligibility, Jefferson will have a lot to prove to close out this Van Wilder-length college career.

The Newcomers

With all this talk about running-back-by-committee, expect Vanderbilt transfer, Ray Davis, to be your RB1 and lead the Wildcats in carries this season. Davis has proven his excellence in the SEC and Liam Coen would be a fool not to feature the 5th-year senior early and often.

That being said, don’t expect Davis to enjoy the 21.9 carries per game workload that Chris Rodriguez managed last year, or even the 19.3 totes per game Davis saw at Vandy. Davis might lead the way, but with so many options, Davis will be one of many tools used in the backfield. Granted, he is an extremely useful tool, having averaged 4.6 yards per touch last season for the Commodores, including a 130-yard outing against the ‘Cats.

Also joining the team this year via the transfer portal is Demie Sumo-Karngbaye from NC State. The former teammate of Devin Leary averaged 5.5 yards per carry in his short time with the Wolfpack and the news out of training camp is that he has been turning some heads. Some media members even predict DSK will be the breakout star for Kentucky.

Finally, we can’t forget about the new running back that Stoops brought in the old-fashioned way, via Yahtzee! Jamarion Wilcox committed to the Wildcats in January, a top-tier three-star recruit out of Georgia and the 40th-best running back of the 2023 class according to On3.

Even with a thin depth chart, freshman running backs, especially ones that weigh 184 pounds, have a difficult time making an impact in the SEC. That means Wilcox will likely enter the season as the 6th in the playing time pecking order, but folks around the program feel confident he will see the field in certain spots this season, making the possibility of a redshirt fairly low.

Running back versatility

The bottom line is that Kentucky is stacked in the backfield. Kentucky fans will see a departure from the feature-back carry dominance to more of a modern NFL style, running back-by-committee approach.

Not only will this keep everyone fresh and decrease the chance of injury, but it also gives defenses six different backs to scout. Moreover, it gives Liam Coen’s offense the versatility to match personnel with the game situation.

Need to wear down a defense for a drive? Give the ball to Ray Davis. Need to convert a 3rd and 1? Ramon Jefferson can eke it out. Need good pass protection and a homerun threat off a screen? Plug in JuTahn McClain. How about some fresh, powerful legs in the second half against a tired defense? Enter DSK.

The backfield options will be plentiful for Kentucky’s pro-style offense next season, and as Mark Stoops said in his weekend presser, it will all help set up the play-action pass.