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Scarlet Sunrise: Justin Fields becomes third NFL quarterback to rush for 1,000 yards in a season

IMG_7408by:Andy Backstrom•12/19/22•

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Former Ohio State quarterback Justin Fields rushed for 95 yards and passed for two touchdowns for the Chicago Bears in Week 15. (Quinn Harris/Getty Images)

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Justin Fields becomes third NFL quarterback to rush for 1,000 yards in a season

Former Ohio State star quarterback Justin Fields became the third NFL quarterback to rush for 1,000 yards in a season Sunday. He hit that mark right on the head with a 95-yard rushing performance for the Chicago Bears in Week 15 against the Philadelphia Eagles.

The Bears lost to the Eagles — who entered the weekend with the best record in the NFL — 25-20, but Fields tossed two touchdowns and, most notably, joined Lamar Jackson and Michael Vick as the only three signal callers to rush for 1,000 yards in a season in league history. In the process, Fields also posted the second-highest passer rating (119.5) of his young career against a ball-hawking Eagles defense.

Here are Fields’ stats after Week 15:

  • 2,048 pass yards, 15 TD, 10 INT
  • 1,000 rush yards, 8 TD
  • 23 total TD
  • 70+ rushing yards in five straight games (longest streak by NFL QB since at least 1950)
  • 50+ rushing yards in eight straight games (longest active streak by NFL player)

If you’re wondering about the single-season rushing record for a quarterback, that belongs to Jackson, who rushed for 1,206 yards during his 2019 MVP season. Jackson also topped the 1,000-yard mark in 2020. Vick, meanwhile, was the first to do it with 1,039 yards on the ground in 2006, except he never got back to that milestone again.

What next? Three quarterback options for Ohio State in 2024

It was an up-and-down week for the future of the Ohio State quarterback room. The Buckeyes got their Class of 2023 quarterback when four-star Pierre (S.D.) T.F. Riggs signal caller Lincoln Kienholz flipped from Washington to Ohio State. But then five-star Chandler (Ariz.) quarterback Dylan Raiola — the top prospect in the 2024 cycle — re-opened his recruitment after originally pledging to the Buckeyes.

Raiola visited Columbus multiple times in the spring and told head coach Ryan Day and quarterbacks coach Corey Dennis he was committing during Ohio State’s spring game.

Now, Raiola is considering his options again. So where do the Buckeyes go from here at the position?

Lettermen Row recruiting analyst Matt Parker tackles that question and lists three names that Ohio State should initiate — or, in some cases, reinitiate — contact with.

Buckeyes honor seven December graduates

The Ohio State football program honored its seven December graduates Sunday: wide receiver Kamryn Babb, running back Marcus Crowley (medically retired from football after last season), defensive end Tyler Friday, defensive end Zach Harrison, safety Ronnie Hickman, and offensive linemen Paris Johnson Jr. and Ryan Smith.

Thirty-nine Ohio State football players earned Academic All-Big Ten honors earlier this month. The qualifications required for such recognition are being enrolled at the institution for minimum of a year, being an athlete on a varsity team at said institution and posting a cumulative GPA of 3.0 or higher.

For the full list of the Buckeyes’ honorees, go here.

Ohio State safety Jantzen Dunn transfers to Kentucky

Ohio State safety transfer Jantzen Dunn committed to Kentucky Sunday. Dunn entered the portal on Dec. 13 after spending two seasons trying to carve out a role for himself in the Buckeyes secondary while dealing with injuries.

Dunn is returning to his home state with three years of eligibility remaining. The Bowling Green (Ky.) South Warren product chose Ohio State over Kentucky, Louisville and Tennessee in the 2021 cycle. At the time, he was ranked the No. 157 overall player and No. 8 safety in the class, not to mention that he was the No. 2 player in the state of Kentucky.

Dunn scattered 16 snaps — all on special teams — in four games this season, according to Pro Football Focus.

For all Ohio State-related portal content, check out Lettermen Row’s transfer tracker.

Counting down

Peach Bowl: 12 days away

Buckeyes vs. Michigan: 341 days

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