Season In Review: Running Back
01/04/18 | Football, @GoDucksMoseley
Royce Freeman capped his prolific UO career by rushing for nearly 1,500 yards in 2017, leading a talented stable of UO backs.
Reviewing Oregon's 2017 season and looking ahead to spring drills
DEPTH CHART
RB: Royce Freeman, Sr.; Kani Benoit, RSr.; Tony Brooks-James, Jr.; Darrian Felix, Fr.; CJ Verdell, Fr.; Cyrus Habibi-Likio, Fr.
Starter: The argument will persist about which running back in UO history was the best overall, but none was more prolific than Royce Freeman, who wrapped up his career in 2017. Two years after setting the UO single-season rushing record, and a year after his injury marred junior campaign, Freeman set Oregon's career rushing record of 5,621 yards by rushing for 1,475 this past fall. He added 16 rushing touchdowns to give him a school-record 60 for his career, and also became the UO career leader in all-purpose yards (6,435) and total touchdowns (64). Freeman sat out the Las Vegas Bowl but still finished as the No. 2 all-time leading rusher in Pac-12 history, and No. 6 in FBS history. Hampered by a shoulder injury suffered against Cal in late September, Freeman didn't miss a game, and though defenses loaded up to stop him while Justin Herbert was out, Freeman averaged 125.4 yards per game in those five outings. His commitment to the program and his teammates was never in doubt.
Reserves: Backups Kani Benoit and Tony Brooks-James made 12 appearances each, and handled the rushing load against Boise State in the Las Vegas Bowl. Though Brooks-James was coming off a season in which he was named Oregon's 2016 offensive MVP, it was Benoit who emerged as the more productive backup, averaging 6.6 yards per carry and scoring 10 touchdowns. Brooks-James added 498 rushing yards and led Oregon's backs with 15 receptions, including a big-time touchdown catch at ASU. With Freeman's status uncertain in the wake of the shoulder injury against Cal, true freshman Darrian Felix shed his redshirt and played in that game, and the ensuing eight as well. He averaged 6.1 yards per carry on 30 rushes, showing off lateral quickness that set him apart from his stablemates.
Redshirts: Playing Felix allowed the Ducks to break up the group of three freshmen who enrolled in 2017. They redshirted CJ Verdell and Cyrus Habibi-Likio, who spent the season with the scout team. Verdell is a speedy runner whose small sizes belies the power he packs behind his pads. Habibi-Likio is a jumbo athlete who, like Benoit, is capable of using his size to his advantage but shouldn't be pigeon-holed as a power runner – both are shifty gliders who complement their size with elusiveness.
SPRING PROJECTION
RB: Tony Brooks-James, Jr.; Darrian Felix, So.; CJ Verdell, RFr.; Cyrus Habibi-Likio, RFr.; Travis Dye, Fr.; Jamal Elliott, Fr.
What to watch: For the first time since 2013, the Ducks enter a season without Freeman atop the depth chart. The returning veterans are a nice contrast in styles – Brooks-James has sprinter's speed, while Felix can cut on a dime to create space for himself. Verdell will be a bruising short-yardage back who also provides home-run ability, and Habibi-Likio provides a broad range of talent. Then, in December, the Ducks signed two more backs, Jamal Elliott and Travis Dye. They each bleed green and yellow; the four-star talent Elliott grew up as an Oregon fan all the way in Durham, N.C., and Dye is the younger brother of Oregon's two-time defensive MVP. Oh, and they can run a little – Elliott averaged 8.2 yards per carry as a junior, before injuries cut short his senior season, and Dye ran for more than 4,000 yards over the past two seasons.
