Ranking the 25 Best RBs in College Football for 2025
- Owen Pannell
- Aug 11
- 4 min read
By Owen Pannell | KZA Sports
Who are the best RBs going into the 2025 College Football season? I rank them here, but a lot can change in a long season.
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Jeremyah Love – Notre Dame
Coming off a great sophomore campaign, Love is in position to be the best back in the country and help lead the Irish back to the postseason.
Nicholas Singleton – Penn State
Sharing the backfield with Kaytron Allen and still putting up the numbers he did last season is very impressive. Singleton will be a key part of the Nittany Lions’ effort for a National Championship.
Makhi Hughes – Oregon
Hughes had a MONSTER season at Tulane, and transferring to Oregon should only help him. Playing in that electric Ducks offense with a far superior offensive line will be astronomical for him, and I can see him being a first-round pick in April.
Kaytron Allen – Penn State
Allen is arguably better than his teammate Singleton. If he had a team where he was the clear No. 1 back, he could definitely be number one on this list. His receiving is a bit worse than Singleton’s; that’s why I’ve got him lower.
Isaac Brown – Louisville
Brown ran for over 1,000 yards as a freshman, and he should be even better this year. He will be the focal point of the Cardinals’ offense and has All-American First Team potential.
Ahmad Hardy – Missouri
Hardy had a great freshman season at ULM, and now in the SEC he will either be elite or far worse. Unlike Makhi Hughes, ULM played absolutely garbage teams, so there’s a chance his game doesn’t translate as well.
Jonah Coleman – Washington
Going into his senior year, the former Arizona transfer expects to have a huge season. Washington has a good offense, and he should be a big part of that.
Jaydn Ott – Oklahoma
Ott was not good in 2024 due to being heavily injury-plagued. However, in 2023 he had over 1,500 total yards and 14 TDs. Under Ben Arbuckle and the revamped Sooner offense, he should be great.
Quintrevion Wisner – Texas
Wisner had a decent 2024 season, and he should be better this year. He had over 1,000 yards, and sharing a backfield with a mobile QB should help him get there again.
Darius Taylor – Minnesota
Taylor will be the main weapon for the Gophers this season, and coming off back-to-back good years, he should be able to finally eclipse the 1,000-yard rushing mark.
Fluff Bothwell – Mississippi State
Bothwell is coming from South Alabama after a tremendous freshman season. Like the other transfers from smaller schools, there are questions about the competition he played, but he should be a bright spot for the Bulldogs.
Caden Durham – LSU
He battled a toe injury throughout the season, and he still had a successful freshman campaign. Durham projects to be a big reason LSU’s offense will be prolific next year.
Kanye Udoh – Arizona State
Udoh was a huge part of Army’s extremely successful season in 2024. Now at Arizona State, he hopes to have a similar season to what Cam Skattebo had last year.
Bryson Washington – Baylor
Bryson Washington is very underrated. Not many folks are talking about him, but he had over 1,000 yards and 12 TDs in 2024, and he will play a critical role in what the Bears hope will be a great Baylor offense.
Desmond Reid – Pitt
Reid is one of the best receiving backs in the nation, bringing in over 500 yards in 2024. He’s been very productive all three years of college so far, and he could be one of the more underrated backs in college football.
Dylan Edwards – Kansas State
Edwards was pretty quiet for most of the season until the Wildcats’ bowl game against Rutgers, where he exploded for 223 total yards and 3 TDs. It’s risky to hype up a player this much over a bowl game, but Edwards could be great in 2025.
Demond Claiborne – Wake Forest
Claiborne has been steadily improving over his three years at Wake Forest, and after a very impressive season for the Demon Deacons last year, he should be one of the best backs in the ACC.
Anthony Hankerson – Oregon State
After transferring from Colorado, Hankerson went off at Oregon State—over 1,000 yards and 15 TDs—and he is going into 2025 as the clear best back in the Pac-2.
Jamal Haynes – Georgia Tech
Over the past two seasons, Haynes has totaled over 2,000 yards and 20 TDs. In a run-first Georgia Tech offense, he should have a big year in 2025 and will make an all-conference team.
Le’Veon Moss – Texas A&M
Moss has been solid over his three years as an Aggie so far, but A&M fans are hoping this is the year he really breaks out. He’s improved his yards every season, and they need him to be a stud in 2025.
Jahiem White – West Virginia
White is coming off back-to-back 800-yard seasons in Morgantown, and with CJ Donaldson gone to Ohio State, he should hit 1,000 yards this year.
Rashul Faison – South Carolina
Coming from Utah State, the Gamecocks are hoping Faison can be an elite backfield pairing with LaNorris Sellers. He’s racked up over 1,800 yards over his two years in Logan. If he can be a 1,000-yard back, that would be huge for SC.
Nate Frazier – Georgia
Frazier was great as a freshman for UGA last season, earning himself All-SEC Freshman Team honors, and he needs to build on that to help Georgia’s offense get back to one of the best in the conference.
Jai’den Thomas – UNLV
Thomas nearly hit 1,000 yards in 2024, and as the Rebels push for a playoff spot, he needs to hit that mark. Their offense should be pretty good this season, and he’ll be a big part of that.
Jaden Nixon – UCF
Three years at Oklahoma State and one at Western Michigan have made Nixon very experienced and well-traveled. He should be good at UCF, who project to be one of the worst Power 4 teams but want to avoid that.
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