By Tony Thomas
As the time for entry into the transfer portal expires on January 2nd, teams can still pick up some quality running back talent to upgrade their rushing attacks for 2024. Some of the outstanding rushers still available in the portal are listed below.
Peny Boone
Toledo Rockets
6’1”, 242 lbs.
As the MAC Offensive Player of the Year, Peny Boone led the MAC with 1,400 rushing yards and 15 touchdowns, averaging a whopping 7.0 yards per carry. Boone posted eight games with over 100 yards rushing, including five consecutive contests. He rushed for 211 yards and two TDs in a 49-31 win over Western Michigan, averaging 9.0 yards per carry in the game.
Former Maryland RB Peny Boone has found a home with the Toledo Rockets 🚀 pic.twitter.com/VPlMH6eqHK
— Ryan Roberts (@RiseNDraft) November 18, 2023
Where could Boone end up you ask? Well, the Louisville Cardinals are at the top of a list that also includes Kentucky and Florida State.
Dante Dowdell
Oregon Ducks
6’2”, 215 lbs.
As a true freshman this season, Dante Dowdell saw limited action for the Oregon Ducks, gaining just 90 yards and scoring one touchdown.
More Sports News
Oregon RB Dante Dowdell Has Announced He Will Enter The Transfer Portal
Dowell (Fr) Has 17 Att, 90 Yds, & TD This Season For The Ducks
Dowell Was A Top 6 RB In The 2023 Recruiting Class#Oregon #GoCFB #CollegeFootball #GoDucks @DanteDowdell pic.twitter.com/ZihpfWD9VR
— CFB Nation 🏈 (@TheCFBNation) December 15, 2023
Dowdell was rated the #3 overall prospect in Mississippi and the #6 overall running back in the country by 247Sports Composite Rankings. He rushed for 2,165 yards and 31 touchdowns as a senior, and gained 5,301 yards and 65 TDs in his prep career, averaging eight yards per carry.
Dowdell has a visit scheduled with Matt Rhule and Nebraska. Could the Portal King Lane Kiffin and the Ole Miss Rebels flex their portal dominance once again and snatch up Dowdell? We shall see.
Ja’Quinden Jackson
Utah Utes
6’2”, 228 lbs.
A former quarterback who transferred from Texas, Ja’Quinden Jackson rushed for 797 yards and four touchdowns. Jackson went over the century mark three times this season.
https://twitter.com/TSV__1/status/1700556096367362072
In two seasons with the Utes, Jackson has 1,328 yards and 13 TDs to his credit. Jackson was a High School All-American quarterback out of Duncanville (TX) High School as a 4-star recruit and #2 overall prospect in the State of Texas. He was ranked #28 overall in the ESPN 300 his senior year.
As a Dallas TX native, potential landing spots for Jackson could be SMU, the Houston Cougars under new head coach Willie Fritz, and TCU.
Nate Noel
Appalachian State Mountaineers
5’10”, 190 lbs.
As a 3rd Team All-Sun Belt selection, Nate Noel rushed for 834 yards and five touchdowns. Noel ran for over 100 yards in each of the first five games of the season. For his college career, Noel has gained over 3,000 rushing yards and 18 touchdowns.
Touchdown Appalachian State!🙌🏼
Nate Noel rushes up the middle and breaks free for a 52 rushing TD!
App State leads it 7-0🏈@MrMatthewCFB #AppState #NorthCarolina #TD pic.twitter.com/CODPlLNPtA
— Denver Sports Betting (@BettingDenver) September 3, 2022
Noel is a native of Miami, Florida, and an alum of Northwestern High School, the same high school that produced such players as Amari Cooper (Alabama), Teddy Bridgewater (Louisville), Marvin Jones (Florida State), and Brett Perriman and Melvin Bratton of “The U.”
Destinations that make sense for Noel include Florida State, Florida, and of course Miami. Noel’s rushing totals would have been tops for the Canes this season.
Jaylin Lucas
Indiana Hoosiers
5’9”, 170 lbs.
In 2023, Jaylin Lucas was an all-purpose nightmare for opposing defenses. Lucas rushed for 275 yards and two touchdowns, gained 247 receiving yards and two TDs, and gained 572 yards on kickoff returns, with one touchdown. His two touchdowns came against Indiana State to go with 88 yards rushing.
Lucas’s kickoff return touchdown came against Purdue. All total, Lucas produced 1,100 all-purpose yards on the season and has 2,044 all-purpose yards in two seasons with the Hoosiers.
As a native of Houma, Louisiana, LSU makes sense as a possible destination for Lucas. Maybe not as a running back, but certainly as a kick returner. LSU has not had a kickoff returned for a touchdown since 2020, and Lucas’s kickoff return yards would have led the Tigers this season and were more than any LSU season since 2014.
