Pac-12 Football 2012: Power Ranking Starting Running Backs

With a lot of attention drawn to Pac-12 quarterbacks lately, it's time to look at how the running backs stack up for 2012.

LaMichael James and Chris Polk are leaving for the NFL Draft, which means there will be some new faces in the preseason power rankings. 

Matt Barkley and Kieth Price will continue to make headlines, as well as Andrew Luck, Nick Foles, Brock Osweiler and Darron Thomas until the draft.

But today is about the running backs.

12. Rickey Galvin

Rickey Galvin was a three-star recruit out of high school, and his stats at Washington State don't suggest that he should have been any more.

After missing almost all of 2010 with a broken arm, Galvin led the Cougars with 602 rushing yards last year. He only scored five touchdowns on the ground, and didn't have much of an impact in the passing game either.

Unfortunately for Galvin, the hiring of Mike Leach will do little to improve his last-place power ranking. With wide receiver Marquess Wilson as the offensive focal point once again in 2012, don't expect Galvin to have any sort of breakout year.

11. Tony Jones

The backup to Rodney Stewart last fall, Tony Jones got in some work, but wasn't very impressive. He did get the chance to start a few games, and needless to say, there's a reason he's ranked 11th in the running back power rankings.

His best game came against Washington, where he scored two touchdowns. Those touchdowns were the only statistical bright spots, however, as Jones only managed 49 yards on 14 carries. Those numbers look even worse when considering he gained 38 yards on one play. That leaves 13 carries for 11 yards.

Jones was just a backup for most of the season, though, and that's why I'm giving him the benefit of the doubt and not ranking him last. He has yet to be given a full opportunity to prove himself.

10. Malcom Agnew

Oregon State's Malcom Agnew made a splash in his collegiate debut, rushing for 223 yards and three touchdowns against Sacramento State in the Beavers' opening game.

Since then, however, he hasn't come close to replicating that performance. Over the rest of the season, the true freshman rushed for only 200 yards and two touchdowns.

To be fair, he missed a total of six games due to injury, and it's safe to assume that he wasn't at 100 percent for most of the season.

Agnew will be healthy in 2012, though, and based on his Sacramento State performance, he has the most potential to rise up in the rankings. 

9. Jesse Callier

Jessie Callier sat behind Chris Polk on Washington's depth chart for 2012, but took advantage of the chances he got.

The sophomore from SoCal had an average of 5.7 yards per carry in 2011 and boasted an 8.1 YPC average in 10 carries against Colorado. By far his biggest workload of the season, Callier picked up a fair amount of his yards on a 26-yard touchdown run, but he still consistently picked up over five yards on each carry throughout the day.

Callier shouldn't be expected to immediately become the early-round pick Polk is about to be, but he will hold his own, and is certainly deserving of no worse than ninth in the running back power rankings.

8. Ka'Deem Carey

Arizona Wildcats' Ka'Deem Carey is the first four-star recruit in this bunch, and of the backups, he's seen the most action.

Carey split time with Keola Antolin in 2011, racking up six touchdowns and 425 yards on 91 carries. Coming out of high school, he cracked the national top-200 list and was the 13th-best running back available.

His team's offensive scheme hasn't helped things, as the Nick Foles-led passing attack has always taken the top priority. With a new quarterback in 2012, and with Carey moving into the starting running back role, he may finally get more chances.

7. Johnathan Franklin

With Johnathan Franklin, we have our first back that is good and has proven it.

The UCLA Bruin decided to bypass the NFL draft and stay for his senior season, and when he's back, he'll want to return to the 1,000-yard rushing total he earned in 2010. In 2011, Franklin was as inconsistent as the rest of the UCLA football team, and he came up just short of the magic number for running backs.

Franklin certainly has the talent to do it again, however, as he made the 2011 Doak Walker Preseason Watch list. The factor that drops him to seventh is the coaching change going on at UCLA and the learning process that goes along with it.

6. Cameron Marshall

Arizona State's Cameron Marshall led the Pac-12 with 18 touchdowns, and like Johnathan Franklin, he has elected to return to school for his senior year.

The Sun Devils will need another 1,000-yard season from Marshall with their starting quarterback gone to the NFL, and he hasn't given any indication that he won't be able to do it again.

He's a powerful back that has the option of making guys miss or simply running them over.

Marshall's relatively-low 4.7 yards per carry in 2011 and his lack of breakaway speed are the only things keeping him from the top five in the power rankings.

5. Isi Sofele

Isi Sofele put together an impressive 1,322-yard season for the California Golden Bears in 2011, and he may be able to add to that total in 2012.

Quarterback problems plagued Cal all year, as Zach Maynard was rather inconsistent and threw too many interceptions. With another year under his belt, he should be able to keep the ball in the hands of the offense more often and get Sofele more carries.

As good as a rusher as he is, Sofele leaves a lot to be desired as a receiver out of the backfield. He was rarely used in that role in 2012, catching only six passes the entire season.

Sofele will grow with the offense, and as his team gains more experience, he will gain more yards and touchdowns.

4. Curtis McNeal

Curtis McNeal emerged as yet another bright spot on the explosive USC offense and ended up with 1,050 yards on the season.

That's even more impressive considering he wasn't the starting running back until the Trojans' sixth game of the season.

Although McNeal had a few good performances earlier in the year, he didn't reach double digits in carries until midway through the season. As soon as he got double-digit carries, he got triple-digit yards.

In an offense that will be known for Matt Barkley airing it out to Robert Woods and Marquise Lee, it will be easy to overlook McNeal. In reality, that passing attack will simply open more holes for the soon-to-be senior.

3. John White IV

When Utah quarterback Jordan Wynn went down with a season-ending shoulder injury early in the year, John White IV was there to pick up the slack.

All of it.

White IV finished the season with 316 carries and had as many as 42 carries in the game against Washington State. White ended the season with an impressive 1,519 yards and 15 touchdowns, and when Wynn returns next year, the added offensive balance will help White IV improve his 4.8 YPC average.

2. Stepfan Taylor

The entire Stanford offense may experience a bit of a regression following Andrew Luck's departure, but Stepfan Taylor will remain one of the top running backs in the Pac-12.

Two consecutive 1,000-yard seasons have helped Taylor solidify himself among the Pac-12 elite, and he will have even more opportunities to do it again when the offensive strategy centers even more around him in 2012.

The 2011 preseason Doak Walker candidate will be one of the top running backs in the nation next year, and his well-rounded skill set will make him attractive in the NFL Draft as well.

1.Kenjon Barner

In 2011, Kenjon Barner missed out on a 1,000-yard rushing season by 61 yards. Still, he averaged 6.2 yards per carry and scored 11 touchdowns.

Oh, did I mention that this whole time he was a backup to LaMichael James?

Oregon loses one of the all-time greatest Pac-12 running backs in LaMichael James this year, but they will replace him with Barner, who is now the best starting running back in the conference.

Barner will flourish yet again under Chip Kelly's super-offense and will have a great shot at the Doak Walker Award, or maybe even the Heisman Trophy.

Between him and De'Anthony Thomas, Ducks fans will find that they don't miss James quite as much as they thought they would.

Bonus: De'Anthony Thomas

De'Anthony Thomas technically doesn't belong on this list because he's a backup, but he might just be the best running back in the Pac-12.

Sitting behind Kenjon Barner on Oregon's depth chart, Thomas has it all—speed, power and agility. That skill set allowed him to rush for 595 yards on only 55 attempts for an average of 10.8 yards per rush.

The Black Mamba also caught 46 passes for 605 yards and accumulated a total of 16 touchdowns rushing and receiving. If that wasn't enough, he returned two kickoffs for touchdowns as well.

Thomas has the best big-play potential of any back in the Pac-12, but because of his small sample size, we can't determine what his average will be as a starter who gets 15 or more carries per game. Odds are, he'll still be amazing.