College Fantasy Football: Way-Too-Early 2011 Running Back Rankings

Our offseason machine rolls on with a look at the 2011 running backs in our latest installment of CollegeFootballGeek.com's "Way Too Early" college fantasy football player rankings.

Please understand there's a reason we're calling them "Way Too Early" rankings.  It's just a first glance at the 2011 prospects.  A gut feel.  We haven't fully analyzed returning o-lineman for each school.  We haven't yet plugged in the incoming stud recruits (signing day is February 2nd). We didn't account for all of the new coaching changes.  And we haven't taken a peek at the upcoming fall schedules.  All of that will come with due time. 

We'll release one article per position per day. Here's the schedule:

Friday, January 21 - Quarterbacks
Monday, January 24 - Running Backs
Tuesday, January 25 - Wide Receivers
Wednesday, January 26 - Tight Ends & Kickers

We're going to pass on defensive rankings until later this spring. So, without further ado, let's dive into the running backs!


"Way Too Early" 2011 Running Back Rankings

The running back position took a significant hit this January with 11 high profile names heading early into the NFL draft. That's a surprising large number especially considering there may not be a full NFL season next fall. 

But the returning college RB cupboard isn't bare.

LaMichael James headlines the returnees, and rightly so. The Oregon Duck posted 1,731 rushing yards and scored 24 total TDs last fall. Let's hope he can keep his nose clean this off-season.

North Texas' Lance Dunbar should be in line for another big year.  With former Iowa State head coach now at the helm, expect Dunbar to get the rock often.  Dunbar was simply unstoppable in Sun Belt play and finished the year with three 200+ yard rushing performances in his final five games.

Speaking of hot running backs, Arkansas' Knile Davis was a monster down the stretch.  His 6.5 yards per carry was tops in the nation for running backs with over 200 carries. 

Bobby Rainey returns for Western Kentucky.  He led the country in carries in 2010 with 340. As long as he doesn't wear down, he should be a force again in the Sun Belt.


Some RB questions to chew on:

* What with the carry distribution look like in Madison next fall?  There should be enough to share between James White and Montee Ball, but who is 1A and 1B?

* Boise State loses both starting wideouts Titus Young and Austin Pettis.  Does this mean the Broncos offense will center more around the running game?  If so, this could be good news for Doug Martin owners.

* Boston College's Montel Harris had a rough first half to the season. He went through a five-game stretch where he didn't reach the endzone.  Harris turned things around in the second half of the year before suffering a season-ending injury. This opened the door for freshman Andre Williams to show his stuff.  Williams logged 108, 185 and 73 yard performances in the final three games.  Should Harris owners be worried about Williams in 2011?

* Virginia Tech loses both Darren Evans and Ryan Williams to the NFL.  Should we assume David Wilson will get the lion's share of carries this fall (a la Ryan Williams, who posted 293-1655-21 in 2009)?

* Oklahoma State's Joseph Randle will look to fill the shoes of the departed Kendall Hunter.  With offensive coordinator Dana Holgorsen gone, will Randle be utilized the same way as Hunter was?  Does Jeremy Smith pose a threat to Randle's playing time?

* Can Sooner running back Roy Finch live up to the hype?  With Demarco Murray off to play on Sundays, there's been lots of chatter from Norman that the Sooners will not miss a beat with Finch in there.

* Who will take over for Vai Taua at Nevada?  Is Mike Ball ready to be a lead back?  Will Lampford Mark be recovered from a late season injury to battle for time?

* Will BYU senior-to-be J.J. DiLuigi get the chance to build upon his impressive 2010 campaign?  Or will Bryan Kariya and Joshua Quezada steal just enough touches away to keep DiLuigi from being a borderline elite fantasy RB?

* If Charles Sims returns to the squad as expected, how will Houston share their backfield workload?  Sims, Bryce Beall and Michael Hayes give the coaching staff plenty of options.

* Will new Michigan head coach Brady Hoke roll with Stephen Hopkins as his workhorse?  Hoke did wonders for MiQuale Lewis while at Ball State, and Ronnie Hillman while at San Diego State.

* Can Utah State running back Robert Turbin return to his pre-injury form (he missed 2010 with a torn ACL)?

* After a season of rehabbing back from injury, will Brynn Harvey return to the UCF backfield?  If so, how does that effect up-and-comer Latavius Murray and Ronnie Weaver?  Until we see how Harvey looks in spring ball, it's tough to rank Murray too high.

* Will Texas ever produce another fantasy-worthy running back?  Could incoming freshman Malcolm Brown be the answer?

* Former UConn head coach Randy Edsall loves leaning on a workhorse running back.  Now that he's at Maryland, does he have someone on the roster that fills that RB1 role?  Davin Meggett, perhaps?

* With Texas Tech RB Baron Batch out of the way, will Eric Stephens step in and take the bull by the horns?  Or will we be burned (again) by trusting the Red Raider running game?

* TCU's Ed Wesley ended the year with a whimper.  With everyone around him gone —except for the other running backs vying for his job (Matthew Tucker and Wayman James)—what shold the expectations be for Wesley this fall?

Spring ball will hopefully give us a few answer to these lingering questions.  For now, here's how we rank the running backs...

1	LaMichael James	Oregon	back for another big season
2	Lance Dunbar	North Texas	new coach should feed him ball more than ever
3	Bobby Rainey	W. Kentucky	led country in carries last year with 340
4	Knile Davis	Arkansas	6.5 ypc best among RBs with 200+ carries
5	Marcus Lattimore	South Carolina	can he match his 19 TDs from 2010?
6	Ronnie Hillman	San Diego State	new coaching staff brings questions
7	Trent Richardson	Alabama	with Ingram gone, it's his show now
8	Montee Ball	Wisconsin	John Clay is gone but James White returns
9	Marcus Coker	Iowa	No Jewel, Wegher or A-Rob to worry about
10	Doug Martin	Boise State	with star WRs gone, will Martin see more carries?
11	Cyrus Gray	Texas A&M	finished year with 7 straight 100+ yard games
12	David Wilson	Virginia Tech	Wililams & Evans are gone
13	Montel Harris	Boston College	does Andre Williams pose a major threat?
14	Rodney Stewart	Colorado	quietly accounted for 1600+ yds from scrimmage
15	Brandon Bolden	Mississippi	surprisingly finished 14th among fantasy RBs in '10
16	James White	Wisconsin	will battle for carries with Montee Ball
17	Roy Finch	Oklahoma	Demarco & Madu leave, Finch & Clay are next up
18	Joseph Randle	Oklahoma State	Kendall Hunter is gone.  Is Jeremy Smith a threat?
19	Zach Line	SMU	can he replicate his 244-1494-10 statline in 2011?
20	Stepfan Taylor	Stanford	o-line is decimated, but should still be workhorse
21	Adonis Thomas	Toledo	had a huge 2nd half of season
22	Michael Dyer	Auburn	lots of surrounding talent is gone
23	Ray Graham	Pittsburgh	Dion Lewis exits, new HC Todd Graham enters
24	Chris Polk	Washington	should be focal point of offense with Locker gone
25	Vick Ballard	Mississippi St.	get ready for the MSU hype-machine this offseason
26	Andre Ellington	Clemson	Harper is gone, Ellington needs to stay healthy
27	Orleans Darkwa	Tulane	ended year with six straight 20+ fantasy pt games
28	Edwin Baker	Michigan State	will he continue to see most of the workload?
29	Robbie Rouse	Fresno State	can he stay healthy this time around?
30	Rex Burkhead	Nebraska	poised to be lead dog with Helu gone
31	JJ Di Luigi	BYU	Kariya & Quezada make for possible RBBC
32	Tauren Poole	Tennessee	will continue to be RB1 for the Vols
33	Mike Ball	Nevada	lots of carries to be had with Vai Taua gone
34	Lennon Creer	La Tech	had nice but inconsistent season
35	Stephen Hopkins	Michigan	bigger back that Brady Hoke could throw into fray
36	Pat Shed	UAB	great PPR league option - 47 rec. (1300+ total yds)
37	Eric Stephens	Texas Tech	Baron Batch finally departs
38	Isaiah Pead	Cincinnati	1200 total yards and 8 TDs last fall
39	Daniel Herron	Ohio State	will 5 game suspension be reduced?
40	Shawne Alston	West Virginia	assuming Holgorsen decides Tavon Austin is a WR
41	Darriet Perry	Florida Int'l	came on strong 2nd half of year, 16 rush TDs
42	Sam McGuffie	Rice	1200+ yds and 10 TDs, beware vulture Eddington
43	Silas Redd	Penn State	Evan Royster is gone, PSU always love to run it
44	Davin Meggett	Maryland	Randy Edsall loves to run the ball
45	Bernard Pierce	Temple	injury-riddled 2010 season, new coaching staff
46	Ed Wesley	TCU	will Tucker & James continue to steal carries?
47	Latavius Murray	UCF	some uncertainty with Harvey & Weaver in mix
48	Jason Ford	Illinois	LeShoure is gone, Ford should see lots of carries
49	Charles Sims	Houston	expected to be back after 2010 suspension
50	Kendrick Hardy	Southern Miss	Hardy will battle Dennis Johnson for touches

51	Keola Antolin	Arizona	had 900 tot yards and 9 TDs, now Grigsby is gone
52	Johnathan Franklin	UCLA	1127 rushing yards, 8 TDs in 2010
53	Alvester Alexander	Wyoming	over 900 total yards and 14 TDs in 2010
54	Robert Turbin	Utah State	should be recovered from knee injury
55	Washaun Ealey	Georgia	can he break string of UGA RB disappointments?
56	Marc Tyler	USC	he and Baxter will likely split carries
57	Alfred Morris	FAU	nearly 1000 total yards and 8 TDs in 2010
58	Kenjon Barner	Oregon	holds value as backup to LaMichael James
59	Cierre Wood	Notre Dame	will he get lion's share of touches?
60	Bryce Beall	Houston	Sims returning knocks Beall down a few pegs
61	Jared Hassin	Army	totaled nearly 1200 yards and 9 TDs in 2010
62	Lamar Miller	Miami FL	will Golden use him like a healthy Bernard Pierce?
63	Chris Thompson	Florida State	had big bowl game, will he see enough carries?
64	James Sims	Kansas	emerged as frosh for 870 total yds and 10 TDs
65	Michael Ford	LSU	Ridley is gone, Ford has a chance to step into mix
66	Antwon Bailey	Syracuse	Carter is gone, Bailey should be RB1
67	Robbie Frey	Connecticut	Todman gone, new coaching staff in place
68	Asher Clark	Air Force	rushed for 1031 yds and 5 TDs, Jared Tew is gone
69	Jeremy Eddington	Rice	7 TDs in last 3 games, will vulture from McGuffie
70	Malcolm Brown	Texas	true frosh has a chance to step right in
71	Cameron Marshall	Arizona State	racked up over 1000 yds and 10 TDs this fall
72	Shawn Southward	Troy	DuJuan Harris is gone, Southward has big opport.
73	Jeremy Smith	Oklahoma St	could battle Randle for carries
74	Jamaal Berry	Ohio State	will get his chance to shine with Boom out early
75	Brynn Harvey	UCF	should be back from injury, could push Murray
76	Darius Willis	Indiana	lost coach, QB and Doss. Is this good or bad thing?
77	Onterio McCalebb	Auburn	how will touches pan out with he and Dyer?
78	Le'Veon Bell	Michigan State	excellent frosh year, but disappeared down stretch
79	De'Vion Moore	Missouri	will Mizzou lean on run game without Gabbert?
80	Brennan Clay	Oklahoma	pairs up with Finch to form a nice backfield
81	Lache Seastrunk	Oregon	big time keeper prospect
82	Michael Hayes	Houston	could get lost in shuffle with Beall and Sims
83	Raymond Carter	Colorado State	should be RB1 on opening day
84	Matt Brown	Temple	always a good spot start when Pierce is injured
85	Andre Williams	Boston College	could be a nightmare for Montel Harris owners
86	Josh Oglesby	Virginia Tech	could be the thunder to David Wilson's lightning
87	Perry Jones	Virginia	Keith Payne and his 14 TDs are gone
88	Eddie Lacy	Alabama	expected to serve as back up to T-Richardson
89	Mike Trumpy	Northwestern	had some nice moments late in 2010 season
90	Ronnie Weaver	UCF	fell off the map late in 2010, Murray took over
91	Deantre Lewis	Arizona State	dangerous receiving threat - good in PPR leagues
92	Dillon Baxter	USC	big potential, can he stay out of trouble?
93	LeDarius Perkins	Mississippi State	multi-dimensional threat who should see more touches
94	Aaron Spikes	La-Lafayette	nice PPR player, 339 rush, 398 recv, 8 TDs as frosh
95	Vincent Smith	Michigan	whoever cements RB1 job will shoot up rankings
96	Duane Bennett	Minnesota	new HC Jerry Kill ran it well at NIU with Spann
97	Jeffrey Demps	Florida	how will Charlie Weis handle the Gator RBs?
98	Joseph Banyard	UTEP	filled in nicely for Buckram, has some potential
99	Christine Michael	Texas A&M	will likely take a back seat to Cyrus Gray in 2011
100	Gregory Ray	Memphis	should be RB1 on opening day
101	Mustafa Greene	NC State	showed flashes in 2010
102	Jacquise Terry	Kent State	after strong first 7 games, vanished late in year
103	Darrian Mallary	Florida Int'l	forms nice 1-2 punch with Darriet Perry
104	Ryan McCants	Oregon State	somebody needs to fill Quizz's shoes
105	Paris Cotton	C. Michigan	had a couple explosive games in 2010
106	DJ Shoemate	Connecticut	could fight Robbie Frey for carries
107	Caleb King	Georgia	overhyped last couple years
108	Dennis Johnson	Southern Miss	could battle for starting role
109	DeLeon Eskridge	Minnesota	this guy has seemingly been around for like 7 years

Todd DeVries is the founder of CollegeFootballGeek.com, your premier destination for all things college fantasy football.