Cal Poly Football Position Preview: Running Back
8/23/2024 5:23:00 PM | Football
Cal Poly’s running back room is a mix of newcomers and returners this season. 10 running back are on the roster, nine of which are available to play this season.
The group consists of four players who saw action last season, one who is coming off missing all last season due to injury, and four true freshmen.
They are led by a new coach this season in Steve Broussard, a former Washington State standout and first round pick in the NFL who went on to play nine seasons.
All of them have done a nice job this camp. Coach Broussard has come in and really helped that group. We envision this group being a strength of ours with some depth and I expect these guys to take a big step this year.Head Coach Paul Wulff
Guys who are back that saw playing time are redshirt freshman Aiden Ramos who played in four games before getting hurt. He rushed for 160 yards and a touchdown in those games.
Redshirt sophomore Troy Fletcher was the leader last year amongst guys who are back this year in rushing yards, going for 180 in nine games and two touchdowns. Another returner who also played in just four games last year to preserve his redshirt is Kendric Sanders. Sanders rushed for 152 yards in 2023, as well as redshirt junior Zion Hall.
Unfortunately, one guy who will not be available this season due to injury who played a lot last year is Paul Holyfield Jr.. who rushed for 213 yards. Holyfield suffered an injury in the final game of last season that will cause him to miss the entire 2024 season.
In addition to those guys, veteran Shakobe Harper who is now in his sixth year on campus returns this year after missing all last season due to injury. In the two seasons he has played games in, Harper has rushed for 558 yards and four touchdowns.
The four freshmen that are new this year are Jaedon Matthews, who was an early enrollee and participated in spring ball, Trey Wilson, Malachi Brown, and Devin Cerda. All of them helped Cal Poly be ranked as having the third best recruiting class in all of FCS.
Gallery: Running Backs Fall Camp 2024
We will use a good number of guys but I think it will sort itself as time goes through the season based on who is stepping up and playing well.Head Coach Paul Wulff
No matter who carries the ball for the Mustangs out of the backfield, Wulff says the run game is huge to what they want to do offensively to be successful.
It’s huge. You can’t compete for championships if you don’t have a running game and however you do it, it’s vital. You need to be able to control the clock, get first downs when they’re tough, and help your defense out by running the football and that’s all part of our planHead Coach Paul Wulff
