Who will be Arkansas' starting running back in 2024?
There are a lot of new faces on the offensive side of the ball for Arkansas, including first-year offensive coordinator Bobby Petrino and new running backs coach Kolby Smith, who was hired halfway through spring practices.
Smith took over for former running backs coach Jimmy Smith, who served under head coach Sam Pittman for each of his first four seasons in Fayetteville. Most recently an offensive assistant with the Miami Dolphins, Kolby Smith is the new guy leading a position group under a familiar face in Petrino.
Petrino coached Smith at Louisville from 2003-06, and then Petrino hired Smith to coach running backs under him at Western Kentucky (2013) and Louisville (2014-18). The duo is now reunited at Arkansas, which has a very different-looking running back room entering the 2024 season.
Following a 4-8 campaign in 2023 that featured first-year offensive coordinator Dan Enos being fired after just eight games, the Razorbacks lost two top rushers to the transfer portal — Raheim "Rocket" Sanders (South Carolina) and AJ Green (Oklahoma State). After spring practices, the Hogs then lost two more — Dominique Johnson (TCU) and Isaiah Augustave (Colorado).
The only scholarship back remaining when the dust settled was junior Rashod Dubinion, who has a chance to be the top running back for Arkansas this fall. A former four-star prospect out of Ellenwood, Georgia, Dubinion rushed for 260 yards on 82 carries with one touchdown in 10 games last year. He did suffer a torn meniscus late in the season that kept him out of the season finale against Missouri.
"I wanted to show people that like when stuff gets hard a lot of people just tend to leave, like out of emotion," Dubinion said April 11 on his decision to stay at Arkansas. "I try not to let my emotions control what’s next, like what’s next for my future. I just wanted to stay here and give the fans, like show them I was committed to the Razorbacks and not just the money, basically."
A 5-foot-10, 199-pound do-it-all-type back, Dubinion was actually better as a freshman in 2022, when he ran for 293 yards and five scores on 71 carries. He's also proven to be a solid receiving back — a role he could thrive in this fall — plus he's stated this offseason that he's worked hard on pass protection, which was an area he struggled in last year with a 47.4 grade from Pro Football Focus.
While Dubinion is the incumbent, the offense is different with Petrino calling plays and there's also new competition. The biggest threat to take away carries is Utah transfer Ja'Quinden Jackson, who dazzled during the spring with his mix of power, tackle-shedding and vision.
A former four-star quarterback prospect out of Duncanville High School in Dallas, Jackson began his career at Texas before transferring to the Utes prior to the 2021 season. With Utah, Jackson bloomed into a star running back and he led the team with 797 rushing yards and four touchdowns on 161 carries in 2023 — all while he was battling a low ankle sprain, he said.
"A lot of people don’t know that I was hurt all last year," Jackson said March 26. "When I went into the portal, there were a whole lot of jokes, ‘Aw, he’s got paper ankles.’ This and that. It was funny. I laughed at it. But people talk about it from the outside looking in.
"They don’t really know what I had to go through last season for me to get those 700 yards and score touchdowns. It was a struggle every week battling with this injury. Because it went from my ankle to my foot. It was bad."
Jackson stands at 6-foot-2, 235 pounds and he's not easy to get to the ground. He ran with the first team offense more often than not during the spring, and the duo of him and Boise State transfer quarterback Taylen Green (6-foot-6, 223 pounds) is one that could be special.
"He’s doing an awesome job," Jackson said of Green. "Big. Fast. I’ve never seen nobody that tall that can run. He can run. It’s going to be a crazy duo this year."
Other names to watch for include four-star freshman Braylen Russell, Florida State transfer Rodney Hill and JUCO transfer Tyrell Reed Jr. out of Hutchinson Community College.
An early enrollee this spring, Russell was a problem for defenders at 6-foot-1, 252 pounds. He gets downhill in a hurry and he's not a guy you want to step in front of. Russell ran 167 times for 1,359 yards and 20 touchdowns for Benton High School as a senior in 2023.
"His confidence level is starting to rise, and I told him, ‘Once you figure it out, bro, you’re going to be an All-American,'" Jackson said of Russell on April 13. "He has the size. He has the speed. He says he can catch, but he hasn’t really shown me nothing yet. But yeah, I’m really impressed with him, and I can’t wait to see what he can do."
Hill is a former three-star prospect out of Statesboro, Georgia, and he spent two seasons with Florida State before transferring to Florida A&M briefly and then landing in Arkansas after the spring. Hill ran for 234 yards on 77 carries with two touchdowns across two seasons with the Seminoles.
Another big back at 5-foot-10, 210 pounds, Reed ran for 833 yards and 13 touchdowns on 132 carries as a freshman last year at Hutchinson CC. He's a native of Topeka, Kansas, where he attended Lawrence High School.
Arkansas will open its 2024 season on Thursday, Aug. 29, against UAPB at War Memorial Stadium in Little Rock. Kickoff is set for 6:30 p.m. CT and the game will be broadcast on ESPNU.