Can Braelon Allen and Chez Mellusi both reach 1,000 yards for Wisconsin this season?

Seventh in a position-by-position series looking at the 2023 Wisconsin Badgers football team.

MADISON – Braelon Allen expects to rush for more than 1,000 yards for the third consecutive season.

Wisconsin’s junior tailback expects Chez Mellusi to break the 1,000-yard mark as well.

“Like I said before,” Allen said, “that is a realistic expectation.”

Allen rushed for 1,268 yards as a freshman in 2021 and for 1,242 yards last season. Mellusi rushed for 815 yards in 2021 before suffering a torn ACL the ninth game of the season (Rutgers). He rushed for only 473 yards last season but missed four games after suffering a wrist injury in the sixth game of the season (Northwestern).

The last time UW had two runners break the 1,000-yard mark in the same season? That was 2013, when Melvin Gordon (1,609 yards, 12 touchdowns) and James White (1,444 yards, 13 touchdowns) combined for 3,053 yards and 25 touchdowns.

If Allen and Mellusi can avoid injury this season and Phil Longo’s offensive scheme results in fewer stacked boxes, that expectation could become reality.

“I think both of them are phenomenal athletes,” running backs coach Devon Spalding said. “I’m expecting them to be able to be playmakers for us and help us win football games.”

Here are other players, changes to watch as UW prepares for the season:

Badgers searching for a third option behind Braelon Allen and Chez Mellusi

When spring practice concluded in April it still wasn’t clear whether UW had a dependable No. 3 tailback to fill in if either Allen or Mellusi missed time because of injury.

Isaac Guerendo filled that role last season and was fabulous. He rushed 64 times for 385 yards and five touchdowns and caught 17 passes for 115 yards and a touchdown. His per-carry average of 6.0 yards was better than Allen (5.4) or Mellusi (4.2). His total of 17 catches was the best mark among the tailbacks.

Who will be UW’s third tailback in 2023? The likely candidates appear to be either Cade Yacamelli, a former safety prospect, or Jackson Acker, who played fullback last season.

Yacamelli, 6-foot and 210 pounds, displayed a blend of quickness and speed in the spring. He also appears to be a legitimate receiving threat. Acker, 6-1 and 240, is more explosive, though not as shifty. He, too, can catch the ball but was limited in the spring because of an unspecified injury.

However, the staff noted that Acker’s versatility might mean playing time as an H-back if needed.

Is it possible Allen and Mellusi avoid injury and are productive all season? Yes. But the battle for the third tailback spot is worth monitoring.

Will the running backs be receiving threats in UW's new offense?

Reporters didn’t need long in the spring to notice how often running backs were available as receivers, particularly in the flat to either side of the field.

Can Allen, Mellusi and the other backs hurt opposing defenses with their hands?

Allen had 13 catches for 104 yards last season. Mellusi had just two catches for 25 yards. One catch was a 23-yard touchdown – from Allen.

Mellusi noted that Longo’s offense reminded him of the routes the running backs ran at Clemson.

“It wasn’t even a transition for me,” he said of adjusting to Longo's offense. “It was just like a memory of mine that I was used to at Clemson.”

Allen made it clear he enjoys getting the ball in space and on the move.

“I like the ball in my hands, just plain and simple,” he said. “Being out in space makes it a lot more fun.

“I’ve played receiver growing up. It is always comfortable for me. It’s just a little bit different…these quarterbacks are better than the ones I’ve had, so a little bit of an adjustment.

“The route running is super-detailed but I’ve been comfortable.”

Allen did homework on new position coach

After UW announced Spalding had been hired to coached the team’s running backs, Allen decided to surf the web to learn more about his new position coach.

“Once I saw his resume,” he said, “I knew it was going to be a great hire.”

Al Johnson, who played center at UW, coached the running backs last season. Spalding played wide receiver and running back in college and coached running backs at Youngstown State for three seasons before coming to UW.

“Respectfully, it is definitely refreshing,” Allen said. “Obviously, coach Al is a great guy for us to have in that room. But you can only get a certain level of coaching from somebody who didn’t play the position. Getting a former running back to coach us was definitely refreshing.”

More: Can Luke Fickell lead Wisconsin to the top of the Big Ten in his first season in Madison?

More: Wisconsin Badgers have an influx of new wide receivers in 2023 after transfers

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Braelon Allen, Chez Mellusi set to carry Wisconsin Badgers ground game