The most important running back names to know in the 2023 Pac-12 season

zachary neel

Wed, Jul 19, 2023, 8:27 AM·8 min read

As we continue our preview of the 2023 college football season in the Pac-12 conference, we shift focus from individual teams to individual positions. The last several weeks have been spent picking apart each school, finding where they improved the most over the offseason and identifying realistic expectations for them going forward.

You can see them all here: Arizona Wildcats — Arizona State Sun Devils — California Golden Bears— Colorado Buffaloes— Oregon State Beavers — Stanford Cardinal — UCLA Bruins — USC Trojans — Utah Utes — Washington Huskies — Washington State Cougars

Now we’re going to look at position groups as a whole in the conference. Whether it’s a quarterback or a linebacker, a punter or a safety, there are dozens of highly talented players out west. We want to go through them all, position group by position group, and highlight some of the most important names that fans should know at each spot.

— Quarterbacks — Wide Receivers —

When you look at the Pac-12 conference, there is a great deal of offensive firepower taking the field in the 2023 season. Much of the national focus, of course, is centered around the quarterback position. With returning Heisman winner Caleb Williams and two Heisman favorites, Bo Nix and Michael Penix, the passing games in the west should be impeccable.

After looking deeper into the rushing attacks in the conference, it’s clear the defenses are in trouble all around.

Whether it’s well-known players such as Bucky Irving or Jaydn Ott or underrated players such as Cameron Skattebo and Alton McCaskill IV, there are many guys who will likely become household names in the Pac-12 this season.

Here are some names that fans should familiarize themselves with as we get ready for the season to start.

Carson Steele — UCLA Bruins

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2022 Stats – (Ball State) 289 carries, 1,556 yards, 14 TDs

Career Stats – 481 carries, 2,447 yards, 20 TDs

Notable Accolades: First-team All-MAC (2022) / Second-team preseason All-Pac-12 (2023)

Why You Should Know Him: Carson Steele ranked No. 1 in our Pac-12 RB power rankings earlier this year, and he has the chance to drive the Bruins’ offense this year. In his career, he averaged almost 100 yards and 0.8 TD per game at Ball State, Steele now leads a UCLA backfield that should be incredibly fun to watch.

Bucky Irving — Oregon Ducks

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2022 Stats – 156 carries, 1,058 yards, 5 TDs

Career Stats – 289 carries, 1,757 yards, 9 TDs

Notable Accolades: Holiday Bowl Offensive MVP (2022) / first-team preseason All-Pac-12 (2023)

Why You Should Know Him: There is substantial firepower on Oregon’s offense going into the 2023 season, but few are as enthralling to watch with the ball in their hands as Bucky Irving. This could certainly be the year that he breaks out and becomes a national name.

Marshawn Lloyd — USC Trojans

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2022 Stats — (South Carolina) 111 carries 573 yards, 9 TDs

Career Stats – 175 carries, 801 yards, 10 TDs

Why You Should Know Him: Marshawn Lloyd is almost looked at as an afterthought when you consider the abundance of riches the USC offense has, but he comes to Los Angeles after a stellar season at South Carolina, and he should help propel the Trojans forward in 2023.

Damien Martinez — Oregon State Beavers

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2022 Stats – 161 carries, 982 yards, 7 TDs

Career Stats – 161 carries, 982 yards, 7 TDs

Notable Accolades: Pac-12 Offensive Freshman of the Year (2022) / first-team All-Pac-12 (2022) / first-team preseason All-Pac-12 (2023)

Why You Should Know Him: There’s a good chance we end the 2023 season looking at Damien Martinez as the best running back in the Pac-12 Conference. He was the freshman of the year and an All-Pac-12 player in 2022, and he is set for an even bigger role with Beavers going forward. Look out for Martinez.

Jadyn Ott — California Golden Bears

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2022 Stats – 170 carries, 897 yards, 8 TDs

Career Stats – 170 carries, 897 yards, 8 TDs

Notable Accolades: Preseason second-team All-Pac-12 (2023)

Why You Should Know Him: If it weren’t for Damien Martinez, Jadyn Ott would have likely been the Offensive Freshman of the Year in 2022. He was an electric member of a mundane California Golden Bears offense. Ott will be asked to split time with Byron Cardwell this year, but I think he is talented enough to still shine.

Alton McCaskill IV — Colorado Buffaloes

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2022 Stats – 189 carries, 961 yards, 16 TDs

Career Stats – 189 carries, 961 yards, 16 TDs

Notable Accolades: AAC Freshman of the Year (2021) / AAC All-Conference second team (2021) / Dave Campbell Offensive Freshman of the Year (2021)

Why You Should Know Him: If you lined up 10 Pac-12 fans, nine wouldn’t know who Alton McCaskill is, or that he is now a member of the Colorado Buffaloes. One of the biggest transfer that Deion Sanders landed this year flew under the radar, and McCaskill now has a chance to be one of the biggest breakout players in the conference this season.

Dillon Johnson — Washington Huskies

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2022 Stats – 89 carries, 488 yards, 3 TDs

Career Stats – 229 carries, 1,198 yards, 11 TDs

Why You Should Know Him: Between Richard Newton and Dillon Johnson, the Huskies have a pair of very solid running backs that can help take the pressure off of Michael Penix. While Pac-12 fans are very familiar with Newton by now, I wanted to highlight Johnson, who comes over from Mississippi State and should have another solid year going forward.

Cameron Skattebo — Arizona State Sun Devils

2022 Stats – (Sacramento State) 195 carries, 1,372 yards, 7 TDs

Career Stats – 252 carries, 1,892 yards, 13 TDs

Notable Accolades: Third team All-Big-Sky (2021) / AP third team All-American (2022) / Big Sky Conference Player of the Year (2022) / first team All-Big Sky (2022)

Why You Should Know Him: It’s sometimes hard to predict how a player will perform after making the jump from a small program in the Big Sky to a big program in the Pac-12, but we will get to see what Cameron Skattebo can do under Kenny Dillingham at Arizona State this season. While the team may not find great success in 2023, I wouldn’t be surprised to see Skattebo have a breakout season and become well-known inside the conference.

Ja'Quinden Jackson — Utah Utes

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2022 Stats – 78 carries, 531 yards, 9 TDs

Career Stats – 84 carries, 561 yards, 10 TDs

Why You Should Know Him: While the Utes look to replace Tavion Thomas, they will rely on both Ja’Quinden Jackson and Jaylon Glover to shoulder the load going forward. Jackson has not seen a ton of action in Salt Lake City, but he’s been highly productive when on the field. I think there’s a good chance that he takes over as the lead back in 2023 and makes a name for himself out west.

Noah Whittington — Oregon Ducks

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2022 Stats – 139 carries, 779 yards, 5 TDs

Career Stats – 256 carries, 1,435 yards, 7 TDs

Why You Should Know Him: Though Bucky Irving gets most of the attention as far as Oregon RBs go, Noah Whittington is easily the 1B to Irving’s 1A. For the most part, they split carries pretty evenly in 2022, and that should continue going forward. Word out of spring camp is that Whittington bulked up and is trying to bring a more physical running style to the Ducks’ backfield, so he could certainly make some noise this fall.

Deshaun Fenwick — Oregon State Beavers

Soobum Im-USA TODAY Sports

2022 Stats – 114 carries, 553 yards, 7 TDs

Career Stats – 289 carries, 1,524 yards, 13 TDs

Notable Accolades: Doak Walker Award watch list (2022)

Why You Should Know Him: Much like Bucky Irving and Noah Whittington, it feels like Deshaun Fenwick gets outshined by Damien Martinez in Corvallis. Before Martinez burst onto the scene last year, Fenwick was a key to Oregon State’s offensive attack. While I don’t think he will have as big of a role as Martinez’s career blossoms, he is certainly worth paying attention to.

Austin Jones — USC Trojans

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2022 Stats – 135 carries, 705 yards, 5 TDs

Career Stats – 413 carries, 1,860 yards, 17 TDs

Notable Accolades: All-Pac-12 honorable mention (2021)

Why You Should Know Him: It was Austin Jones and Travis Dye splitting the workload a year ago. Now with Dye gone, Jones takes over as the veteran RB in Los Angeles. He will have to split carries with Marshawn Lloyd, but I think Jones could be a crucial part of the Trojans’ offense this year.

Byron Cardwell — California Golden Bears