Another season has come and gone, and a new crop of up-and-coming Utes now look to take the reins and put their own mark on the history of Utah football. Even though replacing the most prolific running back in Utah’s history is a tall task, the Utes have plenty of talent to work with as they look to figure out who will be their next 1,000 yard back.
Zack Moss was the workhorse for Utah last season, as he carried the ball 235 times for 1,416 yards. However, even with that workload, his backups got plenty of opportunities, as Devin Brumfield, Jordan Wilmore, Devonta’e Henry-Cole, and TJ Green combined for 165 carries and 713 yards. While we have to subtract Devonta’e Henry-Cole from the equation, since he chose to transfer to BYU for his senior season, the Utes still return three talented backs with a good amount of experience, and also add two freshmen- one true and one redshirt- to the picture as they figure out how to distribute their carries for the 2020 season.
The Contenders
Devin Brumfield | 5-foot-10, 218 pounds, JR
In 2019, Brumfield led Utah’s reserve running backs in carries, rushing yards, rushing touchdowns, receptions, and receiving yards. He earned the primary backup role not only because of his ability to produce, but also due to his reputation as a hard-hitting pass blocker. Brumfield has steadily improved since arriving on campus in 2018, and has seemingly taken lessons from Moss both in how to play the position and also in the work needed to put in off the field in order to excel. While the competition for the starting running back role will be truly open this year, Brumfield should be considered the favorite at this point.
Jordan Wilmore | 5-foot-8, 206 pounds, SO
Wilmore may have the most raw talent of any of Utah’s running backs, and as a true freshman, he showed that he will be a valuable part of Utah’s offense for as long as he’s here. Wilmore originally won the backup role coming out of fall camp last year, and saw backup touches early on in the year. However, that was more of a technicality as he was viewed as a change-of-pace and Brumfield was more fit to be an every-down back. Despite that, Wilmore still got opportunities later in the season, and flashed his natural ability at plenty of times throughout the year. With a full offseason in Utah’s strength and conditioning program, don’t be surprised to see a similar jump forward to what Zack Moss showed between his freshman and sophomore seasons.
TJ Green | 5-foot-11, 205 pounds, RS JR
Green is a bit of a wildcard among the running back room. He showed well when given reps during his freshman year, but an injury forced him to miss almost the entire 2019 fall camp. With that, Green was behind the pack throughout the season, and when he did get reps, they mostly came in blowout games when the outcome was already decided. Green has the physical talent to make big plays, and he has relentlessly worked on and off the field to make himself a more complete player. Green’s skill set is similar to that of Derrick Vickers, so it wouldn’t be shocking to see Andy Ludwig plug him into a similar role this season, as he looks for a guy that can take handoffs on sweeps and orbital motions and break off chunk plays.
Micah Bernard | 5-foot-11, 200 pounds, RS FR
Bernard is perhaps the most intriguing player in the running back room this spring. The staff has been drooling over the thought of Bernard’s potential ever since they started recruiting him, and though he ended up redshirting last year, he did see some time on special teams in four games. He was younger than the typical college freshman, so the redshirt should serve him well. During fall and bowl practices, he continued to flash his potential. Some believe that had he been a 2020 prospect, he would have been a top 5 running back. He’s another all-purpose back that is big enough to pound the ball between the tackles, but also has breakaway speed. With the battle for starting running back being wide open going into spring ball, Bernard has a great opportunity to work his way into the conversation and earn some time on offense going into his second year.
Ute Nation staff prediction
In order for someone to knock off Brumfield, they’ll need to have an impressive spring. If Tyler Huntley was returning, Brumfield is a perfect “plug and play” back. But Huntley has graduated, so there’s a quarterback battle and the winner of that, could also coincide with the decision on who will be his backfield partner. The Utes need a workhorse to unquestionably emerge from the group, but that doesn’t mean 20+ carries. That means, 15+ carries, a receiving threat, and someone who will protect the quarterback. Unless someone is noticeably better at that than Brumfield—who was a better blocker than Moss—the intrigue will be who can emerge as the offense’s home run hitting change-of-pace runner.
