The last few years one of my daily blogs has listed all the True Freshmen at each position and given you an idea of how many played in their first year on campus. I will go thru each position over the next few blogs and show you how many have played the last six years, so you know what to expect out of this year’s true frosh class.
Here is a look at the top 50 RB’s that were signed in 2020. Now 2020 was an odd year as with no spring practice, the true frosh RBs could not benefit from being in early for the spring. With some conferences cancelling their seasons and then starting them up again that put them even further behind. Now in 2020 technically every RB redshirted as 2020 did not count against their eligibility so coaches were more likely to play them.
Here is a look at the Top 50 True Frosh RB from 2020 and how many played.
My original thought was that Running Back is a much easier position than Quarterback to learn and contribute immediately and that more RB’s would play immediately. Tank Bigsby (PS#7) from Auburn led the RB’s with 834 rush yards (6.0). Bijan Robinson who was a Heisman frontrunner last year was #2 with 713 rush yards and an impressive 8.2 ypc. Unlike the QB’s 36 of the 50 RB’s saw the field or 72% of the top 50 true frosh RB’s. A decent number of those frosh RB’s have hit the portal and started for other teams like Jahmyr Gibbs who went from Georgia Tech to Alabama.
Now let’s look at the 2021 True Freshmen. I know that technically all of 2020’s true frosh were still true frosh, but I will just look at the ones that were in their first year on campus. We will just look at the 2021 signing class of RB’s and how much they played.
With everyone back from Covid and unlike in 2020 if a player played more than 4 games the player would lose a year of eligibility you would think that less true frosh RB’s would play. One advantage the 2021 true frosh had was being able to be on campus for spring if they enrolled early.
Here is a look at the Top 50 True Frosh from 2021 and how many played.
Ohio State’s TreVeyon Henderson led the way with 1248 yards (6.8) and another 312 receiving yards. Houston’s Alton McCaskill was #2 with 961 rush (5.1) and 16 td’s. Clemson’s Will Shipley had 738 (5.0) rush. 34 of the top 50 true frosh RB’s got at least one carry last year which is 68%.
In 2022 I had already projected Nicholas Singleton as the leading rusher for Penn St this year. I said you could expect more true frosh RB’s to make an impact in 2022 than the QB list I supplied. Nick Singleton did indeed start and led Penn State with 1061 (6.8) but he was not the top true frosh RB. Quinshon Judkins of Ole Miss led with 1567 (5.7). Four other true frosh RB’s topped 700 yards with Jayden Ott of Cal having 897 rush and 321 receiving for over 1,000 yards total offense as did Kaytron Allen of Penn St who had 867 rush and 188 receiving. Kaleb Johnson of Iowa and Trevor Etienne of Florida both topped 700 rush.
Now we look at 2023. Unlike the previous two years this true frosh Top 50 class did not produce a 1,000-yard rusher. Darius Taylor from Minnesota led with 799 (5.8). Cedric Baxter was #2 with 659 (4.8). Mark Fletcher of Miami Florida was #3 with 524 (4.9). Dylan Edwards of Colorado had 321 (4.2) rush but also 299 (8.3) receiving. Seven of the top 50 already hit the portal.
TODD DROP IN 2023 CHART HERE
Here is a look at the 2024 true Frosh. I called for the numbers to increase, and they did but not up to the 2022 levels. Louisville’s Issac Brown had a super 7.1 ypc and led the Frosh RB’s with 1173 yards. Caden Durham was #2 with 753 (5.4) for LSU. Jadan Baugh had 673 (5.1) for Florida. Two other backs topped 400 yards in Duke Watson who had 597 (8.9!) also for Louisville! Jordan Lyle had 400 (7.4) for Miami Fla.
Now we take a look at the 2025 Top 50 True Frosh and how they fared. This crop of Top 50 Frosh produced one 1,000 yard rusher in Bo Jackson for Ohio St who got over that number in the post season. Jordon Davidson of Oregon was #2 with 667 (5.9) and his teammate Dierre Hill was #3 with 656 (8.7). Harlem Berry of LSU had 491 (4.7) and Tory Blaylock of Oklahoma had 480 (4.0).
Now lets look at how the 2025 compared to the previous four years.
In 2020 the top 50 true frosh RBs combined for 9079 yds rush, 80 td and 5.9 ypc.
In 2021 the top 50 true frosh RBs combined for 9651 yds rush, 96 td’s and 5.2 ypc.
The 2021 RB’s also had 1681 receiving yards.
In 2022 the top 50 true frosh RBs combined for 12202 yds rush, 117 tds and 5.2 ypc.
The 2022 RBs also had 1643 receiving yards.
In 2023 the top 50 true frosh RB’s combined for 7513 yds rush, 60 td’s and 5.03 ypc
The 2023 RB’s also had 1494 receiving yards.
In 2024 the top 50 true frosh RB’s combined for 9691 yds rush 81 td’s and 5.26 ypc.
The 2024 RB’s also had 1448 receiving yards.
In 2025 the top 50 true frosh RB’s combined for just 7409 yds rush, 54 td’s & 5.22 ypc.
The 2025 RB’s also had 1270 receiving yards.
In 2023 I said it will be tough for the 2023 group to top 2022’s record breaking numbers and there was a clear drop off in fact the 2024 top 50 true frosh RB’s had less than any group in the four years. In 2025 I said the 2024 group should top 2023’s numbers and they did. As I mentioned in the QB blog with players leaving via the transfer portal or the draft very few players stick around all five years so redshirting should get rarer and playing true frosh should continue to improve. As you can see above the numbers dropped. This year I look for a significant increase with the five year rule there is not more need to redshirt RB’s so I would expect more will play and a player like Savion Hiter of Michigan could top 1,000. They could even top 2022’s big numbers.
Here is a list of this year’s top 50 True Frosh RB’s.
This years magazine is 376 pages and the biggest and best ever. Here are the different ways you can order the magazine.
Option #1 – Pick one up at your local Barnes and Noble or Books-a-Million store. When you go into a Barnes and Noble you get two different cover choices in each store! The official on sale date is July 4th but it is hitting some stores sooner. It is also available at Books-a-Million which all have the national cover. These two distributors are our exclusive vendors of the magazine, and they are not available at Walmart’s, Walgreens, Grocery Stores, other bookstores or drug stores so save your gas. The only two brick and mortar store they are available are Barnes and Noble and Books-A-Million.
Option #2 – Buy the Hard copy of the magazine at philsteele.com or call 1-866-918-7711. The total cost depends on where you live and which of the four types of shipping you choose. It will cost you in the ballpark of $10 for shipping and tax. The biggest advantage of buying online is that When you buy the Hard copy you GET the DIGITAL version of the magazine ($19.99) for FREE and it is updated thru September. Your digital access begins immediately when you purchase. You also get your choice of covers (National, SEC, Midwest, Southwest, West or East Coast) as these are generally mailed out the same or next business day as the order. Order Here!
Option #3 – Buy the digital magazine. The best thing about the digital magazine is that it is updated all the way thru the month of September. If a coach gets fired (that has happened the last couple of years) we update it. If a player is injured and out for the year we CIRCLE him in the magazine. If a player is added late (very rare) we put him in. Any changes to the team from the start of June thru the month of September is updated in the digital version. When you go to the philsteele.com store you will not see a picture there, you need to click on Digital Editions and order it there. It will be activated immediately giving you instant access. Order the Digital Here!
Option #4 – Order the VIP Bundle – The price of the VIP bundle is $44.95. With the VIP bundle you get the National Cover of the magazine. All VIP’s received EXCLUSIVE ACCESS to the digital version of the magazine for one week, but that bonus is gone as the digital is now available for everyone. You receive two magazines PLUS the Digital Magazine. You also receive FOUR Free issues of my Inside the Pressbox Newsletter ($20 per issue – $80 value) which gives you my Forecast and my computers forecast on EVERY FBS game each week. You also receive access to Phil Steele Plus ($25 per month) for the months of June, July, August and September! The VIP Bundle also includes SHIPPING so it is basically just $10 more than ordering the magazine by itself! Order the Reg VIP Bundle Here!!
Option #5 – THE BEST BUY – Order the Super VIP Bundle – The price of the SUPER VIP bundle is $74.95. With the Super VIP Bundle you receive
TWO magazines INCLUDING SHIPPING ($69 value!), EXCLUSIVE ACCESS to the digital version for one week (that happened already), order shipped next business day. Use the 2nd magazine when your first one gets dogeared or sell/give it to a friend.
Digital magazine ($19.95 value) FREE – The digital magazine is updated thru September (see option 3) and you get immediate access to the digital version upon purchase.
Four Issues of my Inside the Pressbox newsletter ($80 value) which gives you my forecast and my COMPUTERs forecast on EVERY FBS games each week (including FBS vs FCS) the same bonuses that the VIP’s get. You also receive…
FCS Digital Magazine ($25) FREE – Two full pages on Every FCS team laid out the same way the pages are for the FBS magazine. There are 128 FCS teams so over 250 pages!
NFL Digital Magazine ($15) FREE – Four full pages on Every NFL team and a Fantasy Football section!
Phil Steele Plus ($99 value) ENTIRE SEASON FREE – This is a tremendous addition. If you purchase the full year access to Phil Steele Plus it is $99 but you get it included in the Super VIP Bundle Purchase the Super VIP Bundle now and get the entire year of Phil Steele Plus FREE!! Here is a link to all the great info available on Phil Steele Plus including the schedule predictor! Order the Super VIP Bundle Here!!
