Florida Gators 2021 Roster Outlook: Running Backs
With Emory Jones set to take the reigns at quarterback for Florida in 2021, the Gators are expected to build upon what has been a middling rushing attack for going on two seasons. Jones can sling the rock, but he's an impressive rusher and inserting his skill set into UF's offense should open up opportunities for running backs as well.
The question is, who will receive the lion's share of carries? Florida has a lot of talent at the position - a lot of mouths to feed - but no bonafide RB1 has emerged quite yet. With Jones at the helm, a stud rusher next to him in the backfield should keep opposing defenses honest and force teams to respect numerous ways to run the ball.
After previously reviewing each contributor's performance at running back for Florida during the 2020 season, it's time to look forward to 2021 by previewing the talent at the position. Each positional outlook story will feature starting projections from AllGators.
Previous roster outlooks: Quarterbacks
Starter: Does it even matter?
Dameon Pierce started for Florida during the 2020 season and lead the team in rushes, yards, and touchdowns. None of those stats were all that stellar, however, as he finished with 106 attempts for 503 yards and four touchdowns.
Although Florida has and will continue to split carries among its running backs, the 2019 season frankly featured Lamical Perine with Pierce, Jones, and Malik Davis serving as complementary rushers - seen by Perine's 132 carries outpacing their 130 combined.
This past season, Pierce more genuinely split duties toting the rock with Davis (66), quarterback Kyle Trask (64), redshirt freshman Nay'Quan Wright (54), and Jones (32 - missed four games). Each pair of legs offers a different skill-set too, and at this point, it's easy to assume Florida will continue to divvy up roles while simultaneously using the rushing game more strategically.
Pierce is an agile bruiser who doesn't possess great breakaway speed, but can nickel and dime a defense by creating yards after contact. Three of his 4.7 yards per carry came after being touched by a defender in 2020, per Pro Football Focus, and he broke 23 tackles.
Davis averaged the same 4.7 yards per carry but is more elusive than bruising or speedy. Davis is also a strong pass-catcher who flexed out to receiver a good bit, catching 31 passes for 377 yards in 2020.
Wright is an intriguing talent who was similarly elusive to Davis, but runs with a bit more pep in his step as well as physicality upon contact with defenders. Wright averaged 3.9 yards per run but broke as many tackles as Davis (12, per PFF), on 12 fewer carries.
Each running back could take steps forward in pass protection, but Pierce might present the best option in that department given his physicality and size.
A rising senior with more carries than anyone on the roster, Pierce is the easy projection to start. However, much like 2020, that doesn't exclude Davis or Wright from getting touches.
In fact, assuming Florida takes its foot off of the gas that is its passing offense, each of their touch counts should go up, along with Pierce's. And perhaps UF will be able to squeeze something out of former five-star prospect and Miami transfer Lorenzo Lingard as well, who had just five carries in his first year with the Gators.
Although, a recent addition to the running back room could pose a threat to everyone's job security.
How does Demarkcus Bowman get involved?
If Demarkcus Bowman is as good as advertised coming out of Lakeland High School - he's considered a top 50 running back prospect in the history of the 247 Sports composite rankings - you can forget a lot of the previous section.
Bowman was a priority recruit in the class of 2020 for Florida who signed with Clemson before announcing his transfer to UF shortly into his freshman year, due to a death in the family.
Assuming Bowman is eligible in 2021, he'll be immediately inserted into the competition for touches, which he is talented enough to win. He possesses game-breaking speed - verified by a 4.47-second 40-yard dash and 10.69-second 100-meter dash - and elite vision at all levels of the field, which only boosts his ability to make defenders miss as is.
Bowman is simply dynamic, something that Florida's running back room currently lacks in an all-around form. It would honestly be a bit disappointing if Bowman weren't able to carve out a large role in Florida's offense once he is acclimated to a new environment and offensive system.
Final thoughts
A season removed from ranking No. 11 in the SEC in rushing yards and No. 13 in attempts per game, Florida doesn't have much elsewhere to go than up with its running game production.
The transition from Trask to Jones at quarterback will make UF's running game more respectable, but the running backs and offensive line will both need to strengthen their performances in order for a modified UF offense to reach great success.
Florida has talent at running back, and that could be seen even throughout a down year in terms of production. Add Bowman, and perhaps a second-year surge from Lingard, and the idea of facing such a talented running back room can become a bit scary.
Could there be too many mouths to feed? At this point, that would be a good problem for Florida to have, and the Gators could cross that bridge when they get there.
