Oregon Ducks Football: Top 10 Running Back Room in College Football?

The Oregon Ducks head into the Big Ten conference with tons of talent on offense. How do the running backs stack up among the best in college football?

Oregon running back Jordan James carries the ball as the Oregon Ducks host Hawaii Saturday, Sept. 16, 2023, at Hayward Field in Eugene, Ore. / Ben Lonergan/The Register-Guard / USA

The Oregon Ducks head to the Big Ten conference next season with plenty of offensive talent at coach Dan Lanning’s disposal. 

But what about at running back? 

Despite the NFL loss of standout ball-career Bucky Irving, who was selected in the fourth round by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Pro Football Focus still thinks Oregon possesses one of the best running back rooms in college football. 

Oregon running back Jordan James carries the ball as the No. 6 Oregon Ducks take on the No. 16 Oregon State Beavers Friday, Nov. 24, 2023, at Autzen Stadium in Eugene, Ore. / Ben Lonergan/The Register-Guard / USA

PFF revealed its list of top-10 RB rooms on X (Twitter) recently and had Oregon at No. 7 in the country. Here’s the full list:

1 - Ohio State

2 - UCF

3 - Georgia 

4 - Penn State

5 - Ole Miss

6 - Miami 

7 - Oregon 

8 - Kansas 

9 - Kansas State 

10 - West Virginia

The Ducks’ backfield currently consists of Jordan James, Noah Whittington and Northwest Missouri State transfer Jay Harris. James is the clear star of the group, as he was an elite complement to Irving last season.

Despite Irving leading the backfield in carries (186) and rushing yards (759), James tied him with 11 rushing touchdowns. He also added 15 catches for 132 yards and another score.

James has already proven capable of getting starter-like reps and should step in just fine alongside Oklahoma transfer quarterback Dillon Gabriel next season.

Meanwhile, Whittington served as the third-string running back, as the former Western Kentucky product had just 20 carries for 146 yards and two touchdowns.

The Ducks will get their first full look at the backfield post-Irvig when the regular season kicks off against Idaho on Saturday, Aug. 31.