Pitt RB Unit Ranked Fifth in ACC
PITTSBURGH -- The Pitt Panthers boasted one of the most productive and explosive rushing attacks in America last season, with speedster and eventual fifth-round draft pick Israel Abanikanda ripping off touchdown run after touchdown run from any distance.
Pitt will have to replace him this season with junior tailback Rodney Hammond, who has little starting experience but plenty of snaps under his belt. Behind him, the depth chart is more unproven but still good enough to earn a spot in ESPN analyst David Hale's second tier of ACC running back units and a No. 5 ranking in the conference.
"The Panthers averaged 5.7 [yards per designed run with Abanikanda] on the field vs Power 5 [opponents] last year; 3.99 with Hammond," Hale wrote on Twitter. "BUT with Hammond averaged nearly a yard more per dropback vs Power 5 [opponents] than they did with Izzy. Better [third down and fourth down conversion percentage] too."
The Panthers were very obviously a run-first team in both a literal and philosophical sense, as Hale pointed out. They ran on 62.2% of first downs last season, good for the highest rate in the ACC and the sixth highest in the Power 5. That could hold true this season unless transfer quarterback Phil Jurkovec meshes well with returning wideouts Bub Means and Konata Mumpfield.
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