Virginia Tech Football: Could Bhayshul Tuten catch Ashton Jeanty as the nation's leading rusher?

After a historic performance vs Boston College last night, could Tuten catch the nation's leading rusher>

Oct 17, 2024; Blacksburg, Virginia, USA; Virginia Tech Hokies running back Bhayshul Tuten (33) scores a touchdown during the fourth quarter against the Boston College Eagles at Lane Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Peter Casey-Imagn Images / Peter Casey-Imagn Images

Virginia Tech running back Bhayshul Tuten has been wrecking teams all season, long yet hasn't been talked about as much for Heisman consideration mostly due to the team's 4-3 record, which is fair. Last night, Tuten extended his streak for scoring at least one rushing touchdown per game to nine and broke the Virginia Tech single-game rushing record for rushing yards with 266. Tuten also scored a receiving touchdown last night and three rushing touchdowns for four total on the evening.

Now, to the question asked in the title of this article. "Could Bhayshul Tuten catch Ashton Jeanty as the nation's leading rusher". While it is going to be tough, I think it is possible.

Tuten has scored at least one touchdown a game this season compared to Jeanty who against Portland State, didn't score at all. Tuten as of right now, has 10 touchdowns total touchdowns on the season, and with five games in the season if he could consistently score receiving and rushing he could have a strong chance at that.

It is going to be a tall task though to catch him. Right now, Jeanty is the leading rusher in the country by a good margin, having racked up 1,248 yards on 126 attempts (one more than Tuten). Jeanty is also averaging 9.9 YPC and has scored a whopping 17 touchdowns.

Right now, Tuten has 871 yards through seven games. He is averaging seven yards per carry and has 12 rushing touchdowns. He is currently 377 yards behind Jeanty right now, which is a big number to overcome. Boise State is off this weekend and Jeanty's next performance will come next Friday night vs UNLV

Here is what our own RJ Schafer had to say about Bhayshul Tuten last night:

"Virginia Tech has had plenty of dominant single-game performances from their running backs in the history of the program, like Darren Evans’ long-time record of rushing 253 yards in one game or Mike Imoh’s dominant 243-yard performance. Evans achieved this feat with thirty-two carries as did Mike Imoh, but Bhayshul Tuten only needed eighteen. Tuten broke Evans’ longstanding record with a 266 yard performance on just eighteen rushes. He averaged 14.8 yards per carry, a number that Heisman favorite running back Ashton Jeanty has not touched this year."

I have to agree with that statement. Jeanty's longest-yard rushing performance this season (267 yards) is just one yard more than Tuten's, and he averaged fewer yards per carry in his highest rushing game this season.

Let's take a look at what Tuten had to say about his performance yesterday:

"Every game is a special game," Tuten said. "That's how I look at it. I just felt a little better today. We had a bye week. I felt great throughout practice. I took the knee brace off (for a sore knee). I felt fast, I felt good, I felt fluid. I just came out and balled today, and that's what we needed."

Here are the teams that Tuten has to face the rest of the way and their rushing defense rank nationally:

• vs Georgia Tech (23rd), Virginia (48th), Syracuse (52), Clemson (64th), and Duke (79th)]

Here is who Jeanty has to face the rest of the season:

• UNLV (19th), Nevada (72nd), San Jose State (93rd), Wyoming (100th), Oregon State (116th)

Jeanty is going to face a more favorable schedule when it comes to rushing defenses faced, which also gives him a legup in competition.

Tuten is an unstoppable force, but he might not be able to catch the Heisman front-runner this year. It could happen though and it is something to watch the rest of the year.

Additional Links:

Connor Serven, the journey through a tricky portal that landed him home, in Blacksburg

The Briefing: Tuten breaks record, turnovers galore, Hokies escape collapse in 42-21 win over Boston College

Virginia Tech Football: Bhayshul Tuten Breaks Virginia Tech’s Single Game Rushing Record