Boise State RB Ashton Jeanty on pace to shatter Barry Sanders records after destruction of Washington State
36 years ago Barry Sanders shook the college football universe when he ran for 2,628 yards and scored 37 rushing touchdowns in just one season. Now, in 2024, those long-standing records look like they're about to be broken by Boise State running back, Ashton Jeanty.Heading into Week 5 of the the college football season–and Boise […]
36 years ago Barry Sanders shook the college football universe when he ran for 2,628 yards and scored 37 rushing touchdowns in just one season. Now, in 2024, those long-standing records look like they're about to be broken by Boise State running back, Ashton Jeanty.
Heading into Week 5 of the the college football season–and Boise State's fourth game of the year–Jeanty had already rushed for 586 yards and nine touchdowns on the ground. And that included a game against the Oregon Ducks, on of the prohibitive favorites to make the 12-Team College Football Playoff this year.
Apparently those numbers weren't good enough for Jeanty's liking, because he decided to once again absolutely destroy an opponent, rushing for 259 yards and four touchdowns against Washington State on Saturday. Jeanty is now averaging more than 10.3 yards per carry on the season. He has 845 rushing yards and 13 touchdowns now. In four games.
Jeanty looks like the clear consensus RB1 for the 2025 NFL Draft despite playing for a Group of Five school, displaying every single trait necessary to find success against any and every defense he faces. If he needs to use balance and strength to win? Jeanty puts on a master class.
On his 2nd quarter touchdown against Washington State (in the post below), Jeanty was originally supposed to run near left tackle, but the edge defender broke through. Jeanty avoided that initial contact. A second defender managed to get both hands around his waste, but Jeanty slipped out of that too. Third, fourth, fifth, and sixth defenders smashed into him, but it didn't matter. Jeanty bounced off two of them and dragged the others across the goal line with him for the score.
Later in the game Ashton Jeanty demonstrated his incredible balance yet again, but also his agility and long speed as he took a 59-yard run to the end zone.
It didn't matter that a defender took a dive into his thigh behind the line of scrimmage. He bounced the run outside, destroyed two pursuing defenders' angles, bursting past the second level of the defense with his speed. Jeanty used his smooth agility to quite literally "bounce" the run back inside, turned on the jets, and it was over (as you can witness below).
Two defenders who actually had decent pursuit angles on him late in the play got to him around the five yard line, but Jeanty was ready. He burst right through their tackles dragging (and nearly throwing) them into the end zone along with himself.
Jeanty looks like he's truly defying physics at times with the way he manipulates defenders before, during, or after attempted tackles. And it somehow always looks so easy for him.
Jeanty is now on pace for more than 2700 rushing yards and 42 touchdowns. Both would completely shatter Barry Sanders' 36-year-old college football records. If that happens Jeanty will almost assuredly be the first running back to win the Heisman Trophy since Derrick Henry in 2015.
After Ashton Jeanty scored his fourth touchdown of the game against Washington State on Saturday he burst into a Heisman pose celebration. According to multiple sources he's been practicing this move all off-season. That certainly checks out.
If he does indeed win the award he's historically nearly guaranteed first round NFL Draft capital. And if that happens he'll be the first Group of Five conference running back in nearly a decade to be selected inside round one. If he does smash Barry Sanders' records? There's nearly no limit to how early Ashton Jeanty could be selected in the 2025 NFL Draft.
