(Photo by WVU Athletics)
Though things didn’t go exactly as planned for the Mountaineers in 2022, one thing they undoubtedly got right was the running back position. From top to bottom, Coach Chad Scott’s position room at WVU is one of the best in the entire conference. If fans need any glimmer of excitement moving forward, they need to look no farther than the backfield.
Let’s take a look at just how special of a position group that Chad Scott has on his hands – here are the final stats from the season for the running backs:
-Tony Mathis, R-Jr: 135 carries, 562 yards, 5 TDs
-C.J. Donaldson, Fr: 87 carries, 526 yards, 8 TDs
-Justin Johnson, So: 98 carries, 430 yards, 3 TDs
-Jaylon Anderson, R-Fr: 35 carries, 275 yards, 2 TDs
The top four running backs on the team galloped for a total of 355 carries for 1,793 yards and 18 touchdowns. That’s good for 5 yards per carry, and 1.5 touchdowns per game. This is the kind of production the Mountaineers have been lacking from the running game since Neal Brown arrived in 2019.
Sure, Leddie Brown was a monster at running back, but this group is now DEEP. West Virginia doesn’t have to rely solely on one player for all of the production, they can now spread the wealth. This can be attributed to Chad Scott’s impressive work with this group.
That is why no matter what happens, whether or not WVU moves on from Neal Brown, the school should do everything they can to retain Chad Scott. These players love him, and letting him walk would be a mistake.
Even if WVU ends up losing a guy like C.J. Donaldson to the transfer portal, they still have guys that can step in and make up for the loss of his production. Donaldson seems like a star in the making, but so do players like Johnson, Anderson, and Mathis.
Not many teams around the nation have the amount of solid running backs that WVU does. It has taken them some time to build the room, but we are starting to see the benefit of continuing to recruit talented guys.
Let Chad Scott and his “Big League Backs” cook’
