247Sports’ release Wednesday of the initial Top247 rankings for the 2026 recruiting cycle features potential star power at the running back position. While the 15 total running backs in the Top247 is not an extraordinary number, consider that the 247Sports national scouting team projects five in the top 75 overall and eight in the top 100.
By comparison, the 2024 Top247 featured only three top 100 running backs, despite 15 total. The 2023 Top247 showcased star power with three top 35 running backs, but only five in the top 100 of the 14 total. The 2022 Top247 boasted 19 backs, but, like the 2024 cycle (Taylor Tatum) – only one (Nick Singleton) – in the top 50, and five in the top 100.
Even the seniors-to-be cycle of 2025 features only five top 100 running backs entering late spring.
Of course position value in relation to NFL Draft projections influences the running back position more negatively in the higher rounds than any other position. And at such an early stage of the 2026 cycle, the evaluation process is essentially in its infancy, for all positions.
But even considering those caveats, what the 247Sports national scouting team sees in the top backs in this class at this early juncture certainly impresses us, especially in the Lone Star State, which is no stranger to running back talent. Home to multiple recent Top247 No. 1 backs such as Rueben Owens and the aforementioned Tatum, Texas boasts quite the historical ledger of names at the position: Doak Walker, Earl Campbell, Eric Dickerson, Priest Holmes, LaDainian Tomlinson, Adrian Peterson, Jamaal Charles, and countless others.
LONE STAR STATE CLAIMS 4 OF TOP 5 RUNNING BACKS
Davian Groce (17), Tradarian Ball (47), KJ Edwards (64), and Javian Osborne (73) give the state of Texas four of the top five backs, joining Shahn Alston (48) from Painesville (Ohio) Harvey.
Frisco (Texas) Lone Star’s Groce debuts as our No. 1 running back in the initial 2026 Top247. Groce is quite a unique playmaker; he legitimately could classify as a receiver, and in fact, we understand he started as a receiver before personnel needs dictated he provide backfield snaps.
Groce is one of the few players at any position in this update who possesses what I call “easy speed.” Despite a gait that’s a bit unorthodox, Groce runs with ankle flexibility that aids his foot quickness and ability to make cuts and redirect. His run-by speed as a perimeter pass catcher also manifests at RB, where he regularly shows a top-end gear reflective of the sub-11.00-second 100-meter time he ran as a freshman.
Groce hails from a school that not only produced recent RB talents in Ashton Jeanty (Boise State) and Jaden Nixon (Oklahoma State), but pros in linebacker Nick Bolton and receiver Marvin Mims. To re-emphasize Groce’s sophomore production, here are the numbers: 936 rushing yards and 13 TDs on 7.7 yards per carry, plus 45 receptions for 860 yards and nine TDs on 18.9 per grab. That’s about 1,800 scrimmage yards, 22 touchdowns, and 10.75 yards per touch.
East Texans such as Campbell, Peterson, and Billy Sims make the running back position particularly hallowed behind the pine curtain. Texarkana Texas High’s Tradarian Ball (47) and Carthage’s KJ Edwards (64) hope to make the region proud coming out of the 2026 class.
Ball lives below the coveted 11.00-second 100-meter threshold, and that speed shows on tape, where he’s not only an explosive linear threat, but a second-level, open-field threat with quick, decisive redirection. Ball ran for nearly 1,300 yards and 12 touchdowns on 7.0 yards per carry, while also lining up part-time as a true wideout. His pass-catching ability makes him particularly dangerous and raises his ceiling. Ball finished 2023 with 24 receptions for 400 yards and six TDs, providing big-play punch as a traditional run threat, a screen-game monster, and a downfield pass catcher.
Edwards took RB1 duties for perennial Class 4A power Carthage this past fall and eclipsed 1,700 rushing yards and 24 TDs on 10.0 yards per carry. Edwards flashes run-finishing strength and conviction well beyond his listed size, along with 10.99 100-meter speed that clearly shows in pads. He’s accustomed to a versatile offensive game plan that uses him in myriad formations and multiple alignments, including slot receiver. If he remains healthy, Edwards will present a serious threat to a number of rushing records at Carthage, a running back-rich program that boasts eight different individual 2,000-yard rushing seasons and about 30 more 1,000-yard efforts since the late 1970s.
Forney (Texas) standout Javian Osborne (73) rounds out the four-pack of TXHSFB backs in the position’s top five. Osborne is an ultra-creative runner in the hole and into the first 10 to 20 yards with excellent initial acceleration. A workhorse as a sophomore, Osborne ran for 2,200-plus yards and a whopping 39 touchdowns on 7.7 yards per tote. Osborne also flashed pass-catching ability, reinforcing the versatility of this Texas group: the four Texas running backs in the position’s top five each caught at least 15 passes in 2023.
SHAHN ALSTON EMERGES AN ELITE PROSPECT
But let’s not overlook Alston (48), the No. 3 RB in the initial 2026 Top247 who joins the Texas quartet in the top five at the position. A flat-out football player who could play a second-level defensive role at a high-major program, Alston displays wild speed-to-power ability for such a young prospect, and that shows in his run-finishing ability and his uncoiling pop as a hitter. An open-field galloper who couples top-end stride with early suddenness in the hole, Alston eclipsed 1,000 rushing yards and ran for 15 TDs as he averaged 8.1 yards per carry.
Mississippi’s Damarius Yates (77) joins California’s DeShonne Redeaux (79) and Brian Bonner (98) to round out the top eight backs in the top 100 overall. We always look for verified athleticism and multi-sport athletes, especially early in the evaluation process, and these three backs check those categories emphatically. Yates owns a 10.90 100 and a scorching 20.43 200, while Redeaux produced a sizzling wind-aided 10.42 as a freshman. Meanwhile, Bonner has reached the 10.6 range. But these guys aren’t simply track stars. Redeaux plays a similar style to the aforementioned KJ Edwards. Bonner owns a good frame and runs with urgency.
TEXAS HAS PLENTY MORE TO BOAST
Early Oklahoma commit Jonathan Hatton Jr. (123) from Cibolo (Texas) Steele gives the Lone Star State six of the top 11 backs in the initial 2026 Top247. Hatton ran for 1,200-plus yards and 21 touchdowns as a sophomore. He plays an instinctive, take-what-you-give-me style and possesses ample long-term potential considering his 10.65 100-meter speed and strong combine testing data.
Texas, as usual, also boasts some excellent runners beyond the Top247. Houston-area standout Cardae Mack, Texas commit Raycine Guillory, and Southeast Texas product Amante Martin all have claims to Top247 status as well. Mack represents a highly creative first-level juker who enjoyed a huge breakout sophomore campaign.
Guillory made noticeable strides in his development from freshman to sophomore year, increasing foot quickness as a move-stringer and elevating open-field top-end speed. Martin, the younger brother of former Auburn running back Kam Martin, shows plenty of make-you-miss ability as well.
RUNNING BACKS IN INITIAL 2026 TOP247
— 247Sports’ Andrew Ivins, Greg Biggins, Cooper Petagna, and Hudson Standish contributed to this report.
