Ohio State Football: JK Dobbins could be on list with all-time greats
JK Dobbins’ rushing totals could put him on a short list with all-time great Ohio State running backs.
From the time JK Dobbins joined the Ohio State football program back in January as an early enrollee, it was obvious he had the potential to be a special player. I’m not sure even Urban Meyer thought he would become one so quickly.
The numbers he has put up through 13 games are staggering considering he is a true freshman. His 174 yards rushing in the Big Ten Championship Game gave him 1,364 for the season breaking Maurice Clarett’s Ohio State freshman rushing record. His 1,499 yards from scrimmage set a new freshman mark as well.
With one more game still left to play, his totals are moving him up on the list of top seasons by an Ohio State running back. In fact, he has the opportunity to accomplish something only seven other Buckeyes ever have, rush for 1,500 yards in a season (Archie Griffin and Ezekiel Elliott each did it twice).
That would put him in rarefied air, to be on a list with the likes of Archie, Eddie and Zeke.
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It’s not a stretch to see him hitting that mark either. If he stays on his current 105 yards per game average he would end the season with 1,469 yards rushing. That would put Dobbins just shy of Pepe Pearson’s 1,484 yards, the 10th best season ever by an Ohio State running back.
But 141 rushing yards versus USC would put him at 1,500 and Dobbins has exceeded that total three times so far this season. In fact, he rushed for over 170 yards in each of those games.
Dobbins also has a very good chance of holding one Ohio State record outright. If his yards per carry average (7.5) holds up, it will break Carlos Hyde’s mark of 7.3 for a 1,000 yard back. It will be shy of the mark for an Ohio State rushing leader set by Walt Klevay (7.9), but he only rushed for 520 yards during the 1950 season.
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Whatever his final rushing totals will be, there is no doubt JK Dobbins has had a special season. And to think he is just a freshman. The future appears bright for the young man, and for Buckeye fans who will get to watch him carry the football the next couple of years.