College Fantasy Football: Running Back Room Targets

Find 2026 college fantasy football RB sleepers by targeting backfields with low returning production and high-volume opportunities.

August 19, 2026

College Fantasy Football: Running Back Room Targets

By:

Chris Benzine

August 19, 2026

College Football Draft Kit

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Returning production in the running back room is something to keep an eye on. In general, the fewer carries that return to the room, the more there are available for new blood to step into, and the higher ceiling you can find later in drafts with unestablished players.

Note: The returning production only includes the top three projected running backs for each team for 2026, so there may be small discrepancies for teams that had some backs with a few touches last year who again project to sit outside the top three on the projected depth chart.

Visit our College Football Rankings page to customize the rankings to fit your league's format. The rankings are also subject to change as more information rolls in during fall camp. Keep tabs on the College Football News page for everything from job battles to injuries as the draft season draws closer.

2026 College Fantasy Football Draft Kit

College fantasy football draft season is in full swing, and RotoWire is here to help you get the most out of your draft season with information that will help you win your league!

2026 College Fantasy Football Draft Kit

College Football Running Back Returning Production 2026

Note: The chart below only includes teams with 50 percent or less returning production and 350 or more RB touches, highlighting the best situations to target. However, it doesn't take into account coaching changes and how those may impact playcalling. It only includes the regular season.

2026 Returning Production Leaders

		Rushing			Receiving			Total Touches
Team▾	Conference▾	ATT▾	Ret ATT▾	Ret %▾	REC▾	Ret REC▾	Ret %▾	Touch▾	Ret Touch▾	Ret %▾

College Football Running Backs to Target

Of the 34 teams in the table, only 11 of them have continuity of both the head coach and offensive coordinator, making them prime rooms to target in 2026.

Let's dig into some of the candidates to fill those voids.

Virginia Cavaliers

Virginia's RB room boasted 429 touches last season, with the vast majority of that heading the way of J'Mari Taylor, who handled 222 carries and 43 receptions. Behind him was Harrison Waylee, who toted the rock 118 times and caught five passes.

Both are gone, leaving a massive void at running back. The name that has trickled to the surface here is Jekail Middlebrook, who has seemingly usurped Peyton Lewis to lead the backfield for the Cavs. However, the reports seem to suggest this could still be a 1A and 1B, with Middlebrook as the 1A. What exactly that means in terms of the carry split is unclear, but Middlebrook is likely the name to target in your drafts over Lewis.

Baylor Bears

Baylor's backfield is on the upper reaches of the returning production scale, with just under 50 percent (47.8) of the backfield's production from last year set to return. The two that encompass that production are Caden Knighten and Michael Turner, while leading rusher Bryson Washington transferred to Auburn.

Oddly, neither of those two backs is expected to lead the rushing attack in 2026. That instead falls to Dawson Pendergrass, who returns to the fold after a foot injury cost him all of 2025. He posted 121 carries for 671 yards and six touchdowns working behind Washington in 2024 and looks slated to take the lead this season. Washington handled 143 carries and 17 receptions over the first 10 games last season, so there is certainly some value to be had if Pendergrass can carry that level of usage throughout the season (16 touches per game).

Houston Cougars

The Cougars leaned heavily on Dean Connors last year, affording him 200 carries and 34 catches, with top backup DJ Butler only handling 68 carries and eight catches. While Butler does return, he's not expected to assume the lead duties in the backfield.

That likely falls to Makhi Hughes, who transfers in after an unsuccessful season at Oregon where he was unable to crack the rotation and wound up back in the transfer portal following 2026. He will reunite with head coach Willie Fritz, who recruited him to Tulane out of high school. Hughes amassed a whopping 258 and 265 carries, plus a combined 30 catches, between his two seasons at Tulane in 2023 and 2024, and he heads into 2026 as the prime candidate to claim the lead role for Houston.

Notre Dame Fighting Irish

One of the more obvious teams on the list, Notre Dame loses both Jeremiyah Love and Jadarian Price, two first-round picks in the 2026 NFL Draft. While the team figures to lean a bit more into its passing attack with Heisman candidate CJ Carr under center, this is still a team that likes to run the rock. Love and Price combined for 312 carries and 19 touchdowns along with 33 catches and five receiving touchdowns between them over 12 games last season.

The most experienced back to return to this backfield in 2026 is Aneyas Williams, who rushed 24 times for 224 yards and five touchdowns a season ago. He seems the most likely candidate to head the rushing attack for the Fighting Irish and is being taken in the first or second round in a lot of drafts as a result.

That said, sophomore Nolan James and freshman Jonaz Walton are a couple of names to keep an eye on in deeper formats, given the potential for some volume here. There is no proven commodity atop the room like there was last year, so keep an eye on the opening depth chart against Wisconsin. At the very least, keep them in mind should Williams miss any time.

Nebraska Cornhuskers

Emmett Johnson was the definition of a workhorse for Nebraska last season, handling 251 carries and 46 receptions for a whopping 297 total touches.

To me, there is no 1-for-1 replacement in this backfield. The name most people have been eyeing to top the depth chart here is Mekhi Nelson, but he had some off-field concerns this offseason (no charges were filed), so there is some question as to how exactly he stands with the team. If he's in good standing with the staff, Nelson seems the most likely candidate to lead the backfield.

Freshman Jamal Rule is another name that has generated some buzz during the spring and fall, and he's potentially worth a late stab in deep leagues if you're running out of options as well. Isaiah Mozee and Kwinten Ives also return to the fold here, and I would expect to see a bit more of a committee here in 2026 than we saw last season.

Indiana Hoosiers

Coming off last season's national championship, the Hoosiers have plenty to replace in the backfield. Gone are top two backs Roman Hemby and Kaelon Black, who combined for 289 carries for 1,588 yards and 13 touchdowns over 12 regular-season contests in 2025.

The team does retain third-leading rusher Khobie Martin (69 carries last season) and fourth-leading rusher Lee Beebe (27 carries over first three games before injury), who both figure to be regulars in the rotation this fall. The team also made a move in the transfer portal, adding Turbo Richard from Boston College.

Similar to Nebraska, the staff has mentioned more of a three-headed attack in the backfield in Bloomington, so I would expect to see a healthy touch count for each of these three. Richard seems the one most worth taking a shot on here after posting 145 carries for 749 yards and nine touchdowns last season, but the committee approach devalues each.

Still, there's some upside here if any back can pull into more of a leading position or if one or more of the other options were to miss time.

Eastern Michigan Eagles

The Eagles boasted a pretty even split of pass-run last year, but they toted the rock just enough (352 times) to make this list. That's not to say they can't produce a fantasy-relevant back. In fact, Dontae McMillan put up 1,014 rushing yards last season on 177 carries, which certainly put him in the fantasy conversation. On top of that, he racked up a whopping 33 catches for 473 yards, and that production is gone from this room.

No. 2 back Tavierre Dunlap (106 carries; 20 catches) is gone, leaving 336 touches on the table between them. While Coastal Carolina/Virginia Tech transfer Braydon Bennett seemed like the option to turn to, a precamp depth chart listed Joey Mattord and Amareon Blue as co-starters atop the depth chart.

Verdict: For now, I'm probably hands off the room with the committee approach in play, but don't be afraid to make a move on the waiver wire after Week 1 if one of the backs takes on a hefty workload in the opener. They have a Week 0 contest on the schedule as well, which should give you an opportunity to make a move before the fantasy season starts.

Navy Midshipmen

Like EMU, Navy squeaked onto the list with just 351 carries, but it's still a good list to be on, especially when just 3.7 percent of the backfield touches return from last season.

That said, the Midshipmen tend to spread the ball around a bit in the backfield. Alex Tecza led the way last year with 158 carries for 902 yards and 13 catches for 125 yards over 13 games (including a postseason contest and a Week 15 matchup with Army). Versatile back Eli Heidenreich was the other to look at after turning in 77 carries for 499 yards and three scores and another 51 grabs for 941 yards and six scores as a receiver.

Vic Listorti seems like the closest comp for Tecza in 2026 and the favorite to lead the backfield in totes, but it remains to be seen if he can match that level of carry share and production, and you will most likely only get 11 games out of him for your fantasy season with the annual Army-Navy game coming after the fact.

Charles Robinson seems like the most likely candidate to assume the Heidenrich duties, sitting atop the depth chart after spring where Heidenrich sat a year ago, and Robinson turned in 10 carries and two catches last season. I'm still not sure we'll get the same production there.

Listorti seems like the most reliable add here if you are targeting anyone.

Texas State Bobcats

GJ Kinne's offense runs a lot of plays, and there are a ton of carries to be had here after Lincoln Pare totaled 199 totes for 1,022 yards and 11 rushing scores and added 36 catches for 306 yards and a pair of receiving touchdowns over 12 regular-season contests last year.

Pare is gone, and the expected replacement in No. 2 back Greg Burrell (100 carries for 671 yards and three scores; 13 catches for 125 yards) also left the team this spring, leaving 348 touches on the table from last year's squad.

The Bobcats up their competition with a move to the Pac-12 this year, so it remains to be seen how that will impact the offensive output, and there is speculation that this backfield is heading for more of a committee between Torrance Burgess, Jaylen Jenkins, Taji Atkins and Juntavious Harris.

Each back weighs around 180 pounds or less, so I tend to agree with this sentiment, and I'm probably more in monitor mode for Week 1 waivers than I am targeting any individual back in this room.

FIU Panthers

One of the more established backs on this list of teams is Anthony Carrie, who returns after churning out 96 carries for 447 yards and five touchdowns a season ago, adding 10 grabs for another 55 yards over 12 regular-season tilts.

In addition, Kejon Owens is gone after rushing 205 times for 1,298 yards and 11 scores last season and adding 17 catches for another 62 yards, leaving the lead-back duties

Carrie seems like the natural option to step into a heftier role this season, though he was far less efficient (4.6 YPA) than Owens (6.4 YPA) as a rusher last year.

Even so, Devonte Lyons was next in line, and he averaged just 3.8 yards per tote on his 37 carries, so there isn't really anyone obvious to replace Carrie atop the depth chart.

I'm not sure this offense will produce on the same level it did a year ago, but perhaps we are underrating the workload Carrie could receive in 2026 as the lead back here for the Panthers. He's worth a look in some formats, given the upside of touches available in this backfield.

Appalachian State Mountaineers

App State is another team on the lower end of this touch list, and it boasts a 41.7 percent returning touch share. That belongs to Jaquari Lewis, who ended last season on a tear with 71 carries for 338 yards and two rushing scores over the final three games, adding 14 catches for another 95 yards as a receiver over that span.

Rashod Dubinion also departs after churning out 174 carries for 868 yards and four rushing scores last year, adding 27 catches for 170 yards.

This offense is expected to lean on the running game more in 2026, but it will also involve more of the quarterback running with Malachi Singleton likely set to take the reins.

Even so, Lewis should handle a hefty volume again in 2026 and is worthy of a healthy draft pick, though the pending return of Kanye Roberts after missing 2025 due to injury could muddy the backfield a little.

I'm still betting on Lewis to have a healthy workload here, and there's a pretty safe floor of RB touches to go around even if Roberts is involved.