Could This Be the Deepest Buckeye Backfield Ever?

Could Ohio State have its deepest running back room in more than 30 years?

Tony Gerdeman and Tom Orr discuss whether the Buckeyes’ current backfield could be the deepest since the loaded 1992 group that featured Robert Smith, Raymont Harris, Jeff Cothran, Eddie George, Butler By’not’e, and others.

They compare that room to the current group of Bo Jackson, Isaiah West, Ja'Kobi Jackson, Legend Bey, Turbo Rogers, and more. They also look back at other Ohio State running back rooms from the Cooper, Tressel, Meyer, and Day eras to determine where this year’s group could eventually rank.

00:00 — Intro
00:10 — BuckeyeInsiders.com launch update
00:38 — Could this be Ohio State’s deepest RB room since 1992?
02:47 — Comparing this year’s backfield to the 1992 group
05:05 — Could this year’s production exceed 1992?
07:19 — Why the 1992 rushing numbers need context
10:17 — Remembering Tim Williams and the 1992 offense
13:48 — Other Ohio State running back rooms in the conversation
17:18 — NFL production from past Buckeye backfields
19:19 — Final thoughts and listener question

Could Bo Jackson, Isaiah West, Ja'Kobi Jackson, Legend Bey, and the rest of Ohio State’s running backs become one of the deepest backfields in Buckeye history? Drop your thoughts in the comments.

Subscribe to Buckeye Weekly for daily Ohio State football talk, recruiting coverage, analysis, and more.

Visit BuckeyeInsiders.com for updates on the launch of the new site.

Speaker 1: Hello, everybody, Welcome to the Buckeye with Me podcast. I'm

Tony Gerdaman here. As always with time or time, how's.

Speaker 2: It going well, Tony.

Speaker 3: We are counting down the days, maybe the hours at

this point, depending on when this uh when this goes

up to the launch of Buckeye Insiders dot com. It

has been a busy couple of days of going back

and forth with a bunch of different people via email. Tony,

I'm ready to just have a website again.

Speaker 4: I don't know about you, but I I'm really.

Speaker 3: Ready to have a website again and have a wonderful

community to tac Ohio State football and other sports with.

Speaker 1: Yeah, it's been a lot of work doing all of

this getting out put together, and I'm finally ready to

get back to work. It's been it's been a while,

but there's been work being done behind the scenes. Unless

people think we're just out gallivanting, we do not gallivant.

There's no gala, there's no vanting. We are working as

much as we can and look forward to working more. So. Yes, days, no,

not even days, that's this point. Days in parentheses perhaps,

but one of the things that I'm going to be

writing about in those first two days. Is that I

think this is the deepest Ohio State running back room

since nineteen ninety two, which is the year that I

always go back to because of the amount of depth

in that running back room, and you know the room

just so the people out there know who was running

the ball back in nineteen ninety two, Robert Smith returned

from his academic sabbatical sabbatical, thank you, and so he

was the starter. He had Raymond Harris getting carries in

there as well. You had Jeff Cothine who played fullback

but also ran the ball as a running back, a

true freshman, Eddie George running the ball a little bit.

You had Butler Bonotte running the ball a little bit.

Those were the main guys. You even had a highly

recruited true freshman. I think Travis McGuire was on the

team at that point. Didn't he red shirted, he didn't play.

Dante Lee, who rushed for five hundred yards, or the

true freshman in eighty nine could not get on the

field in that year. And so I think when I

say nineteen ninety two, that's for the people who don't know.

Now you know, And I think this year is going

to be right up there now. Tom is the as

top heavy as say twenty twenty four with Trevion Henderson

and Quincheong Judkins. I think we could see a tandem

in Bo Jackson in Isaiah West. It is maybe second

to them over the past, you know, ten or twenty years.

Speaker 3: Yeah, it's it's interesting because this is one of those

things where you look at.

Speaker 4: How how are we measuring this? Because nineteen ninety two.

Speaker 3: First of all, nineteen ninety two is a year that

was quite a while ago, as anyone who may remember

nineteen ninety two will know. But it's also a year

where you asked me before we recorded, you know, do

you remember who was in the nineteen ninety two running

back room? And I rattled off five names right away

because it was like, yeah, these are guys who you.

Speaker 4: Don't have to there's not a lot of oh yeah,

that guy.

Speaker 3: Those are all those guys that you talked about of

the people who had carries that year, those are all

people who.

Speaker 4: Cashed NFL paychecks.

Speaker 3: And Robert Smith was a first round draft pick. I

believe Eddie George was definitely a first round draft pick.

And those were guys who had long successful careers are

still in the football the football industry. Both of them

and Jeff Cotherine went to the Bengals, Butler Bonotte went

to the Broncos. I mean, these are guys who had

really really good careers at Ohio State and beyond. So,

you know, are there two future first round running backs in.

Speaker 4: This year's room. I don't know that. I think they

are two first round running backs. But I think if

you go down the list this year, where you've.

Speaker 3: Got bo Jackson, you've got Isaiah West, You've got Jacoby Jackson,

You've got Legend Bay, you know, and you know, whoever

else ends up playing, Disturber Rodgers end up playing, does

favor a key end up getting on the field At

some point you're looking at guys for running backs deep.

That's pretty deep, and I think those are all guys

who could end up cashing NFL paychecks.

Speaker 4: And you've got a couple of guys who what does.

Speaker 3: Bo Jackson turn into with two more years, What is

Isaiah West turning to with the opportunity to play regularly

and have a regular full fall camp.

Speaker 4: What does Legend Bay turn into?

Speaker 3: You know, there's a lot of excitement around that abound

several of those guys, we just haven't seen a lot.

But when you look at the depth of the position

right now, I think You've got enough guys in there

that I'm willing to sort of entertain this because this

is this is one of those years where that has

been the benchmark for so long. I don't know that

this is going to exceed that, but I think you

might be having the best since conversation.

Speaker 1: And think of the thing about that nineteen ninety two team,

and I guess maybe this makes sense. There was not

a thousand yard rusher that year. You had Robert Smith

with the eight hundred and nineteen yards, Raymond Harris with

four to sixty three, Jeff Coffin with four to ten,

Butler Binoute two hundred and eighty three yards, and Eddie

George had thirty seven carries for one hundred and sixty

seven one hundred and seventy six yards. I look at

those numbers and I think, well, yes, sure, the game

is different, although I don't know if the pace is

much different now compared to nineteen ninety two. The quarterback

play a little bit different. That was the year Kirk

kurve Street was the quarterback They lost Joey Galloway early

in the season. He was part of that team as well.

Terry Glenn, I believe he was. He was not quite

yet a part of this team, but you know, so, Yeah,

the quarterback play is going to be impacted this year.

But the idea that say, I could see whoever leads

to the High State Buckeys in the rushing this year,

I assume it's going to be Bo Jackson probably gonna

outrush Robert Smith, who was at eight fifty eight, the

number two guy, say it's Isaiah West, does he outrush

Raymond Harris's four hundred and eighty six yards? And does

the number three guy outrush Jeff Cothines four hundred and

twenty three yards? I think you could see all three

of those things happen. Also, Robert Smith averaged five point

six yards per carry. He was the only guy above

five yards at carry. Again a different time, but I

expect just about everybody here who gets the ball to

be averaging over five yards of carry. So when I

look at that, and if we want to, and I

know what everybody always has compared freshman Legend Bay to

freshman Eddie George in terms of impact I'd be surprised

if Legend Bay doesn't have a larger impact than Eddie.

George is one hundred and ninety yards rush, one hundred

and seventy six yards rushing, and sure Eddie, I'll probably

take Eddie's five touchdowns that year. But you know, I

look at these numbers and I can I can see

this year's team outperforming those.

Speaker 4: Yeah, I would think so.

Speaker 3: I mean, four point one yards per carrie for the

team is not that's not a great season by any means.

And you know, five point six for Robert Smith, sure

like that's that's a solid number one, but that's not

a remarkable number one by any means. And then for

everyone else to be below five yards of carry to

not have, you know, there's a lot of why behind that.

And Kirk kurb Street, the starter that year, completed fifty

eight point seven percent of his passes for nineteen hundred

and four yards, four touchdowns and six interceptions. Buckeyes threw

four five touchdowns all season long that year, so you know,

they were they were kind of playing with one hand

tied behind their back to a certain extent. But I

think I think you've got an opportunity for a lot

of those numbers to get met or exceeded.

Speaker 1: GISs it.

Speaker 3: I would I think eight hundred and fifty eight if

you give me the over under of that as Ohio

State's leading rusher this year, I'm going over that number.

Speaker 4: I don't know that I am.

Speaker 3: Super confident they'll have a thousand yard brusher those games.

Speaker 4: Also, that was also done in they played in twelve

games that season, so you know, we're kind of looking

at the regular.

Speaker 3: Season stats basically, and you know, eight hundred and something

yards eight eight hundred and nineteen yards total for Robert Smith.

I would go over that probably for Bo Jackson or

whoever ends up being the leading rusher this year, and

Raymont Harris four hundred and sixty three. I'm probably going

over that for whoever the second leading rusher is four

hundred and ten for Jeff Cothrine.

Speaker 4: That's where I think you're gonna seek.

Speaker 3: That's where it's like, all right, if the third leading

rusher had that many yards, that would.

Speaker 4: Be pretty surprising to me.

Speaker 3: And if they do, then one or both of the

guys above that probably does not hit their benchmark. But

you know, looking at it like a legend Bay legend

Bay as a true freshman is a really interesting COLMP

for Eddie George because thirty seven carries one hundred and

seventy six yards four point eight yards per carry, five touchdowns.

Speaker 4: I would just about bet the house on him going

over four point eight yards per carry.

Speaker 3: But five touchdowns, man, that's that's a lot of touchdowns.

And if you go down to if you scroll down

on the heat to the scoring, Tim Williams the kicker

with the leading scorer that year, sixteen for twenty nine.

Speaker 4: On field goal attempts, which, boy, that will curl your toes.

As a special teams of Ficionado.

Speaker 3: And Robert Smith ten touchdowns, Eddie George and Raymont Harris

second on the team, tied with five touchdowns.

Speaker 4: That is for a season, not a month.

Speaker 3: So yeah, as you said, it is it has become

a very different football you know, a very different football team,

very different structure and of what this team's going to

look like.

Speaker 4: But yeah, I think.

Speaker 3: Those are those are actually decent numbers. I think for

what the what the rush running back numbers.

Speaker 4: Could look like.

Speaker 1: Tim Williams had a strong leg. But not to digress

too much, but seven of ten from under thirty yards

six from thirty to thirty nine, two of six from

forty to forty nine, one of three from fifty, plus

the fact that they tried three fifty yard field goals,

including a fifty six yarder against Michigan, knowing that he's

he's hitting three thirty three on anything longer than forty yards,

and you're like, whatever, you know, we got to get

points somehow. On boy. That was kind of a microcosm

of the entire offense there. But that still doesn't taint

the level of talent and the depth at the running

back position. And I think that's one of the interesting

things is that you just you think of how deep

that room was and you forgive everything else because of

the talent that was there. Now there are some other

talented rooms. And although real quick, you know, you mentioned

the number three guy having four hundred yards rushing, James

Peoples last year was over three hundred. He was at

three forty four and he did that without basically touching

the ball for about six weeks, So I think there's

some room there. And like Isaiah West at over three

hundred yards rushing and he was didn't exist for like

the first half of them of the season. So there's

some opportunities, especially when the quarterback isn't taking much of

those rushing yards like you will see over the past

twenty years of Ohio State running backs and quarterbacks. But

you know the twenty twenty fourth trayvon Quin Shawn, that's

James People's and Sam Williams Dixon. Again, that's top heavy.

Twenty nineteen with JK. Dobbins and Master Tigue and Damario

McCall and Marcus Crowley and Steel Chambers. Those guys put

up big numbers, but that was JK. Dobbins rushing for

two thousand yards and Master Tigue running the ball against

tied defenses in the fourth quarter. Yeah, twenty fourteen was

Ezekiel Elliott as we know, but Curtis Samuel a true freshman.

Dondre Wilson was a sophomore who was running the ball

a little bit, catching the ball a little bit. Rod

Smith was part of that one. Not a lot of

stats there, and then Breontay Dunn and Warren Ball were

also part of that twenty thirteen Ezekiel Elliott as a

true freshman but only touched you know, only had like

like thirty carries that year, but they had Carlos Hyde,

they had Jordan Hall again Rod Smith. But looking through

all of this, I think when you go back to

the nineties, if you can find a class with Joe

Montgomery in it, like ninety eight with Michael Wiley and

Jonathan Wells, I think as a freshman that year, Joe Montgomery,

Matt Keller running the ball a little bit, Derek Combs

a little bit, Jerry Westbrooks was a freshman. Or would

you prefer nineteen ninety seven with Peppy Peters and Michael Wiley,

a little bit of Joe Montgomery, some Nick Goings doing

a little bit, Matt Keller, Derek ho There's there's some

other contenders for what would what I would consider second

place that really the twenty twenty six team is battling for,

and then I think maybe we'll we'll exceed that and

go beyond it. But there are some other other rooms

that I threw out there for you.

Speaker 4: Yeah, I don't hear.

Speaker 3: I didn't hear anything there that I thought this year's

team couldn't exceed that, you know, I don't. I don't

think they're going to exceed.

Speaker 4: The ninety two room.

Speaker 3: But I didn't hear anything else there that I thought

this is insurmountable for this year's running back room. It

just it feels like this is going to be a

deep room. It's not necessarily a room that's going to

have the elite, elite, top end talent of the ninety

two team. And you know, I don't there's not an

Ezekiel Elliott. I don't think in this year's in this

year's room. But you've got you've got enough depth that boy,

this is I'm going to say this out loud, and

I mean this in the nicest way possible, and I'm

not sure how the fan base is going to hear it,

but it reminds me a little bit of last year's

tight end room, where it was You looked at last

year's tight end room and it was so deep. They

had so many guys who were really good options for

them and could do a bunch of different things.

Speaker 4: And two of them are off to the NFL right now.

Speaker 3: And I think Nate Roberts is going to surprise a

lot of people who have have it in their heads

that he's you know, poor Management's ROSSI or something like that,

and it's none.

Speaker 4: I think he's going to be better than that.

Speaker 3: And They've brought in a couple other tight ends this

year as well, but I think it's sort of similar

to that, where there's you've got so much depth and

there's not the future top five NFL draft pick that

you had. I don't remember exactly where Eddie got drafted,

but it was I know it was top ten ish.

Speaker 4: I think by the Houston.

Speaker 3: Fourteen was it okay, Well there you go, so top

half of the first round. So you might have one

of those guys in this room this year, but I

don't think you're gonna have two, but it it I

think that this is a room where, you know, the

old on cooperism was that you wanted a pair and

a spare, and they have substantially more than that. And

every time we talk about the running backs, we run

through all these different names, and I feel like we

don't say Turbero Rogers name enough. Turbo Rogers is like

he might be the fifth running back this year, which

means you're probably not getting a whole heck of a

lot of carries, but you know.

Speaker 4: The potential is still there with him.

Speaker 3: He's just been so banged up that we just we

haven't seen it. We haven't seen what he can do.

But he was someone that Carlos Lachlan was in on

incredibly early when Carlos Lachlan was still at Oregon. So

Carlos Lachlan is still a very, very big believer in

Turbo Rogers. We just got to see what that looks

like if and when he can get on the field. Tony,

I just we need to do two minutes of remembering

some guys with the nineteen ninety two Ohio State receivers

and tight ends. Leading receiver Brian Stabline fifty three catches

six hundred and forty three yards, two touchdowns. Leading receiver

Cedric Saunders the tight end twenty eight catches three hundred

and forty two yards, zero touchdown, Chris Tippitoe Sanders wide

receiver twenty two catches three hundred and sixty yards, zero touchdowns.

Jeff Cothine the full back nineteen carries at ninety catches

two hundred and seven yards, no touchdowns. Greg Batty the

wide receiver on the other side, fourteen catches one hundred

and fifty three yards two touchdowns. Then Robert Smith, Alan

de Graffen, Reed, Butler Bonote, Joey Galloway, DJ Jones, Raymont, Harris,

and Tony. The only other person to catch a touchdown

on that that team all season, in addition to Brian's

stable line and Greg Batty, was Joe Metzger, who, according

to the according to the media Guide, entered the season

as the number one tight end, had not caught a

pass before that season. He caught one pass for two

yards in his career, but did score a touchdown.

Speaker 4: So there you go. You were Joe Metzger update for

the show.

Speaker 1: Basically the Mike Vrabel of tight ends in terms of

all he does is catch touchdown. I guess the Chris

Carter if you will, real quick on these running back rooms.

So Robert Smith, Raymond Harris, Eddy George All rush for

a thousand yards in a season in the NFL. Trayvon

Henderson and quinch Own Judkins were both over eight hundred.

They will probably get there. The twenty thirteen team, you've

got Carlos Side and Ezekiel Elliott. They have both done that.

But really that's gonna be about it. Michael Wiley was

I think a fifth round pick. Joe Montgomery was a

second round pick. But yeah, I think, like we've been saying,

the twenty twenty four is top heavy in terms of production.

I think this one will be more spaced out, But

I look at this and I would be surprised. You

should always be surprised if your running back room has

three guys in it that are going to go rush

for a thousand yards in the NFL. I will go

ahead and admit that. In fact, I's probably thinking about

was the twenty twenty one receiver room probably the greatest

position room in Ohio state history. Because they just based

off their NFL production. You can look and say, well,

how many how many thousand yard receivers did they have there?

But I don't know that's Those are some of our thoughts.

Go ahead, and if you're watching on YouTube, ahead and

throw your thoughts in. Do you think this year's running

back room can best Robert Smith, Raymon, Harris Eddie, George

Jeff Cothine, Butler Bnotte, Five guys who spent time in

the NFL and did a pretty darn good job doing that.

You know, maybe it's too soon to say no, I'll

say that, but if you could go ahead and hit

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do it from here. Thank you all for tuning in

and we will talk to you all.

Speaker 3: Le happen.

Speaker 4: This time. What about you.

Speaker 2: Let it through away? Don't no one tell me I

wish you'd never meant nothing.

Speaker 1: Where about.

Speaker 2: Where if you can tell me that's a moore, it's

all right. We could see you currently. That