Mark Stoops is excited about Kentucky's new running backs

Kentucky brought in two talented transfer running backs this offseason in Nebraska transfer Dante Dowdell and and New Mexico State transfer Seth McGowan, both of which are one and two on the team's Week 1 depth chart. The staff has listed the RB1 position as an 'or', which means one of the two will start at the position. Luckily for both, the position will be by committe this season given how deep the room is.

Along with the two newcomers, behind them on the depth chart are Jason Patterson and Jamarion Wilcox, who both showed promising flashes last season. Unfortunately for Wilcox, he went from having a promising future while getting a good amount of action last season to being pushed to the back of the running back room. For Kentucky fans, that should be thought of as a positive because it shows just how talented the position could be.

Head coach Mark Stoops talked about the position and the preseason hype around the running backs, specifically with what the two newcomers will be bringing as the team's projected top running backs in Week 1. Plus, with Kentucky excited about the improvements the offensive line is expected to make, using the running backs and pounding the rock will give plenty of opportunities to show off the improved O-line.

"Number one, they're both physical runners," Stoops said. "Dante is a very big person. Better vision than you would think for a big, big guy, man. He has very good feet, good vision, and plays very physical. Seth is another one that's a complete player. They both are good out of the backfield. They both have a lot of experience. Seth is a threat catching the ball. So, I like what I'm seeing from those two."

It's clear how Kentucky wants to use each of the two new running backs this season, with Dowdell being the physical downhill runner, and Seth being a valuable versatile option as a pass-catching threat. Stoops was asked about Dowdell again later about how he has been performing in practice and if his play will translate to the SEC, and the head coach had some pretty high praise for the running back.

"Dante has done a good job. I'm very high on him," Stoops said. "He's a very big running back, very strong, but he has better vision than you would think. ...Dante has very good feet and good vision, and I hope it translates. Football's football, and with running backs, you can kind of point him in the right direction and give him a lot of good coaching with what our God does. But sometimes it's just between them and God. It's God given ability and sometimes you just got to turn them loose. Dante is like that. Once the lights come on and in a game, or in our scrimmages and things of that nature, he really takes it up another level. So I'm excited to watch him."

That's certainly very high praise for one of Kentucky's top running backs heading into the season. It seems like the staff knows how important the deep running back room is for Kentucky's offensive success.