Minnesota's RB room is balanced with proven veterans and intriguing underclassmen

The Gophers only have two running backs returning from last year's roster, star workhorse Darius Taylor and freshman Fame Ijeboi. On Wednesday, Vanderbilt's Johann Cardenas was their third addition from the transfer portal this offseason, and they're bringing in three players from high school. Let's analyze where things stand heading into 2025.

Current RB room

2025 season outlook

Minnesota's offense will be built around Darius Taylor in 2025. With redshirt freshman Drake Lindsey expected to start under center, it's obvious that the Gophers would like to lean on their veteran running back, and he could receive the most work in his career.

Marshall transfer A.J. Turner led the entire country with 8.3 yards per carry last season, and he projects as the perfect home run threat to spell Taylor. Washington transfer Cameron Davis will bring veteran experience to the room with more than 305 touches in his career.

The Gophers have faced injuries to the running back room in the past, so Ijeboi and Cardenas will likely compete for the fourth spot in 2025. I don't expect either player to have a significant role, but they both have intriguing long-term talent, so they could compete for reps as the season goes on.

Intriguing potential

If all goes right, Taylor is likely off the the NFL after the season and Davis is out of eligibility. In the modern transfer portal era, it's a bit naive to count your chickens before they hatch, but next the 2026-27 RB room would be led by Turner, Ijeboi and Cardenas. Turner has two years of eligibility heading into this season, while Ijeboi and Cardenas both have four.

Turner and Ijeboi might have the highest potential out of the possible returning group, but incoming freshman Xavier Ford ran for more than 8,500 yards in his high school football career — yes, you read that right. His prep career was capped off with a remarkable 3,461 rushing yards as a senior with 56 total touchdowns.

Cardenas cannot compete with those numbers, but he had more than 4,700 rushing yards in his high school career, with 2,268 yards and 34 total touchdowns as a senior. Trey Berry and Grant Washington aren't able to match the video game-like numbers, but they had productive high school careers in their own right.

There's a lot that could happen to Minnesota's running back room over the next 12 months, but they've done an effective job building around Taylor for the 2025 season, and they've set themselves up for the future after his collegiate career is over.

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