Pitt's Desmond Reid Cracks Top 10 RB List

PITTSBURGH — Pitt Panthers star Desmond Reid had a sensational 2024 season and ranks amongst the best in college football at his position.

Max Chadwick of Pro Football Focus (PFF) ranked the top 10 returning running backs entering the 2025 season and placed Reid at No. 8.

Reid also ranked No. 2 in the ACC, with Isaac Brown of Louisville coming in at No. 2 and Jamal Haynes of Georgia Tech ranked No. 9.

"There isn’t a better receiving back returning to college football than Reid," Chadwick wrote. "After excelling at Western Carolina for two seasons, he made the jump to the FBS and led all running backs with 580 receiving yards this past season. His 540 yards after the catch ranked second in the nation to only Cam Skattebo.

While his size (5-foot-8, 175 pounds) will likely preclude him from being an every-down back, he still tied for fourth among ACC tailbacks with a 23% forced missed tackle rate in 2023. Not to mention, he returned a punt for a touchdown. Reid is simply an electric player who should be given designed touches in any way possible.

Reid earned All-American Honors from CBS Sports, The Athletic, Phil Steele and the Associated Press.

He also received a Second Team All-American honor from the Football Writers Association of America (FWAA) and ESPN. He earned All-ACC First Team honors as both all-purpose and return specialist and an All-ACC Honorable Mention at running back. AP also named him as All-ACC First Team All-Purpose back.

He showed his talent in the season opener against Kent State at home on Aug. 31, leading Pitt with 10 rushes for 145 yards and returning a punt for a 78-yard touchdown. He also broke through the Kent State defense for a 46-yard rushing touchdown, running right past any defender that came remotely near him.

Reid had an even better game against Cincinnati in the River City Rivalry on the road in Week 2 on Sept. 7.

Reid finished with six catches for 106 receiving yards and a touchdown and had 19 carries for 148 yards, recording the first game a Pitt player had 100+ yards receiving and rushing. His best play came in the fourth quarter, as he took a pass from redshirt freshman quarterback Eli Holstein and ran 56 yards for a touchdown to cut the lead down to just two points.

He earned ACC Running Back of the Week honors for that performance, and led Pitt on a comeback, down 27-6 in the third quarter, to win 28-27, their largest comeback in more than 50 years.

Reid also earned ACC Wide Receiver of the Week honors in the 34-24 road win over North Carolina in Week 6 on Oct. 5.

He had 18 carries for 55 yards on the ground, but starred as option in the passing game for Holstein, making 11 catches for 155 yards and a touchdown in the victory.

The Pitt offense struggled in the 17-15 win vs. Cal in Week 7, but Reid had a 72-yard rushing touchdown, plus one from five yards out for two scores.

Reid finished with a season-high 165 rushing yards on 32 carries and ran for a touchdown in the loss to Toledo in the GameAbove Sports Bowl in Detroit.

He ended the season with 184 carries for 966 yards, 5.3 yards per carry, and five touchdowns, 52 catches for 579 yards and four touchdowns and 13 punt returns for 159 yards and the touchdown vs. Kent State, in 11 games.

His 154.91 all-purpose yards per game ranked tied for fifth in the FBS with Texas Tech running back Tahj Brooks.