This fall, College Football Network will take you through the 2024 college football season by tracking the fastest players we’ve seen on Saturdays. The results below will be updated weekly with the fastest marks from the 2024 season in what should be seen as the ultra-comprehensive list of College Football’s Fastest Players of 2024.
College Football’s Fastest Players of 2024
Courtesy of our friends at Reel Analytics, the fastest ball carriers are tracked from every game across the country. To find out more about RA and how they track their data, find them here: RAnalytics on Twitter | Reel Analytics via NetCapital
Find College Football’s Fastest Players every week this season: Preseason Totals | Week 1 | Week 2
NCAA’s Fastest Players of 2024: By the Numbers
Before we get to the countdown, we’ll hit you with some totals from the week’s worth of action. Reel Analytics gives the nation their top five fastest players from each weekend, and we’ll tally up how each conference, team, and position stack up below as the data comes in.
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Below are the breakdowns of each factor by how many times they appeared on the fastest players’ results.
College Football’s Fastest Players: By Conference
Big Ten: 4
Big 12: 3
ACC: 3
SEC: 1
Mountain West: 1
Pac-12: 0
AAC: 0
Conference USA: 0
MAC: 0
Sun Belt: 0
FBS Independents: 0
FCS: 0
College Football’s Fastest Players: By School
Clemson: 2
Arizona: 1
Arizona State: 1
Boise State: 1
Colorado: 1
Florida: 1
Iowa: 1
Michigan: 1
North Carolina: 1
Ohio State: 1
Penn State: 1
College Football’s Fastest Players: By Position
RB: 7
WR: 4
DB: 1
QB: 0
QB: n/a
RB: Nick Singleton, Penn State (21.8 mph)
WR: Bryant Wesco Jr., Clemson (21.9 mph)
DB: Will Johnson, Michigan (20.3 mph)
College Football’s Fastest Players: Most Appearances
None more than: 1 time (yet)
College Football’s Fastest Players: Most Appearances at 21.0+ mph
Ashton Jeanty, RB, Boise State: 1 time
Bryant Wesco Jr., WR, Clemson: 1 time
Desmond Reid, RB, North Carolina: 1 time
Jeremiah Smith, WR, Ohio State: 1 time
Kaleb Johnson, RB, Iowa: 1 time
Montrell Johnson, RB, Florida: 1 time
Nick Singleton, RB, Penn State: 1 time
T11) Kyson Brown, RB, Arizona State: 20.0 mph
Late in their Week 1 game against Wyoming, Arizona State fans got a glimpse of what the future looks like under head coach Kenny Dillingham. Up 41-0 in the third quarter, RB Kyson Brown took a screen pass the distance through the Wyoming defense.
Brown reached 20.0 mph on the play and gave a glimpse of what makes this ASU offense potentially dangerous in 2024. He recorded 98 yards on just eight total touches on offense as the sophomore looks to continue to break out this season.
T11) Tetairoa McMillan, WR, Arizona: 20.0 mph
Well, Tetairoa McMillan isn’t human, that’s been confirmed after his Week 1 performance. If you stayed up late to check it out, McMillan went wild on the New Mexico secondary, but it wasn’t just his ball skills and overall athleticism that shined.
McMillan reached 20.0 mph on one touchdown and 19.4 mph on another in a dominant outing. It’s this kind of performance that makes the Wildcats and McMillan must-watch TV in 2024.
10) Will Johnson, CB, Michigan: 20.3 mph
Sheesh, what can’t Will Johnson do? Icing the game with his pure instincts in coverage, Johnson grabbed an interception off Fresno State QB Mikey Keene with just over four minutes left in the game, taking it back 85 yards for a pick-six to put it away for Michigan.
He reached 20.3 mph on the return as his closing speed and top speed were shown in one dominant moment. Johnson is absolutely a Heisman Trophy candidate as well as favorite to land the Thorpe Award, but it’s his athleticism, ball skills, and now his top speed that make him a highly-coveted first-round NFL Draft prospect.
9) Phil Mafah, RB, Clemson: 20.6 mph
Early in Clemson’s beat down of Appalachian State, Phil Mafah broke free. It was just a simple 3rd & 1 carry, but the rest is now history.
It was just 14-0 at the time, but after Mafah hit 20.6 mph on this touchdown run of 83 yards, this game was flat-out over.
Mafah split the defenders, burst through the second level, and turned on the jets. In the end, Mafah only need 10 carries to reach 118 yards and this touchdown as most of the Clemson starters were pulled before halftime.
8) Jimmy Horn Jr., WR, Colorado: 20.8 mph
Colorado was locked in a dogfight with North Dakota State all night long to open the season. Ultimately, the game went the way of the Buffaloes, thanks in large part to the efforts of Jimmy Horn Jr. and Shedeur Sanders.
On this 69-yard touchdown reception, Horn maxed out at 20.8 mph, impressively hitting that mark after making multiple defenders miss and speeding up the sidelines. Horn was dominant all game long and showed off more than just his speed by flashing his strong hands and route-running skills against NDSU.
7) Montrell Johnson, RB, Florida: 21.0 mph (Week 1)
Okay, so it wasn’t all bad for the Florida Gators on Saturday against Miami, but it certainly wasn’t all good. The minimal good came by way of their lone highlight of the first half: Montrell Johnson going the distance.
Johnson reached 21.0 mph on this touchdown run around the left side, a 71-yard highlight-reel-worthy moment. While that was the lone highlight for UF, it gave the Gators some hope for the rest of the season if they can ride Johnson’s legs through their SEC schedule.
He has been a revelation for an Iowa offense that seems to have reverted back to the mean in Week 2. If they can ride Johnson through their Big Ten schedule, his speed and athleticism may be able to make even more waves.
T5) Kaleb Johnson, RB, Iowa: 21.2 mph
Like his running mate tied here at fourth fastest in Week 2, Kaleb Johnson quite literally did everything to keep his team in their respective games. Johnson was the Iowa offense in their hard-fought loss to rival Iowa State in Week 2, totaling 187 yards of the team’s 204 rushing yards and chipping in with nine of the team’s 99 yards through the air.
Johnson got the scoring started in their Week 2 battle for the Cy-Hawk Trophy by taking this first-down carry the distance, going 27 yards and reaching 21.2 mph in the process.
T5) Ashton Jeanty, RB, Boise State: 21.2 mph
Boise State gave Oregon a scare on Saturday night, forcing the Ducks to go all four quarters with the Mountain West favorite. Ashton Jeanty was integral in their success against their Big Ten foe, earning CFN First-Team Honors on our Team of the Week.
Jeanty scored three touchdowns, none more impressive than a game-tying score in the fourth quarter that saw him go 70 yards and reach a whopping 21.2 miles per hour in just 4.9 seconds.
Jeanty, a First-Team All-American by us at CFN as well, recorded 192 yards on 25 carries, averaging 7.7 yards per rush against Oregon’s stout defense. Through two weeks of the season, Jeanty has scored nine touchdowns and rushed for 459 yards at 10.2 yards per run.
If those aren’t Heisman numbers, we don’t know what is.
4) Desmond Reid, RB, North Carolina: 21.4 mph (Week 2)
Talk about making a splash in your first season at the FBS level. Desmond Reid transferred to Pittsburgh as an unheralded FCS transfer, and few knew his name.
It’s safe to say now that the rest of the nation is aware of Reid’s abilities. Bringing the Panthers back to within two points on this 56-yard touchdown run, Reid reached 21.4 mph, leaving Cincinnati defenders behind him in his path.
Reid totaled over 100 yards in both the ground game and the passing game. In just two games through the 2024 season, Reid scored touchdowns on the ground, through the air, and on special teams, lining himself up for Paul Hornung Award consideration.
3) Jeremiah Smith, WR, Ohio State: 21.7 mph (Week 2)
In a terrific debut, Jeremiah Smith has left no doubts behind in terms of his overall ability. Living up to, if not exceeding, lofty recruiting platform as the No. 1 overall player entering college this season, Smith has exploded on the scene with Ohio State.
Smith took a simple hitch route the distance, 70 yards to boot, and torched the Western Michigan defense by reaching a whopping 21.7 mph.
Standing 6’3″ and 215 pounds, to run this fast, Smith is truly in rarified air and destined for greatness in Columbus. In just two games, Smith has recorded 211 yards and three touchdowns early in his career.
2) Nick Singleton, RB, Penn State: 21.8 mph (Week 1)
Though we had to wait a bit to see it, the action in the second half of the Penn State-West Virginia game was well worth it. That included a terrific showing from the Nittany Lions offense that ultimately put the game away.
Taking a carry 40 yards for a touchdown, star RB Nick Singleton put the game on ice by hitting 21.9 mph en route to six points. Singleton’s run gave Penn State a 27-6 lead and earned him the title of fastest player from Week 1.
1) Bryant Wesco Jr., WR, Clemson: 21.9 mph (Week 2)
It was the first touchdown in an onslaught of first-quarter touchdowns from the Clemson offense that really put the game away as early as possible for the Tigers. And it was Bryant Wesco Jr. who started the high-scoring affair brilliantly.
A switch release skinny post saw Wesco easily defeat his defender with speed and Cade Klubnik hit him in stride. Wesco’s stride saw him then reach a top speed of 21.9 mph on his way to a 76-yard touchdown.
The Tigers ran over App State in the process as their emerging star at wide receiver earned title of “fastest player from Week 2” in the process.
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