The transfer portal is in full swing right now, with every team trying to take advantage of the madhouse by pulling talented players to give them a boost going into next season. With all of the talent available, it’s hard to keep track of the best players in the portal with so many names flying in.
Enter CFN’s own transfer portal rankings.
Top 10 Running Backs In the Transfer Portal
Who are the best running backs currently available in the transfer portal?
10) Don Chaney Jr., Miami (FL)
A former four-star and No. 5-ranked running back recruit in the 2020 class, Don Chaney enrolled at his hometown of Miami. After a promising true freshman season where he rushed for 322 yards and three touchdowns, Chaney suffered a torn ACL in 2021 that effectively sidelined him for two years.
Chaney returned to form in 2023 as part of Miami’s running back committee, rushing for 478 yards and two touchdowns this season. With two more years of eligibility left, Chaney is looking for a fresh start.
9) AJ Green, Arkansas
A consensus four-star running back in the 2021 class out of the state of Oklahoma, AJ Green was productive in his three seasons with the Razorbacks but never had the same level of production as Rocket Sanders or KJ Jefferson. After the mess that Arkansas’s 2023 offense was, Green is leaving to be a significant contributor somewhere else.
The speedy back has 826 rushing yards and five rushing touchdowns in his career.
8) Justice Ellison, Wake Forest
A former wide receiver recruit, Justice Ellison finished second on the Demon Deacons with 548 rushing yards this season, starting several games. However, he was out-snapped by Demond Claiborne and after amassing 11 rushing touchdowns the previous two years, Ellison only had one in 2023.
In four seasons, he totaled 1901 rushing yards and 15 touchdowns.
7) Reggie Love, Illinois
A tough, hard-nosed rusher, Reggie Love led the Illini in all rushing stats this year. After being a major contributor to the Illinois offense to start the year, Love’s snaps started getting reduced and split between backs Kaden Feagin and Josh McCray. One of the most productive backs in the Big Ten this year, Love will look for a fresh start.
In his career, Love has rushed for 1,009 yards and six touchdowns.
6) Torrance Burgess Jr., UTEP
Torrance Burgess Jr. broke onto the scene in 2023 with excellent burst and playmaking ability as part of a dynamic rushing duo for the Miners. While Deion Hankins earned most of the run for the Miners, Burgess led the team in breakaway runs and had just one fewer run over 10 yards than Hankins.
Burgess is small but boasts great speed and change of direction.
5) Treshaun Ward, Kansas State
A three-star recruit in the 2019 class, Treshaun Ward spent four seasons with the Florida State Seminoles. After back-to-back seasons with over 500 rushing yards with the Seminoles, Ward transferred to Kansas State to be a starter. That didn’t happen with the Wildcats, as DJ Giddens broke onto the scene this year and rushed over 1,000 yards.
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Still, Ward is a very talented rusher with impressive physicality and good vision. Ward has rushed for 1,790 yards and 16 touchdowns in his career.
4) Deion Hankins, UTEP
The other half of UTEP’s dynamic rushing duo, Deion Hankins has been a force for UTEP over the last four seasons. A bludgeoning, bruiser style of back, Hankins has rushed for 2,549 yards and 23 touchdowns in his career.
3) Sieh Bangura, Ohio
The MAC Freshman of the Year in 2022, Sieh Bangura broke out last year after rushing for 883 yards and putting up 11 touchdowns. Bangura followed that up with an 811-yard and seven touchdown performance in 2023. After two very productive seasons displaying great vision, elusiveness, and athleticism, Bangura is likely looking to move up for a major Power Five spot.
2) Tawee Walker, Oklahoma
Maybe the most unheralded figure in Oklahoma’s turnaround from 6-7 to 10-2 is Tawee Walker. Walker’s physicality flashed for a Sooners offense that struggled to generate much on the ground for the beginning half of the season, and Walker carried that through the whole year. Walker led the Sooners in missed tackles forced and first downs gained.
With Oklahoma bringing in the top running back recruit in the 2024 class, Walker left to be a bigger contributor to a Power Five rushing rotation and flashed the ability to be a P5 starter.
1) Marcus Carroll, Georgia State
The Sun Belt boasted excellent rushers this season, and Carroll was one of them. Carroll was First-Team All-Sun Belt this season and finished seventh in the country in rushing yards. Carroll rushed for 1,345 yards and 13 touchdowns this season, showing excellent burst, physicality, and a do-it-all all skillset with his ability as a receiver.
Carroll can bring a Jahmyr Gibbs-like season to a Power Five team in 2024.