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The best running back in college football is taking his talents to the NFL.
Boise State star Ashton Jeanty declared for the 2025 NFL draft on Tuesday, forgoing his senior season. B/R’s NFL Scouting Department ranks him as the No. 1 running back and No. 7 overall player in the 2025 class.
After a sensational sophomore season in 2023 in which he ran for 1,347 yards, Jeanty reached even greater heights this year and became one of the most promising future superstars in football. He finished second in the voting for the Heisman Trophy behind Colorado star Travis Hunter and rushed for 2,601 yards and 29 touchdowns, shattering the Boise State program record of 1,823 yards set by Jay Ajayi in 2014 and falling shy of Barry Sanders’ single-season FBS rushing record of 2,628 yards set in 1988.
Jeanty’s spectacular season propelled the Broncos to a 12-2 finish and their first Mountain West title since 2019. Boise State earned the No. 3 spot in the College Football Playoff and lost to Penn State 31-14 in the quarterfinals. Jeanty had 30 carries for 104 yards in the loss with no touchdowns and fumbled the ball twice, losing one of them.
It’s easy to predict that Jeanty will have a successful career at the pro level thanks to his incredible array of skills. As B/R NFL scout Dame Parson stated:
“Overall, Ashton Jeanty is a high-volume and playmaking running back. Between his bowling ball-esque frame and innate contact balance, Jeanty’s game translates incredibly well to the NFL. The ability to create for himself with the ball in his hands is electrifying. He fits today’s run offenses with wide zone and pin-pull gap schemes. Jeanty is a star-caliber bell-cow running back who can shoulder the load for an NFL rushing attack.”
After Tuesday’s announcement, NFL teams will undoubtedly be excited about the possibility of adding Jeanty to their roster. While the running back position has been devalued in the league in recent years, a prospect like Jeanty is too good to pass up. The team that takes a chance on him will be getting a franchise cornerstone to build around for years to come
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