READING THE ROOM: KSU RUNNING BACKS
There's no headliner in Kennesaw State's rebuilt RB unit. That might be intentional.
“Sometimes I like to use the term BYOB - Be Your Own Blocker.”
— Jerry Mack during his Tennessee introduction
13 snaps, 9 carries, and 29 yards. That’s all Kennesaw State returns at running back this season, only the second time in school history the Owls won’t bring back a 400-yard rusher.
Michael Benefield, Yesiah Clemons, and Preston Daniels all exhausted their eligibility, while Qua Ashley and reserves DJ Scott, Kenai Grier, and Rob Brown hit the portal at various points during the regime change. That’s 7 of 8 running backs departing a KSU offense that never really managed to Establish the Run, despite many attempts to do so. Last year’s Owls finished 130th in rushing success rate and EPA/play on the ground, en route to 1,375 yards rushing on the season — just 36 more than the team gained during the six-game COVID season.
Only Alexander Diggs remains to lead a mature yet undermanned unit that adds a couple one-and-done transfers, a DB convert, and a true freshman under the clean slate of new head coach Jerry Mack. That RB uncertainty leaves Owls fans with a few question marks for a program that built an early identity on the ground.
Let’s take a closer look at the Kennesaw backfield, plus a couple other Owls who might factor into the ground game from elsewhere on the field.
#0 Coleman Bennett (RS Senior)
5’11”, 185 pounds | Rice transfer
After four years at Bucknell and a 2024 detour as a Rice backup, Bennett comes to Kennesaw to close out his collegiate career. His numbers so far: 298 carries for a little over 1K yards rushing, plus 77 receptions and 681 yards. Averages 3.6 per carry, with 2.4 yards after contact.
#3 Alexander Diggs (RS Junior)
5’9” | 185 pounds
Diggs outlasted the other Bohannon-era running back holdovers who’ve since transferred out following spring ball. Earned a scholarship recently (via a profile from KSUOwls.com) and would likely share time with Bennett if the season started today.
#4 Chase Belcher (Senior)
6’1”, 218 pounds | West Georgia transfer
By default, the West Georgia transfer will have some catching up to do to Diggs and Bennett. I think he could be the most underrated addition in the transfer class, with enough power and versatility to fit the mold of what Mack looks for in a back. The Owls could use a major contribution from Belcher during his only year in Kennesaw.
#25 Joshua Troupe (Freshman)
5’11” | 210 pounds | Richmond Hill HS
Kennesaw jumped into Troupe’s recruitment at the 11th hour to sign the Savannah-area RB, who reported offers from UT-Martin, Stony Brook, and a few D2 schools. Did the Owls find a last-minute gem? Mack did call Troupe a “true force to be reckoned with” during NSD coverage.
#23 Jonathan Mathis (RS So.)
6’0” | 195 pounds | Norcross HS
Could Mathis make an impact on offense this season after switching over from DB? Weirder stuff has happened, I suppose. If he changed positions - and not schools - the staff obviously sees him as a guy worth keeping around in some capacity.
Other candidates?
Lassiter grad and potential Georgia Military College transfer Channing Canty scored in the spring game during what seemed like an audition, though he’s not been added to the roster. Brown, an upcoming junior, disappeared from KSUOwls.com in May, well after the spring game. With 91 guys on the official roster right now, there’s room to add some PWO-type guys to build out the depth chart with more scout team bodies.
Position Coach - Aston Walter (Tennessee)
You don’t need to worry about culture or fit with Walter, who comes to Kennesaw after playing under Mack at Rice and spending time on Tennessee’s offensive support staff alongside new OC Mitch Militello. Those two - plus new TE coach Kyle Blocker - are three members of the Vols’ analyst army from Mack’s Knoxville tenure.
Mack called his shot about them a couple years ago in this interview with Our Coaching Network:
Mack’s first season at Kennesaw will make an excellent case study on how to handle running back talent acquisition during a total teardown. If you’re looking for recruiting stars, this won’t be the group for you. That’s likely intentional, as the position’s success is so dependent on what happens elsewhere. More than any other position on the team, the RB depth chart show the dual influences from Mack’s time at Tennessee and in the pros last year.
From the NFL ranks, Mack brings an outlook on positional value that doesn’t see running back as the first, second, or third problem you solve during a rebuild - or at least not one where you throw money and roster spots at FBS players in the way you did up front, at QB, and in the backfield. Instead of chasing high-profile transfers, Kennesaw worked on finding hidden value and scheme fits with the understanding that there were more pressing needs to revive the program.
KSU’s rolling with light numbers in the backfield, with only five players rostered as a running back heading into the summer semester. Compare that to the 8 backs in the program last year, if you include jumbo athlete Preston Daniels. Based on this breakdown from the Falcons, NFL teams averaged 3.56 running backs on last year’s initial 53-man rosters. That’s lines up with Mack’s roster-building strategy as college football becomes even more professionalized. You could see a walk-on or two added for survival depth, but it sure looks like the Owls are done with serious business at the position.
From his time at Tennessee, where Mack was radicalized by Josh Heupel’s Veer and Shoot offense, we can start to understand the skillsets in the room - and what Mack values in a back - a little better. By now, I think I’ve watched and/or listened to every single word Mack has ever said about the position. I might need more productive hobbies. Submitting those interviews into evidence, you can piece together Jerry Mack’s Grand Unified Theory of Running Back Play:
Versatility is essential. Within the framework of Mack and Mitch Militello’s uptempo system, specialized backs can’t really exist. You have to be an all-around player. If a team slows down to sub in a dedicated short-yardage monster or third-down back, that limits the ability to catch defenses confused or aligned incorrectly. My read: Mack would rather have a RB who’s about a B- in all aspects than a human highlight reel who’s an A+ with the ball but can’t pass block or catch.
Playing “without the ball” and processing the offense’s fast-paced mechanics come up frequently when Mack discusses running backs, especially referring to newcomers. Think about those guys who carried a bulk of the load for their previous teams and didn’t need to do as much of the dirty work. Bennett, Diggs, and Belcher make up a mature trio - with some academic accolades - who’ve been in college for 4+ years, yet none of the three has been the clear #1 option for a team. They’ve all been willing to do the extracurriculars - playing special teams, blocking, lining up at different positions, etc.
“Pads plus two” - How do you finish runs? This simple rule might be a Heupel-ism that Mack picked up during his time in Knoxville. Mack wants, at minimum, an extra two yards after contact to take advantage of frequent one-on-one opportunities provided in this offense. All three RBs with college carries currently pass this test, albeit almost entirely at the FCS level: Belcher - 3.26, Diggs - 2.74, Bennett - 2.44. You can turn on Troupe’s HS tape and watch plenty violent runs, and if anybody tries to check the coach, Walter averaged 3 yards after contact during his Rice career.
Knowing who’s in the room and what Mack/Militello/Walter care about, what’s the outlook on the position? Cop-out answer: No clue, at least not until we know how the brand-new OL fits together with all the transfer additions. Kennesaw won’t win any preseason awards for the on-paper resume of a RB stable that consists of a Rice backup, the #2 in West Georgia’s rotation, a reserve DB who was already on campus, and the guy who was third-string in Kennesaw last year.
This under-the-radar strategy can work, and I’d point Mack’s first season in Knoxville, in 2021, as a rough draft of what we could see from the Owls’ rushing attack in terms of usage. That Vols team wasn’t particularly good by Heupel’s current standards, finishing 7-6 and .500 in SEC play. However, that squad was notable for the offensive turnaround compared to the previous two seasons under Jeremy Pruitt, especially on the ground:
2019 : 95th in EPA/play, 109th in rushing success rate
2020: 91st in EPA/play, 52nd in rushing SR
2021: 36th in EPA/play, 10th in rushing SR
During that 2021 campaign, Tennessee rushed for 2,837 yards and 30 TD on 573 attempts (5.0 per carry) without anyone truly separating himself in a by-committee approach. Look at the top three RBs the Vols used to hit those numbers: Jabari Small was a 5’8” three-star from 247 Sports and ran a 4.6 at Pro Day, Tiyon Evans was a JUCO recruit who listed ECU, Liberty, and Houston among his finalists, and Jaylen Wright (an NFL guy now, to be fair) was a true freshman who just got to campus. None of UT’s top-four rushers - that trio plus QB Hendon Hooker - took more than 32% of carries that season, and nobody racked up more than 800 yards.
Hooker’s rushing contribution (over 600 yards, 5 TD) brings up another parallel to the ‘25 Owls run game, which will need a sizable impact from presumed starting QB Dexter Williams. No conversation about Kennesaw’s ground attack is really complete until factoring in DWII’s dual-threat ability. (Yards after contact per carry for Williams: 4.21 👀)
Taking a similar path doesn’t mean KSU will replicate Tennessee’s ‘21 rushing numbers at whatever scale CUSA allows. I’m only suggesting, maybe as a coping mechanism after last season, that the under-the-radar Year 1 blueprint is there. The plan has been carried out by Mack recently without the need for an immediate superstar.
Bennett and Diggs are in the driver’s seat as the only two RBs on the roster who were in Kennesaw and playing this position during spring ball. Diggs is actually the last flexbone-era skill player remaining in the same position. Due to getting crowded out of KSU’s backfield rotation in the past few years, he’s also the RB we know the least about as he prepares for his first real opportunity this fall. Diggs has 35 career carries and 122 yards to his name, most of which were during the 2023 transition season.
If you trust the evaluation from Mack and Walter, Diggs is the one returning RB who got the nod of approval from the new regime. He did some press availability in the spring, too - talking with the MDJ about the energy and new opportunities. We’ve heard about the potential of players like Scott, Brown, and Grier for a few years, but Diggs is the one who emerged from the competition. Maybe that means something. Maybe it doesn’t.
Bennett jumped on board just a couple weeks after the Mack announcement, technically making him the second-most tenured Owl at the position. That sounds kind of insane, even if it’s standard operating procedure in college football these days. He’s a Rice transfer in name only, as all but two carries of his career workload come from his time at Bucknell (2020-2023). His highlight reel gives a glimpse of the all-purpose contribution that earned him Patriot League honors at kick returner (first team) and RB (second team) during his final FCS season.
One thing I like about Bennett’s highlight reel: He has a knack for making the first man miss, even on what look like complete busts. After a year of opposing defenders living in the backfield with a 22% stuff rate allowed, there’s a little comfort in a guy who can make something out of what looks like nothing. He also lined up as a WR on more than a third of his passing snaps at Bucknell, which pairs well with Mack’s goal to find guys who can flex out of the backfield. Bennett picked up a first down on 44% of catches at Bucknell, largely thanks to averaging 7.7 yards after the catch. That YAC number would’ve beaten every KSU wide receiver in 2024.
Once he gets on campus, Belcher should also factor into the rotation quickly. He doesn’t quite use as many dance moves as Bennett, trading in some of that shiftiness for power as more of a downhill runner. Stuck behind West Georgia’s D2 workhorse, Belcher only got 66 touches and finished with 422 all-purpose yards during his lone season in Carrollton. 60% of his career rushing yards come after contact, and he averages 7.8 yards after the catch in the pass game.
Belcher can likely get up to speed in the new offense more efficiently than most summer semester arrivals, courtesy of his time at West Georgia last fall. You could call Wolves OC Dane Stevens, a Lane Kiffin disciple, a second cousin to Mack and Militello on the Veer and Shoot family tree, so plenty of offensive similarities for Belcher to ease the transition.
New Owls WR coach David Whitlow was also on staff at West Georgia, and I wouldn’t be surprised if he tries to steal Belcher for some reps at wideout. Another FCS disclaimer here, but I love the Northern Arizona highlight tape as well. Double passes, trucksticks, Wildcat stuff, legit WR play — that’s a pretty fun five-and-a-half minutes.
That leaves Troupe and Mathis to likely slot in fourth and fifth on the depth chart, respectively. Any experience that Troupe can get as a true freshman would be a huge bonus, as Belcher and Bennett finish up their playing careers in 2025 and leave a void in the ‘26 plans. In another era of college football, you might be worried about the succession plan. These days, you just have to live six months at a time in roster-building.
If you asked me to place a future bet on most all-purpose yards between the three, I’d probably take a flier on Belcher’s longer odds. Either way, I think I’ve sufficiently talked myself into Mack’s gamble on three largely unheralded FCS talents at running back, two of whom are certain one-and-dones. There’s no doubt it’s a very thin group, though, with almost zero margin for error or injury.
Kennesaw’s RB situation came back to mind while listening to the Let’s Talk Ball! podcast from Cody Alexander, aka MatchQuarters. His recent CFB Trends shows are A+ listens for anybody wanting Xs and Os deep dives in June. For the offensive edition, Alexander brought on Dan Casey, who’s best categorized as an author and playcalling influencer. Just ask Oregon OC Will Stein - he told The Athletic’s Bruce Feldman that coaches see a featured spot on his Twitter feed - AKA “Making Dan Casey” - as the ultimate measure of offensive creativity.
The main takeaways from Casey and Alexander: Say goodbye to basic looks from Y-off, 11 personnel (yikes); the blocking tight end is almost extinct; and - most importantly - the positionless era of football is well underway as defenses have adjusted to spread offenses. WRs, TEs, and RBs all must be able to do more than just the typical duties at their position. With that in mind, where else can the Owls find some hybrid value to help out the light numbers at running back?
Tennessee State transfer Gerard Bullock Jr. brings an interesting skillset/background and may play a role here, in that non-traditional way. Listed as a tight end on Kennesaw’s roster, Bullock started his college football career as a QB in a similar fast-pace, ultra-spread offense at Austin Peay under now-UTEP HC Scotty Walden, and he also spent a lot of time (40%) in the slot at TSU. If he really weighs 225 pounds, the fit makes a lot more sense when you think of him essentially as a pass-catching fullback in the new offense.
Watching the spring game (and most practice clips), the new offense’s tight end usage skewed massively toward a sniffer/H-back type role, rather than attached on the line. Another piece of advice from Casey: “There’s no such thing as a just a blocking tight end anymore.” What’s the dividing line between TE and running back in this offense, anyway? Does it even matter?
Here’s an example of a formation from spring ball, with a RB in the slot and a nominal tight end in the backfield:
My other extremely niche take is that Belcher will take some of the “tight end” reps, too. He’s listed at about the same weight as as Bullock and lined up all over the field during his FCS days. This double slot look from Jacksonville State in Casey’s latest book - Trends in Offensive Football, Volume 2 - is a perfect example of one of the ways where guys like Belcher and Bullock can get involved as a quasi-tight end in different ways.
The best part about this formation and other similar packages is that identical personnel could also give you an empty look, 10 personnel, 21 personnel, etc. by taking advantage of KSU’s versatility at RB. When you have TEs that can play in the slot, backs that can play WR and TE, and so on, that changes the math on how fast you can move. Kennesaw’s scheme will have a much higher speed limit, so to speak, if the Owls can utilize the versatile running back room and shift around all the different chess pieces.
We also can’t leave Gabe Benyard out of the conversation about the positionless era and how it relates to the Owls’ run game. I won’t blame anyone who forgets that the most dynamic ballcarrier on the roster currently plays WR. It’s been quite some time since #1 was at full speed, due to nagging injury in 2024 and a stop-and-start redshirt campaign in 2023. Militello probably can’t afford to use Benyard as an every-down back, or even as much as the Owls did in ‘23 (basically a 50/50 split on snaps), but it would be shocking to see 1% wideout snaps and 4 total carries again this fall.
One play caught my eye during the post-spring content dump of screen recorded practice film from outgoing transfers, one of my favorite times of year. Benyard lined up in the backfield, flanking Dexter Williams with another RB. After motioning out, Benyard settled at WR and then ran a jailbreak screen back toward the middle of the field. The pass fell incomplete, and the play went nowhere. I still can’t track down which spring portal entrant posted it. Maybe the footage doesn’t even exist, but that’s not the point. Militello might be cooking up some weird stuff for his first season calling plays.
During that MatchQuarters interview, Casey brought up the essential question in the positionless era: Who’s your queen on the chessboard? “Whoever it is on your team, you better structure your concepts around that person and makes sure he gets the lion’s share of the attention.”
A healthy Benyard is still that guy for the Owls. Adding him to the run game with some manufactured touches eases the load for the RB room and brings an entirely different dimension to what we’ll see from the Veer and Hoot offense. That’s before we even factor in all the Davis Bryson double passes, too. I’m going to cry tears of joy when a team falls for it.