Pitt football roster preview: Running backs look deep, dangerous

Leading up to the start of Pitt's football training camp Aug. 3, DK Pittsburgh Sports will provide a weekly positional analysis of the 2022 roster. This week, it's the position that has produced several top NFL players, including most recently, Kevan Barlow, Dion Lewis, LeSean McCoy, James Conner and Qadree Ollison. The Panthers have four running backs returning, plus they added a transfer from Notre Dame. They will compete for carries, and possibly, their shot at the NFL. 

Key Additions: C'Bo Flemister, transfer from Notre Dame

Key Losses: Todd Sibley, transferred to Albany

ROSTER ANALYSIS

Israel Abanikanda: The 5'11" 215 pound junior from Brooklyn led Pitt in rushing last year with 651 yards and in rushing touchdowns with seven. He was also effective out of the backfield with 24 catches for 197 yards and a score. He played in all 13 games and started six. His best game came against Virginia Tech when he rushed for a career-high 140 yards on 21 carries (6.7 avg.), the first 100-yard game of his career. 

Abanikanda also led the team in kickoff returns last year, averaging a team-best 29.4 yards per attempt (seven for 206 yards). He also scored on a 98-yard return in a very close game against Virginia.

Abanikanda attributes last year's success to harnessing and maximizing all of his talents.

"Last year, I really learned how to use my speed and change-of-direction along with some stop-and-go," Abanikanda told reporters at the UPMC Rooney Sports Complex back in March. "This year, I'm trying to use it even more and get used to it."

He'll have to prove he's mastered those skills in addition to a few others if he wants to receive even more carries this year. Running backs coach Andre Powell has them working this offseason on two main priorities.

"The most important job they have is to protect the football. Second most important job is protect the QB," Powell told reporters in April. "They're getting better at it. They understand more of where it's coming from and all the little things within it -- angles, what pass rush moves certain guys have, all those things. It's a lot of little nuances when it comes to pass protection."

There's been speculation that new offensive coordinator Frank Cignetti plans to run the ball more this year, and with the depth and experience of this running back room, they should definitely be able to handle the workload.

"We're still competing. That's my mindset," Abanikanda said. "It's a great advantage too because when one of us gets tired, the next guy comes in. We all rotate perfectly."

Daniel Carter: This spring's Ed Conway Award winner as the team's most improved offensive player, Carter's entering his redshirt junior season. The 5'10" 240 pound native of Margate, Fla., has not carried the ball much over the past three seasons despite playing in 26 games. For his career, he has 22 carries, 86 yards and two touchdowns to go along with three receptions for 18 yards and a touchdown. But, given his performance this spring and in the Blue-Gold game, that may all change this year.

"Daniel's made a huge improvement," running backs coach Andre Powell told reporters in April. "The challenge for Daniel was playing big. He's a big guy, but he had embraced being a finesse guy. So, we challenged him to play big and he's done a fantastic job. Daniel's probably the smartest guy in the room, so he can handle more."

He certainly played big in the Blue/Gold game on April 9. He played for both teams, carried the ball 10 times for 75 yards, and scored the only two touchdowns. On many of his carries, his teammates did not look very interested in trying to tackle him. 

In addition, to changing his running style, Carter has picked up Cignetti's, offense quickly and is now helping the other running backs learn the intricacies.

"Coach Cignetti put in a bunch of installs, so really just knowing where to line-up, what protection it is and little stuff like that," Carter said to reporters after the Blue/Gold game. "I feel more comfortable in this offense. I caught on really fast. Now, I'm trying to be there for Izzy, Rodney and Vince and give them pointers."

Ultimately, Carter's hoping he's made enough of an impact to crack into the running back rotation this year.

"I definitely want to have more of a role this year," Carter said. 

Vincent Davis: The most experienced of all the Pitt running backs, the 5'8" 175 pound senior from Fort Lauderdale has played in 35 games, including 15 starts, over the past three seasons. Over that time, he has amassed 1,496 yards rushing on 334 attempts with 15 touchdowns. In addition, he's caught 49 passes for 291 yards and one touchdown. 

He had his best game as a Panther in 2020's season-ending 34-20 win against Georgia Tech. He rushed for 247 yards and a touchdown on 25 carries, both career highs. Aside from his abilities running the ball, Davis is known as one of the best pass protectors in the running back room, a skill he attributes to coach Powell.

"Coach Powell is on us about the small things," Davis said to reporters after a spring practice in April. "He's very big on details. Last year, I got better at pass blocking and it's something I want to continue to improve on."

Given the experience, depth and talent in the room, the running backs will be counted on to offset the loss of Heisman finalist quarterback, Kenny Pickett and Biletnikoff award winner, wide receiver Jordan Addison. 

"We know that in order to get those guys on the perimeter open we have to be good at running the ball," Davis said. "We have to be dominant in order to get those guys the awards that they want."

In order for them to be dominant, they will continue to compete in order to make each other better so they can help the quarterbacks and receivers with the passing game.

"We all push each other to a different level," Davis said. "We all are competitive guys. When Rodney Hammond came in last year, he pushed everybody to the edge and then we just bring it out of each other." 

C'Bo Flemister - Pitt added some experience to the room last week, when Flemister announced his intentions to transfer from Notre Dame. The 5'11" 201 pound graduate student played four seasons for the Irish before being suspended for fleeing the scene of a single-car accident. The native of Williamson, GA was a highly touted three-star recruit in 2018 and, initially, a solid rotational player for the Irish. Prior to the incident, Flemister rushed for 471 yards and 10 touchdowns and also caught three passes for 49 yards, most of that coming during his sophomore season in 2020. 

Rodney Hammond Jr.: The 5'9" 195 pound sophomore burst onto the scene last year as a true freshman out of Norfolk, VA. He became the Panther finisher who would come on in the fourth quarter to possess the ball and run out the clock. He played in 12 games and rushed for 504 yards and five touchdowns on 102 carries. He also had eight catches for 57 yards and two scores. To accommodate quarterback transfer Kedon Slovis, he's switching to number 6 this year from number 9. 

His best game came against New Hampshire when he rushed for a season-high 100 yards on 17 carries with three touchdowns. He became the first Pitt freshman to rush for 100 yards since V’Lique Carter, who had 137 against Duke on Oct. 27, 2018. In addition, he became the first Pitt freshman to rush for three touchdowns in one game since Dion Lewis had three touchdowns versus Cincinnati in 2009. He certainly set a very high bar in his first season as a Panther, but for him, he was still learning.

"Last year was my year of learning," Hammond told reporters in March. "That was my development year. I learned that I'm good when I don't think too much."

As for this year, Hammond is focused on getting better and helping the team win. 

"I've been training hard. I'm going to make sure we win and people are going to see I can make plays and I can pass block."

Projected starter: Good thing Pitt plans to run the ball more this season. They have five guys that are all capable and all five will have an opportunity. However, given the flashes we saw last year, I believe Abanikanda will be the starter and receive a majority of the carries. How large of a majority remains to be seen,  

Keep an eye on: Daniel Carter. If he's figured out how to use his size to his advantage, he provides Pitt with a very intriguing option to the other lighter, faster backs. I don't think what we saw at the Blue/Gold game was a fluke and fully expect Carter to get more carries this year.

NEXT WEEK: Wide receivers