Oregon Football: Ranking each position group as of spring 2021

4. Running backs

If this ranking was based solely on the healthy players on the roster this spring and not the entire outlook for the 2021 season, I would say that Oregon would be in trouble. This group may have the best one-two punch in the Pac-12, but with no healthy scholarship backs behind them this spring as Sean Dollars was injured, I would have listed them anywhere from 5-7.

However, Dollars should be healthy by the time the season kicks off, and four-star top-150 running back Seven McGee is coming in as well. Those two should complement Travis Dye and CJ Verdell well. Don’t forget Trey Benson who also suffered a leg injury and Byron Cardwell who is another incoming four-star.

A healthy backfield with Dollars, Dye, Verdell, and McGee could be the best in the Pac-12. But right now, we don’t know if we’re going to see Dollars or Benson return to full-strength and McGee and Cardwell have yet to play a single collegiate snap. Inexperience holds back the depth from this unit, but the talent is all-conference levels of good.

As long as Dye and Verdell stay healthy, this unit should be solid and we already know that the latter has quite the lofty goal for himself of 2,000 yards in 2021.

Verdell and Dye have almost combined for 2,000 yards as a duo a couple of times and if they are to do that again in 2021, the running back room will be elite.