If the Maxwell Award watch list, given annually to the college player of the year, can tell us anything, it’s that 2016 might be a big year for running backs throughout the Mountain West.
Of the conference’s six names, five figure to be the primary ball carriers for their teams. Nevada’s James Butler, for instance, is the man in Reno after Don Jackson’s departure. In 2015, Butler finished fourth in the MWC with 1,345 rushing yards and scoring ten touchdowns.
Brian Hill received a lot of attention as Wyoming’s workhorse last year, but that didn’t stop him from racking up 1,631 yards in his sophomore campaign.