Louisville starts their football season in eight days, so we are nearing the end of our preview with the 2025 team. Next up, we take a look at the running backs.
Be sure to read our previous 2025 position breakdowns, if you missed any leading up to the season opener:
- Special Teams (released July 21st: link)
- Offensive Line (released July 28th: link)
- Defensive Line (released August 4th: link)
- Secondary (released August 11th: link)
- Linebackers (released August 15th: link)
- Receivers (WR / TE) (released August 18th: link)
- Quarterbacks (releasing August 25th)
Last Year’s Results
2024 saw two Louisville freshmen, Isaac Brown and Duke Watson, take over and become breakout stars last season. Brown emerged as a star in Jeff Brohm’s offense, setting a new Louisville freshman record with 1,178 rushing yards and 11 touchdowns. He had five 100-yard games in 2024 (including a season-high 178 at Kentucky, and 151 at Clemson), and also finished third on the team with 30 receptions for 152 yards and a touchdown. Brown was named as an All-ACC Second Team player at running back, named both Rookie of the Year and Offensive Rookie of the Year by the conference, and a Freshman All-American.
Read more: 2025 Louisville Football Preview: Running BacksWatson progressively made his impact more noticeable as the season winded down. The freshman had 597 yards on 67 carries (averaging an eye-popping 8.9 yards per carry) with seven touchdowns, including two 100-yard games against Stanford and Kentucky.
As a team, Louisville was once again among the best in the ACC in rushing. The Cardinals averaged 185.2 yards per game on the ground (third best in the ACC, 33rd in the FBS), and their 5.65 yards per carry was eighth-best in the FBS (second in ACC).
Position Breakdown: Running Back
I think if you had to highlight the best part of Louisville football in the last two years under head coach Jeff Brohm, their running game — in particular, running backs — would have to be at the top of the list. 2023 had a dynamic duo with Jawhar Jordan and Isaac Guerendo leading the charge, while 2024 saw Isaac Brown eventually take over as RB1 and Duke Watson emerge as a big play threat, especially late in the season. This highlights the tremendous work that running backs coach Chris Barclay has done since arriving at Louisville with Brohm in 2023.
Alas, Isaac Brown and Duke Watson both return to headline a position group that is the best in the ACC, and one of the best in all of college football. Both guys have a lot of similarities in their overall game; Brown and Watson can score any time they touch the ball, and both are excellent receivers out of the back field. They are exceptionally fast and once they hit the second level, 10-15 yard runs can quickly turn into 30-45 yards.
Both Brown and Watson are talented enough that the staff could split carries in a manner which keeps either guy from getting too banged up over the course of the season. Over the last three games of 2024 (Pitt, Kentucky, Washington) where Brown and Watson where the primary running backs, they had 57 and 27 carries, respectively (Brown and Watson both had 10+ carries in the Pitt and Washington games). You could also see two-back formations with both guys lined up, setting Louisville’s offense up for a variety of plays that will make defending them very hard (primarily on misdirection, play action, or screen plays).
Louisville also gets Keyjuan Brown returning, he will add more power to the lineup with a bigger frame (5’10”, 210 lbs.) than Isaac Brown or Watson (5’9″, 190 lbs. and 6′, 180 lbs., respectively). He should see most of his work as a short-yardage back, but he will be the third back behind Isaac Brown and Watson. Keyjuan Brown has been quicker and can play through contact, which makes him a natural fit for power formations.
Jamarice Wilder was one of the players that caught my attention in the spring game, and in any other year, I think he would be getting some touches with the first-team. Wilder has great acceleration and shows some promise as a receiver out of the backfield, but could possibly redshirt to save a year and add on muscle. Shaun Boykins, Jr. moved from wide receiver to running back in the offseason and has been earning praise from coaches in his transition.
Projected Starter: Isaac Brown
Key Reserves: Duke Watson, Keyjuan Brown, Jamarice Wilder, Shaun Boykins, Jr.
