Ground Game With Juice: Kentucky's 2029 RBs

The 2029 class is heading into year 2, and today, we're taking a look at a group of RBs who have a chance to have big seasons this fall.    Burton is an explosive back with quick feet, good agility, and elite speed. He can bounce a run outside in a hurry and has the home run ability to score from anywhere on the field. He's slippery in tight spaces, can make defenders miss in a phone booth, and has the burst to reaccelerate immediately after a cut. He keeps accelerating all the way down the field instead of getting caught from behind. Every touch feels like it has a chance to become an explosive play. The talent jumps off the tape, and it's easy to see why there's so much excitement about what he can become.     Gough is a talented two-way player who started on both sides of the ball as a varsity freshman. Offensively, he has good vision, good speed, and the ability to rip off a big play when he finds a crease. Defensively, he's a tackling machine who consistently finds his way to the football. He finished with 300 rushing yards on offense and 105 total tackles on defense in year one. There aren't many freshmen who can handle that kind of workload on both sides, and he never looked overwhelmed. It'll be interesting to see which side of the ball ends up being his long-term home, because there's a lot to like on both sides.     Stevens is a natural athlete with a solid frame and a skill set that gives an offense some flexibility. He's a good receiver who looks comfortable coming out of the backfield and catching the football in space. He has reliable hands and can make some acrobatic grabs when the ball isn't perfectly thrown. I like that he's more than just a runner. He feels like the type of back who can add another layer to an offense because defenses have to account for him as a receiver just as much as a ball carrier.     Summers is a good young back who got valuable varsity work as a freshman and looked like he belonged. He has a good frame, moves well, and shows reliable hands out of the backfield. As a runner, he has good vision, runs with strength, and has the speed to hit the big one when he gets into the open field. I like the confidence he plays with, and he seems like someone who flourishes in year 2. For a young back, he checks a lot of boxes and already has a solid foundation to build from.     Hart comes from a triple option offense, but he's one of the more explosive pieces in it. He has good stride length and gets up to top speed in a hurry once he clears the line of scrimmage. I like his vision as a runner. He sees a crease, trusts it, and hits it without hesitation. He doesn't waste movement in the backfield and has a knack for ripping off chunk play after chunk play. Even in an offense where everyone touches the ball, he has a way of standing out when it's in his hands.

The 2029 class is heading into year 2, and today, we're taking a look at a group of RBs who have a chance to have big seasons this fall.