More 2027 Running Backs To Follow

Get 25% Off Your Subscription By Entering Knight25 In The Coupon Code Area. Enjoy!   The 2026 football season kicks off this week and we're kicking off our coverage with complete and in-depth breakdowns on the state's senior class. This is a class that will go down in the history books as one of the best in state history. We've updated our <a href="https://prepredzone.com/oklahoma/rankings/2027-rankings/">2027 rankings to include the Top 200 prospects in the state</a>. We have a ton of individual breakdowns dropping every day to spotlight some of those special prospects. In this breakdown, we're taking a look at the running back position. These six prospects should definitely be on your radar as the 2026 season gets closer to kicking off this week. Keep it locked in to Prep Redzone Oklahoma for more 2027 individual breakdowns!    Broken Arrow's [player_tooltip player_id='649663' first='Octavian' last='Roberson'] is one of the more intriguing prospects to watch this season in the 2027 class. On one hand, when he's healthy, Roberson has been one of the state's better running backs over the last three years. Roberson has seen significant playing time since his freshman season. But he also finds himself in an absolutely loaded running back room and there's only one football. So one thing we're looking forward to seeing is how the Tigers utilize Roberson and his skillset this season. Because again, if he's healthy, he's one of the better running backs in Class 6A-1. If he can put together a full season of producing at a high level, week in and week out, he's going to have some opportunities when November and December roll around.     All signs point to Sulphur's [player_tooltip player_id='1694449' first='JoJo' last='Gray'] being one of the bigger breakout stars of the 2026 season. Gray has been a role player for the Bulldogs in the last two seasons, where they've played for a state championship. But now, Gray steps into the spotlight and will get significantly more touches than we've seen the last few seasons. And we're excited about that element this fall because every time we've seen Gray in person, he's always answered the call when he's been given the ball. But he's been behind one of the school's better playmakers in the last decade on the depth chart. Now, all eyes are going to be on Gray to see what kind of senior season he has. We would be shocked if he's not one of the best running backs in Class 3A this fall.     Elgin running back [player_tooltip player_id='1836640' first='Braxten' last='Antuna'] is in the same position as Gray from Sulphur heading into this season. We've seen flashes of Antuna being dynamic in the Elgin backfield over the last two seasons. But he was also behind arguably the school's best running back in program history. So the touches were somewhat limited. That's not going to be the case this season and it would be surprising if Antuna isn't one of the bigger breakout stars that we watch this fall. Not only will Antuna get more carries this season, but he's also going to remain a major piece to what the Owls do in the passing game. Time after time, Antuna has made defenses pay, slipping out of the backfield and making big plays. We think that he will expand on that in a major way this fall.     We wrote this a handful of times last season but we were dead wrong about Fairview. We thought they would take a step back in 2025 and they certainly did not. Running back [player_tooltip player_id='1743237' first='Alex' last='Houk'] is a big reason why. He was a role player during the 2024 season but turned into an absolute star last season. Right from the opening game, Houk was an absolute star for this Fairview offense. He might be flying under the radar going into this season because he plays out west and for a small school. But it would be a mistake to overlook Houk and Fairview heading into this season. This is a program that is used to winning at a high level and Houk has been a big part of that. Whether it's running the ball or catching it out of the backfield, he's a major weapon on offense.     Verdigris running back [player_tooltip player_id='1299977' first='Peyton' last='Stelling'] is another breakout star from last season. The Cardinals went from a program struggling week in and week out in 2024 to being a breakout program in 2025 and they're hungry for more in 2026. Stelling is a player that we didn't know much about around this time last season. That quickly changed as he was in a similar position to Houk at Fairview. It seemed like every other week we were writing about Stelling as one of the “Top Performers” of the week for what he did on a Friday night. Verdigris brings nearly everyone back on both sides of the ball. So there's a chance that Stelling doesn't have to be that do-it-all superstar for the Cardinals. But it's nice knowing that Verdigris always has that card they can play.     We can't help but wonder what would have happened last season when Salina faced Davis in the quarterfinals if running back [player_tooltip player_id='1261180' first='Jescee' last='Sanders'] was completely healthy. He wasn't close to 100% and missed the first half and tried to play on a bum ankle in the second half. Sanders is your prototypical powerback that you can feed the ball 25-30 times and expect him to always push the pile forward. Sanders is a 2027 prospect that we saw early on in his high school career at one of our showcase camps. He was someone who impressed us but when we got a chance to watch his junior tape, it's hard not to be really excited about his potential with his play and overall production. This year, it wouldn't surprise us if Sanders is one of the biggest workhorse backs in the state.

Get 25% Off Your Subscription By Entering Knight25 In The Coupon Code Area. Enjoy!