How Boise State’s Dylan Riley stacks up against the nation’s leading rushers

At the midway point of the 2026 college football season, the reborn Pac-12 has three players at the top of national leaderboards.

Oregon State’s Braden Atkinson leads the country in passing (2,257 yards) and passing touchdowns (21) while teammate Jesse Legree is No. 1 in receiving (932 yards) and receiving touchdowns (12).

No. 23 Boise State also has a national leader in junior running back Dylan Riley, who ranks first in rushing yards with 835. Riley has 127 carries for 835 yards with six touchdowns and 11 receptions for 120 yards and one score.

Riley was a breakout performer for Boise State last season, leading the team with 1,125 rushing yards and 10 touchdowns. He added 15 catches for 149 yards and two TDs en route to second-team all-Mountain West honors.

“Dylan broke tackles a year ago, but more times than not it was space tackles where he’s so explosive, he makes a cut and (a tackler misses),” Boise State head coach Spencer Danielson said of Riley earlier this season. “Now, he’s breaking arm tackles consistently. He’s running through arm tackles, he’s making the hard runs. He made a lot of guys miss, and then we know he’s got that top gear and can take it the distance.”

Riley is an explosive runner who already has gains of 71, 72 and 83 yards this season. He also caught a 44-yard touchdown pass against Fresno State.

The 5-foot-10, 203-pound Riley is averaging 6.6 yards per carry, which is tied for 33rd nationally among qualified runners. He has topped the 100-yard mark in four games this year with a season-high 206 yards in a Week 2 victory over Memphis.

With a strong finish to his junior campaign, Riley could become the second Boise State player to surpass 2,000 yards in a season. Ashton Jeanty holds the program’s single-season rushing record at 2,601 yards.

Riley’s top competitor for the national rushing title is Missouri senior Jamal Roberts, who has 147 carries for 828 yards (5.6 yards per attempt) and eight touchdowns. Roberts has topped the 200-yard mark in his last two games, including a 222-yard performance in last week’s 27-6 home victory over Texas A&M.

West Virginia’s Cam Cook ranks third nationally with 153 attempts for 793 yards (5.2 yards per carry) and seven touchdowns. Cook has gone over 100 yards in five of six games this season.

Duke’s Nate Sheppard is the only other player in FBS with more than 700 rushing yards. In just five games this season, Sheppard has 118 carries for 743 yards (6.3 per attempt) with eight touchdowns.

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