The Four Running Back Horsemen of 2023
Georgia is already looking forward to the 2023 Recruiting Class, and the class of running backs is absolutely stacked. Less than a week after National Signing Day 2022, Dawgs Daily on SI.com takes a look at the four leading running backs that will be leading the Georgia Recruiting Boards for 2023.
For a football program that's signed classes like, Todd Gurley and Keith Marshall, Nick Chubb and Sony Michel, Zeus and Cook in one class, this could be the highest-ranked running back haul in recent history if they can manage to land any two of the four backs we will talk about today.
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Justice Haynes
"We threw it to Haynes!" For years now, Georgia fans have heard that famous radio call from Georgia Legend Larry Munson. The famous Hobnail Boot was referring to Verron Haynes, but in the future, those very words may be uttered again for another Haynes.
Justice Haynes, Verron's son, is the first of the Four Horsemen. Justice is a well rounded back. He does it all for Blessed Trinity High in Roswell, Georgia. He's used to running into stacked boxes, and has developed awareness and vision that takes years to master.
Obviously, Haynes has had a lot of training. His dad was a running back for the Pittsburgh Steelers for years in the NFL and has clearly passed some of those traits down to his son. Justice is aware of a lot of the "little things" that help him bust big yardage plays. He's averaged nearly 9 yards a carry each of his first 3 years in high school.
Blessed Trinity has used Haynes as a bell-cow back for each of his 3 years, and Justice will likely break many records in Georgia for running by the end of his senior season. He already has accumulated over 650 total carries and tallied up over 5800 yards from scrimmage. Georgia probably won't use him all that much during his freshman year, which could be beneficial to Haynes following a high school career that will eclipse potential 800 carries. He will have time to adjust and develop into Georgia's System which utilizes more zone rushing schemes rather than the Power and Counter Schemes he's used to.
A good comparison for Justice Haynes is a slightly less speedy TreVeyon Henderson out of Ohio State, after all Henderson did run a 6.45 sixty meter in high school (the world record is 6.34). The biggest question mark for Haynes revolves around his Pass Blocking ability, which he hasn't had to do at Blessed Trinity.
Richard Young
Richard Young is an interesting prospect. As far as running backs go, he's not a extr flashy player. He's not that electrifying. He won't leave you behind in the dust. What Young will do, however, is make defenders wish they did not try to tackle him. He runs with a powerful presence, standing tall throughout, hurling defenders along the way.
Arm tackles will not bring Richard Young down. Multiple times on his high school tape, he manages to run through arm tackles as if they aren't even there. He's extremely hard to bring down as a result.
That power style could use a bit of finesse however, Young needs to either be paired with a three-down back to match his styles. Every Holyfield needs a Swift. Every Zamir White needs a James Cook.
Something else working for Young is his transition period will not be as harsh as it will for a couple other guys on this list. Young plays in South Florida at Lehigh, and is used to playing against Power 5 guys on a regular basis already.
Treyaun Webb
High School Running Backs tend not to get much bigger than this guy. Treyaun Webb comes out of Trinity Christian in Jacksonville, Florida. 6-1, 205 to 215 pounds, and built like a tank. Georgia fans may recognize the running style, but more on that later.
Webb's commitment history has been a mix of Georgia and Oklahoma. He had committed to Georgia in November of 2019, as the very first commit of Georgia's 2023 class. Georgia offered him as a Freshman, which might give away just how special of an athlete and individual he is. He decommitted from Georgia in January last year, and would go on to commit to Oklahoma in July. After Lincoln Riley left, however, he decommitted once more in November and is fully back open with his recruitment. Georgia still wants him, and it's easy to see why.
Webb's running style screams Todd Gurley, especially in Gurley's early years of high school and college. His contact balance is superb, and he's fully comfortable with planting his hand in the ground to get himself out of being tackled. He has enough short-area quickness to recover from those situations as well. This makes Webb a hard running back to get tackles for loss on. He doesn't have elite top-end speed, but still has enough for explosives on South Florida high school football fields. He's not afraid to use a stiff arm on defenders. Moreover, he's helpful with his offensive linemen too, showing the ability to press and deliver blocks to them to help spring long runs for him.
Rueben Owens
Last, but definitely not least. If all 3 of the running backs listed above are thunder, then there is no doubt that Rueben Owens is lightning. The speed that Owens possesses is nothing short ELITE. Moreover, that's not just straight-line speed either.
Owens has phenomenal shiftiness. He can move side to side as well as he can move forward and yes, sometimes backward. He has elite cutting and dead-leg abilities that have crumbled multiple defenders up in a heap on the ground on tape. He balances that shiftiness with slipperiness as well, which can surprise people considering his more tall and lengthy bodystyle. His contact balance might be the best on this list, and he has the short-area quickness and acceleration to get him out of tight spots.
For Owens, it just looks natural. He looks like he's playing backyard football in many aspects, jump-cutting, avoiding tackles, and even taking on multiple tacklers at once. That may help him when it comes to transitioning to the next level. Owens will likely have a transitional period in college, going from more of a wing-t offense to any modern offense, but the talent is overwhelming.
The comparison for Rueben Owens is easy. He's a young Reggie Bush. He has every bit of the flash and big-play ability that Bush did during his years at Southern California.
To quote Brooks Austin, "That's the number 1 back in America, and you can't tell me different."
