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Clemson Football: Travis Etienne ranked No. 1 preseason RB in the nation

By Shawn Spencer

ARLINGTON, TEXAS - DECEMBER 29: Travis Etienne #9 of the Clemson Tigers runs for a 62 yard touchdown in the third quarter against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish during the College Football Playoff Semifinal Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic at AT&T Stadium on December 29, 2018 in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Tim Warner/Getty Images)
ARLINGTON, TEXAS - DECEMBER 29: Travis Etienne #9 of the Clemson Tigers runs for a 62 yard touchdown in the third quarter against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish during the College Football Playoff Semifinal Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic at AT&T Stadium on December 29, 2018 in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Tim Warner/Getty Images) /
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Clemson football running back Travis Etienne is ranked as the No. 1 running back in the nation for the 2019 season, according to 247 Sports.

247 Sports released their annual rankings of the top 25 running backs in the nation for the upcoming season.

Leading the list- to no one’s surprise- was Clemson football running back Travis Etienne.

Etienne is coming off a season in which he averaged 8.1 yards per carry and rushed for 1,658 yards and 24 touchdowns.

Etienne is a work horse who is able to use his explosiveness to blow away from defenders, but he certainly has the power to get the job done in short yardage situations, as well.

Here’s a look at 247 Sports’ top-10 at running back, behind Etienne.

  1. Travis Etienne, Clemson
  2. Jonathan Taylor, Wisconsin
  3. Eno Benjamin, Arizona State
  4. AJ Dillon, Boston College
  5. D’Andre Swift, Georgia
  6. J.K. Dobbins, Ohio State
  7. Najee Harris, Alabama
  8. Greg McCrae, UCF
  9. Jermar Jefferson, Oregon State
  10. Kennedy Brooks, Oklahoma

Thoughts:

This list, in my opinion, does a pretty good job of identifying the elite rushers for this 2019 season. Etienne is the best pure-runner in the nation, but there’s certainly a great deal of respect that should be given to Jonathan Taylor.

AJ Dillon has been an elite running back, but has struggled with injuries the past couple of seasons. I’m interested to see just how good D’Andre Swift can be behind that UGA offensive line, which is expected to be one of the best in the nation, as well.

There are a lot of talented running backs across the landscape of College Football this season, but it’s clear that Travis Etienne is the leader at that position.

Next. Lyn-J Dixon will surprise a lot of people in 2019. dark

What’s your thoughts, Clemson football fans? Comment below with your top running backs and who you’re eyeing at the position coming into this season.

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