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Week 0 of the college football season kicks off on Saturday. Last year, 12 different running backs ran for over 1,300 yards while another 12 had 15 or more touchdowns. Many of the top offensive units in college fantasy football have star quarterbacks leading the charge. Regardless, in a day of high-flying offenses led by quarterbacks who can sling the ball all over the field, some teams still have solid running games. Many of the top running backs are returning from 2025, including Kewan Lacy and Ahmad Hardy. Meanwhile, Caleb Hawkins and Cam Cook are in new places. Still, some spots in the top ten are open from players moving on, such as Jeremiyah Love and Emmett Johnson, who are now in the NFL. With some backs in new places, some working with new offensive coordinators, and others returning to great spots, these are the top ten college fantasy running backs in 2026. 1. Kewan Lacy | Ole Miss Kewan Lacy was one of the top running backs in the nation last year. He led the nation with 306 carries and racked up 1,567 yards to go with 24 touchdowns. Lacy’s value is all about volume, especially since he does not factor into the passing game on a regular basis. He had 18 or more carries ten times last year, seven 100-yard games, and a 200-yard outing. He also failed to find the end zone just once last season, giving him more three-touchdown games than zero. Having Trinidad Chambliss also helps. His ability keeps the defense honest and allows big runs, which Lacy capitalized on. If Ole Miss can continue to put up major points like that year, Lacy will find the end zone a ton and be the top back this year. 2. Caleb Hawkins | Oklahoma State Caleb Hawkins finished last year as the top fantasy running back. He led the nation in rushing touchdowns with 25, while also sitting 12th in carries at 231 and racking up 1,434 yards. Unlike Lacy, Hawkins is a part of the passing game with Drew Mestemaker. He brought in 32 receptions for 370 yards and four touchdowns last year. Hawkins had some boom-or-bust tendencies last year. Of his 25 touchdowns, 17 of them came in just four games. He was also much less valuable than Lacy when his team was behind. Considering Hawkins is making the move from North Texas to Oklahoma State, but in a similar offense, the chances for those games increase. 3. LJ Martin | BYU LJ Martin was the 2025 Big-12 Offensive Player of the Year for BYU. He finished with 1,305 yards and 12 touchdowns last season, but did not have a receiving score. The BYU offense under Kalani Sitake has been historically run-heavy, which should give Martin the carries needed to put up a huge season. Further, BYU played a lot of tight games last year, but often had the lead late in the game. This should be similar this season, which will give Martin more carries. As long as Martin keeps his volume up, he will be over 1,200 yards again, and if he can find the end zone more, he has the ability to be the top running back in fantasy. 4. Cam Cook | West Virginia No one is benefiting from a transfer more than Cam Cook. Cook was a stud for Jacksonville State last year. He ran for 1,659 yards on 295 carries and found the end zone 16 times. It was his only season at Jacksonville State, meaning he never overlapped with Rich Rodriguez, his new coach at West Virginia. Still, the offense last year ran many similar components to the offense Cook will be moving into. With his speed, the former Jacksonville State running back is a perfect fit for the spread speed option attack that West Virginia will be running, which is going to set Cook up for a huge year. 5. Jadan Baugh | Florida Jadan Baugh is set to be the primary back for Florida this season. Baugh ran for 1,170 yards and eight scores last year. The new offense should help Baugh out as well. Jon Sumrall runs an aggressive style of offense that has spread and pro set aspects. It relies heavily on a strong ground game, which will be led by Baugh. Further, Sumrall offenses typically run more down near the goal line than Billy Napier did, which should result in his touchdown numbers going up. Baugh will also be more involved in the passing game, which only increases his value. 6. Mark Fletcher | Miami (FL) Mark Fletcher returns to Miami (FL) in 2026 looking for vengeance. Fletcher was RB17 in 2025 after running for 1,192 yards and 12 touchdowns last year. With a new quarterback coming in for Miami, Fletcher may be seeing more carries as well. He was phenomenal in the College Football Playoffs for the Hurricanes as well. He ran for over 100 yards in three of the four games, and ran for 90 yards against Ohio State. Further, he scored three times in the playoffs, twice on the ground and once on a reception. The key for Fletcher will not be volume, but making the most of his carries. He had four games last year in which he averaged 3.5 yards per carry or worse. 7. Justice Haynes | Georgia Tech Justice Haynes decided to transfer from Michigan to Georgia Tech in the offseason. Haynes was solid in 2025, running for 857 yards and ten touchdowns. He did all of that in just seven games. Haynes ran for over 110 yards in six of the seven games, while scoring a touchdown in six of the seven games as well. He also was not a part of the passing game, and he also split carries with Jordan Marshall. Now, Haynes will be the lead back and not be splitting nearly as many reps. Further, the Georgia Tech offense is run-heavy and is breaking in a new quarterback. This could lead to a massive year for Haynes. 8. Antwan Raymond | Rutgers Antwan Raymond returns to a run-heavy Rutgers offense. He racked up 1,241 rushing yards and 13 touchdowns, while bringing in 255 yards receiving with two more scores. He is going to be the centerpiece of the offense. Offensive coordinator Kirk Ciarrocca's offenses typically rely on one primary back. Over the last four years, the top running back in his offense has always had over 51 percent of the attempts, while accounting for over seven percent of the receiving targets. Raymond was RB11 in fantasy last year, and his volume will keep him in the top ten. 9. Ahmad Hardy | Missouri Ahmad Hardy was RB6 last year and was a workhorse for Missouri last year, and has been a stud the last two years. At UL Monroe in 2024, he ran for 1,351 yards and 13 touchdowns. Last year, he ran for 1,649 yards and 16 scores. Hardy could easily be RB1 if he were healthy, considering the workload he receives. Hardy is not expected to be ready for the start of the 2026 season, as he is recovering from an offseason gunshot wound. The goal is to have Hardy back by mid-September, but that will still keep him out two games at minimum. One of those games is Arkansas-Pine Bluff, where he could have had a huge game. Still, he will have plenty of chances to show off when he is back to full health. 10. Isaac Brown | Louisville Isaac Brown was solid last year, even while dealing with injuries. He ran for 884 yards and seven touchdowns in nine games. While injuries limited him, healthy Brown is dangerous. Over the last two seasons, he has averaged 7.7 yards per carry, and in his final four games, he ran for 550 yards on just 55 carries. Louisville comes into the season with questions at the quarterback position and will need to rely on Brown heavily to open the year. Without another back to spell him on a regular basis, he will get plenty of carries. With his home run hitting ability, Brown could be a steal of a pick if he can stay healthy.