Barry Sanders wishes Ashton Jeanty good luck ahead of Boise State-UNLV

Barry Sanders doesn’t care how many games it takes. If a college running back rushes for more than 2,628 yards in a season, he owns the NCAA single-season rushing record.

The Oklahoma State legend conveyed that sentiment Friday to Boise State running back Ashton Jeanty, who is having a season that will undoubtedly have him among the 2024 Heisman Trophy finalists in New York. Jeanty, who is playing in the Mountain West Conference championship game Saturday against UNLV, enters the game with 2,288 yards – 340 yards shy of Sanders’ record set in 1988.

Required reading:College football rushing record: Can Boise State’s Ashton Jeanty break Barry Sanders’ record?

“Hey @AshtonJeanty2 – I wish you good luck tonight. My fans can complain, but records are meant to be broken and I’m keeping my fingers crossed for you. I love seeing all these @NFL and @NCAA#RBs showing the value of the position. #RunTheRock,” Sanders’ account wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter.

Sanders’ message included a Fox graphic of the five best rushing seasons in college football history, in which Jeanty is currently ranked No. 5.

There was some consternation about Jeanty being named the single-season record holder if he rushes for 340 yards in Boise State’s next two games – a distinct possibility considering he has rushed for more than 200 yards in five games and has never been held under 100 yards this year – because Sanders reached his record in just 12 games.

Assuming he plays his next two games, Jeanty will have played in at least 14.

Additionally, Sanders’ 222 yards in the Holiday Bowl that year did not count toward the current record because bowl games were not considered official statistics. If they did, his total would rise to 2,850 yards.

Still, Sanders seems content with running backs getting recognition again. While Saquon Barkley and Derrick Henry enjoyed remarkable NFL seasons in their new hometowns of Philadelphia and Baltimore, Jeanty is getting a running back under serious Heisman consideration for the first time since Bryce Love, who was the runner-up in 2017, and Henry is Christian McCaffrey took first and second place respectively in 2015.

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