UMass Season Preview | Running Backs
The Minutemen figure to lean on a trio of transfer running backs in 2025
UMass doesn’t have a former 1,000-yard rusher on its roster.
The Minutemen do have two backs who have had 500 rushing-yard seasons, but both of those came way back in 2021 and with multiple transfers by each since then, those seem like even longer ago.
Still, this is a room more full of a promise than hope as UMass enters Fall Camp.
In this new Transfer Portal Era, Rocko Griffin is a virtual veteran having arrived in Amherst back in the winter and gone through spring ball.
The room will be bolstered by a pair of transfers who arrived over the summer in Juwaun Price and Brandon Hood.
Freshmen Da’Marion Alberic and Godson Ofonagoro showed flashes during the spring, providing a glimpse of the future of the position Amherst and could find ways to contribute early.
Brandon Campbell competed with Griffin during the spring, but entered the portal in April and eventually landed at Prairie View A&M.
After what he did this spring, Griffin is expected to be a leader not just in his position room, but of the entire team.
“The thing about him that I appreciate the most is he's exactly what we're looking for and the type of young man we want in the program,” head coach Joe Harasymiak said from MAC Football Media Day last week.
“His family's done a great job raising him and he's just the kind of guy that I would have over my house, babysit my kids and do those things.”
Griffin’s had quite the journey through college football going into his sixth season. He began his career in the SEC at Vanderbilt. He played three seasons for the Commodores, leading the team with 517 rushing yards in 2021. He transferred to UTSA in 2023 and spent two years with the Roadrunners.
He rushed for 483 yards and six touchdowns as part of a three-man rotation in 2023, but when he fell out of the rotation last season, he hit the portal early to preserve one final year of eligibility, which he’ll use in Amherst.
The 5-foot-9, 200-pounder brings both power and explosion to the backfield.
“As a running back, I mean he's a downhill kid, takes care of the ball, which is my favorite thing to do, take care of the ball,” Harasymiak said. “It's high and tight, it's pinned and I appreciate that. But he's just a great dude.”
Price has had an even longer college career than the sixth-year senior Griffin has had.
Price spent three years at New Mexico State. He redshirted in 2019 and saw the 2020 season completely wiped out because of COVID. New Mexico State did play two games in the spring of 2021, against Tarleton State and Dixie State. Price ran for 165 yards and a touchdown on 19 carries in a 36-29 win over Dixie State.
He followed that up with 692 yards and 10 touchdowns during the fall of 2021, including a 156-yard, four touchdown performance against UMass in the regular season finale.
He then transferred to Syracuse for an opportunity to play on a larger stage and while sources tell us he certainly impressed in practice sessions and the limited opportunities he had, injuries limited those. He finished his time in New York with just 205 yards on 55 carries.
He transferred to North Texas last season and suffered a season-ending injury in Week 2.
The 5-foot-10, 201-pound Price is a guy with immense potential if he can stay healthy. Expect him to get opportunities alongside Griffin and possibly on special teams as well.
Hood transferred to UMass from Colorado after his freshman season in Boulder. He was limited to mainly special teams for the Buffaloes, so what he can do at this level is still a bit of a question mark.
The Georgia native was a highly-recruited prospect coming out of Eagles Landing Christian Academy and we’re told the 5-foot-10, 200-pounder may be the best pass-catcher and possibly the most explosive of the three.
Your one-stop-shop for all your sports marketing needs… Owned and Operated by UMASS Grads.
We specialize in providing top-quality marketing & printing services for coaches, athletic directors, and sports marketing professionals.
Get Fan Ready!