Where does Clemson’s Will Shipley rank among the top running backs in all of college football?
According to College Football Network, Shipley is among the nation’s five best players at his position.
College Football Network recently released its top college running backs rankings, stacking up every projected starting running back for the 2023 season from No. 1 to No. 133.
Shipley checked in as the ACC’s top running back and the No. 5 running back nationally.
Here’s what College Football Network’s Oliver Hodgkinson had to say about the dynamic and versatile Shipley, who is heading into his junior season as a Tiger in 2023:
There is some debate regarding the best running back on Clemson’s current roster, with Phil Mafah also being considered. However, Will Shipley, a former five-star recruit and top-ranked all-purpose back of the 2021 recruiting class, not only stands as the best Clemson back but also ranks among the top college running backs in the nation.
In his second season as Clemson’s RB1, Shipley surpassed the 1,000-yard mark, averaged a career-high 5.6 yards per carry, and recorded 15 rushing touchdowns, establishing himself as one of the most productive players in college football.
Shipley enters the upcoming campaign with 1,920 yards and 26 touchdowns on 359 career rushing attempts and 358 yards on 54 career receptions over 24 career games (19 starts). He also enters 2023 credited with 27 career kickoff returns for 704 yards (26.1 avg.) as well as one pass attempt for a 2-yard touchdown.
The North Carolina native made an instant impact as a freshman in 2021 and followed that up with a 2022 season in which he became the first player in ACC history to be selected as a first-team All-ACC honoree in three different categories (running back, all-purpose and specialist), and he was one of four finalists for the Paul Hornung Award (nation’s most versatile player).
Shipley joined Clemson’s Travis Etienne, Louisville’s Lamar Jackson and North Carolina’s Giovani Bernard as the only ACC players to rush for 11 or more touchdowns in both their freshman and sophomore campaigns since 2000.
Penn State’s Nicholas Singleton is No. 1 in College Football Network’s running back rankings, followed by Oregon’s Bucky Irving, Ole Miss’s Quinshon Judkins, Arkansas’s Raheim Sanders and then Shipley.
Florida State’s Trey Benson is the second highest ranked ACC running back and came in right behind Shipley at No. 6 overall.
–Clemson Athletic Communications contributed to this story
We are excited to announce our second annual Dear Old Clemson event for the freshmen football class. Come out on July 22 at 10 AM at the indoor football facility for a meet and greet autograph session with the scholarship freshmen from the 2023 class. Clemson coordinators Garrett Riley and Wes Goodwin will be attendance and speak at the event.
Get your tickets today at Dear Old Clemson.
