With Clemson landing transfer running back Chris Johnson Jr., some have questioned whether that move will upset the apple cart in the room.
Rising sophomore Gideon Davidson is the presumed starter next season, even with the addition of Johnson. The questions center more on whether or not David Eziomume would be content to stick around.
With Johnson now in the fold and only so many snaps to go around, his addition is likely to impact Eziomume’s playing time. However, Eziomume took to social media shortly after the announcement of Johnson’s commitment, alluding to the fact that he is fully on board with the move.
“Oh yeah? RBU. Don’t hop on the wave when it’s too late,” the rising redshirt sophomore posted to X.
Assuming Eziomume does return in 2026, the Tigers should have an extremely talented stable of running backs.
Davidson is coming off a debut season that saw him average four yards per carry in limited action. Although coming out of high school, he was considered one of the five best backs in the 2025 recruiting class. The ceiling is extremely high for the former MaxPreps Player of the Year, even if he’s only scratched the surface to this point.
Johnson is one of the fastest backs in all of college football, having been timed at over 22 mph. At 6-foot, 185-pounds, he’s certainly not the biggest of running backs, but he brings a level of explosiveness that the Tigers were lacking at the position. Add in his versatility, and new offensive coordinator Chad Morris will be salivating thinking of ways to get the ball into his hands.
Johnson rushed 479 yards and four touchdowns as a redshirt sophomore with the Mustangs in 2025, averaging more than seven yards per carry. He also had 17 catches for another 180 yards and a score.
Eziomume should have a place, as well. After redshirting in 2024, he had 17 carries for 64 yards this season. While he doesn’t possess the kind of speed that Johnson does, Eziomume has some wheels, too. He ran a 10.89 in the 100M back in high school.
With Adam Randall off to the NFL, the Tigers have a lot of production to replace at the position in 2026, and there should be no shortage of options.
Photo by Bart Boatwright