Texas Football: 3 most under-appreciated running backs ever

1. D’Onta Foreman

Each of the last two former Longhorn running backs on this list were Heisman finalists during the final year of their college careers. Gilbert finished up eighth in the final Heisman Trophy voting during the 1968 season, and current NFL free agent running back D’Onta Foreman was a finalist during the 2016 season.

And like Gilbert, Foreman also finished eighth in the final Heisman Trophy voting in the last year of his college career. Foreman did finish with more total points in the final voting than any other running back in 2016, though. That group included Stanford’s Christian McCaffrey, Florida State’s Dalvin Cook, and San Diego State’s Donnell Pumphrey.

Foreman truly beat out some stud running backs who are now stars in the NFL in the Heisman voting in 2016. During that magical run in 2016, Foreman finished up with 2,028 rushing yards on 323 attempts, and 15 rushing touchdowns. He averaged well over six yards per carry, and only finished behind Pumphrey among the nation’s leaders in rushing yards.

Moreover, Foreman didn’t really see a true breakthrough in his numbers until his junior season on the Forty Acres (also his final year in college). During his sophomore season, he registered 672 rushing yards and five touchdowns. But he did actually average more than seven yards per carry during his 2015 season with the Longhorns.