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Runner or receiver? Rushing yards vs. receiving yards

College Football Charts
Data updatedOct 31, 2026

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Runner or receiver? Rushing yards vs. receiving yards

Top 50 of 431 running backs by both stats combined. Season so far, games through Oct 24, 2026. Dashed lines are the averages; up and right is better on both.

From the play-by-play. Players with 30+ pass attempts, 15+ carries, 8+ catches, a sack, an interception or a fumble recovery this season. Labels mark the best on both stats and anyone you highlight. Hover or tap a dot for the numbers.

What this shows

Each dot is one of 50 running backs, placed by rushing yards (across) and receiving yards (up). Rushing yards, not counting sacks; for a quarterback, that's his runs and scrambles. The dashed lines are the averages: 601 and 143.

There is weak relationship here (r = −0.35; r runs from −1 to +1). Players who are better at one tend to be worse at the other. One explains about 12% of the differences in the other.

7 of 50 (14%) are above average on both. 16 are above average only on rushing yards, 13 only on receiving yards, and 14 on neither.

Where the data comes from. Play-by-play from CollegeFootballData.com (the public cfbfastR files), games through Oct 24, 2026. Every stat here is computed from those plays.

Best on both

  1. Jahiem White, North Texas: 1,054 rushing yards, 291 receiving yards
  2. Nate Sheppard, Duke: 834 rushing yards, 282 receiving yards
  3. Caleb Hawkins, Oklahoma State: 712 rushing yards, 284 receiving yards
  4. Wayshawn Parker, Utah: 628 rushing yards, 258 receiving yards
  5. Dylan Riley, Boise State: 954 rushing yards, 127 receiving yards
  6. Dilin Jones, LSU: 661 rushing yards, 221 receiving yards

Great at one, not the other

  1. Kam Thomas, UTEP: -1 rushing yards, 272 receiving yards
  2. Kaderris Roberts, Delaware: 169 rushing yards, 242 receiving yards
  3. AJ Newberry, Oregon State: 430 rushing yards, 288 receiving yards
  4. Messiah Burch, Buffalo: 843 rushing yards, 23 receiving yards
  5. James Jones, New Mexico State: 881 rushing yards, 56 receiving yards
  6. Joey Mattord, Eastern Michigan: 263 rushing yards, 209 receiving yards

About the stats on this chart

What is rushing yards?

Rushing yards, not counting sacks; for a quarterback, that's his runs and scrambles.

Why do rushing yards matter?

Rushing yards are volume, and volume follows carries. A back with a lot of yards and a low success rate is just getting the ball a lot.

Where does the rushing yards data come from?

From play-by-play from CollegeFootballData.com (the public cfbfastR files), games through Oct 24, 2026.

Why do receiving yards matter?

Receiving yards are the headline number for receivers. Check explosive catches next to it to see who's actually stretching a defense.

Where does the receiving yards data come from?

From play-by-play from CollegeFootballData.com (the public cfbfastR files), games through Oct 24, 2026.