Is it a good or bad thing that Utah's top 2 running backs are 'interchangeable'

SALT LAKE CITY — It's no secret Utah is looking to establish the run this season.

Utah head coach Kyle Whittingham has long desired to have an effective ground game over a favorable nod to what he calls the "throw game." Over the last few years, he's looked for more balance in his offense between the run and pass, but the run game is the preferred vehicle.

With true dual-threat quarterback Devon Dampier under center a year after rushing for 1,166 yards and 19 touchdowns, it only adds fuel to the fire that Utah will run ... a lot.

Dampier is the engine, but until at least Monday — though there were some nudges along the way dating back to spring potentially saying otherwise — the belief has been that sophomore running back Wayshawn Parker would be the team's starter, or RB1.

Everyone else in a rebuilt running back room would be fighting for the RB2 spot (and situational down opportunities).

But Whittingham opened up the competition a bit — or did he? — on Monday when he said Parker and senior NaQuari Rogers are "interchangeable" at RB1, while also saying that the team is approaching the season with a running back by committee look.

Is Parker not pulling his weight? Has Rogers made a big impression to push for the top spot to eclipse Parker? Is Utah's run game really a strength or a weakness? Or maybe the two have genuinely impressed and Utah has two potential RB1 candidates that deserve to be on the field.

Let's start with the latter, with a bit of a tangent.

For the last couple seasons, Penn State has had a potent run game with Kaytron Allen and Nicholas Singleton splitting RB1 duties — and very effectively. Last season, Allen finished with 1,108 rushing yards and eight touchdowns, while Singleton added 1,099 and 12 touchdowns.

Why have one elite running back suppressed by another elite running back? Penn State agreed, and the players embraced it. Both could have gone to the NFL after the 2024 season but returned to do it again as a tandem. It worked before and it's likely to work again this year.

That should be Utah's hope for this season.

No, Parker and Rogers aren't Allen or Singleton, nor should they be considered in that same tier; but the point is if both are truly on an equal plane, there's potential to have a dangerous one-two punch in the run game as the duo split reps.

If they're truly interchangeable, as Whittingham said, there's a good chance Utah feels there's not much of a drop off in talent when either player is on the field — and that's a great thing, assuming they're producing.

Last year, it was the Micah Bernard show in the run game, and then ... I'm waiting.

Bernard willed the offense along — almost single handedly sometimes — and finished with 1,009 rushing yards and four touchdowns. But outside of Bernard, Utah simply had no answer. The next leading rusher for Utah was the sporadically used Mike Mitchell, who finished with 158 yards — yes, 10% of Bernard's yards.

After that? A backup to the backup quarterback who got one full start and finished with 66 rushing yards.

That's quite the chasm.

Utah shouldn't be near that same struggle this season, if not for having Dampier's talent alone on the field. But as interchangeable backs, Utah has potential to not take a step back when either Parker or Rogers are on the field.

And then factor in that Utah is hoping to have designed runs for Dampier, as well as a plethora of other "utility players," as Whittingham described them — players like Nate Johnson, Hunter Andrews and JJ Buchanan, among others — who will factor into the run game in some capacity.

By the sounds of it, though, it's Rogers who has really stepped up and pushed for playing time. In spring, Rogers got the bulk of the RB1 reps as Parker recovered from a minor surgery that held him out at times, and that only added to Rogers' ability to impact the offense.

Add to it that Rogers, too, followed offensive coordinator Jason Beck from New Mexico to Utah; and that familiarity with Beck's offense gives him a bit of an advantage. How much of an advantage remains to be seen, but he's done enough to be interchangeable with a promising young back who rushed for 735 yards and four TDs in his freshman season.

But let's go back to the first question of whether Parker is not pulling his weight.

A little motivation from the head man never hurts, especially for a player who still hasn't touched his full potential, but Parker has reportedly been a great asset for the offense this fall. One such glimpse was posted by Utah on social media platform X, in which he absorbed contact, broke several tackles and pushed forward for a touchdown.

It's one snippet in time, but Parker has been effective with the first-team offense already.

Maybe Utah will just stink in the run game, though.

Given the highly-touted offensive line and the talent brought in on the offensive side of the ball — and not just in the running back room — that's not likely a reality. It may not be elite, or even great for that matter, but at least until games are played, there's a high chance Utah will be good enough and more balanced in the run game this season.

Interchangeable at RB1 or not.

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