Kevin Jairaj – USA TODAY Sports
Running back Keith Ford wasted little time after announcing his decision to transfer from the Oklahoma Sooners on where he would continue his collegiate career. Ford will be transferring to College Station to play for the Texas A&M Aggies in 2016 after sitting out this next season due to transfer rules. When he does take the field for the Aggies, Ford will be the perfect fit for the A&M rushing attack.
Ford’s arrival will come at the perfect time for Kevin Sumlin and company to keep their backfield stocked with elite talent. This season, the team is set at running back despite losing Trey Williams to the NFL with the return of Tra Carson acting as the lead back along with Brandon Williams. Carson and Williams combined last season to rush for 960 yards and eight touchdowns in Texas A&M’s pass-heavy offense, averaging 4.69 and 4.36 yards per carry, respectively.
But both Carson and Williams are seniors and will be gone after this season. That would leave the team with James White, who will be a junior in 2016, as the only real seasoned rusher on the roster. During his freshman year in 2014, White showed some excellent ability, rushing for 153 yards on just 22 carries and scoring three touchdowns. White is a powerful runner who can carry defenders for those tough yards between the tackles, but he hasn’t shown the flash to create the big plays in the running game.
Ford is a former 5-star running back recruit who was derailed at Oklahoma by injuries and a loaded depth chart. He is an all-purpose back with elite speed, excellent power, soft hands as a receiver out of the backfield, and the quickness to make defenders miss in traffic. In two seasons with the Sooners, Ford rushed for 526 yards on 94 carries (5.6 ypc) and scored seven total touchdowns. He got off to a red-hot start as the No. 1 back for Oklahoma in 2014, rushing for 194 yards on 34 carries with five touchdowns through the first three games.
Then Ford suffered a broken bone in his lower leg that sidelined him for the next five games and affected him for the rest of the season. While he was out, then-freshman Samaje Perine took the college football world by storm and never relinquished the starting job once he took over. Ford’s injury reportedly began to affect him more than just physically off the field and he ran into issues with the Sooners’ team rules, resulting in an indefinite suspension from the team that prompted his decision to transfer.
At Texas A&M, Ford will have the opportunity to start fresh and get healthy and become a central part of the Aggies’ rushing attack moving forward. Following the one-year forced hiatus, Ford will have two years of eligibility remaining and can form a dynamic rushing duo with White that will be a central cog in Texas A&M’s offensive machine come 2016.
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