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As preseason camp begins this week, Land-Grant Holy Land is diving into its final theme every week of the off-season. This week is all about taking stock of where the Buckeyes are compared to where they were. You can catch up on all of the Theme Week content here and all of our ”Then vs. Now” articles here.
Bo Jackson had a really solid freshman season for the Buckeyes in 2025.
He rushed for over 1,000 yards and finished less than 400 yards behind the Big Ten’s rushing yards leader, Nebraska’s Emmett Johnson. Jackson is poised to build on his freshman season with an even bigger season in 2026.
Now with run-first offensive coordinator Arthur Smith running the offense, Jackson is already making me reminisce on another Buckeyes’ running back who gradually became one of the country’s best.
J.K. Dobbins burst onto the scene in 2017, rushing for 1,403 yards with a Big Ten-leading 7.2 yards per carry. He averaged 100.2 rushing yards per game in 2017, rushing for over 100 yards six times.
The crazy thing is he only had 20+ carries in a game one time that season — in the season-opener at Indiana where he rushed for a season-high 181 yards in a 49-21 drubbing of the Hoosiers.
Twice in 2017, Dobbins averaged 10+ yards per carry in a game, including in the Big Ten Championship win over Wisconsin.
It’s reasonable to think Jackson could match or eclipse Dobbins’s 1,403 yards as a sophomore in 2026. The interesting thing when comparing the two running backs is that Dobbins saw a dramatic decrease in rushing yards as a sophomore.
Dobbins rushed for just 1,053 yards in 2018, 37 fewer yards than Jackson had as a freshman in 2025. So, Dobbins actually had a bigger first season than second season. But if you remember the 2018 Buckeyes, they had a prolific passing attack.
Dwayne Haskins threw for over 4,800 yards and 50 touchdowns, throwing for 533 passes. The Buckeyes had four players with over 650 receiving yards, led by Parris Campbell’s 1,063 yards and 12 touchdowns on 90 receptions.
In addition, the Buckeyes had a balanced running back duo of J.K. Dobbins and Mike Weber. They did to a degree in 2017, but Dobbins got 93 more carries. It was just a 58-carry difference in 2018.
This season, Jackson should be the bell-cow running back for the Buckeyes. They really haven’t had that bell-cow running back since Dobbins. That should allow Jackson to build on his 2025 season. If he does, the Buckeyes’ offense could be the most dual-threat it’s been in a few years.
In his final season at Ohio State in 2019, Dobbins had 10 games with 100+ rushing yards and eight with 150+ rushing yards. He had eight games with 20+ carries and three with 30+, and Dobbins rushed for over 150 yards in each of the Buckeyes’ last four games.
That included a 211-yard game at Michigan, 172 against Wisconsin in the Big Ten Championship, and 174 against Clemson in the College Football Playoff Semifinals. With 21 touchdowns and 2,003 yards on 311 carries, Dobbins had six games with multiple rushing touchdowns and had four rushing touchdowns at Michigan.
Maybe Jackson is capable of those numbers in his third season with the Buckeyes, which would be in 2027. Heck, he could reach those numbers this season. But looking at what Dobbins did in his three seasons, it’s reasonable to think Jackson is capable of a similar career.
Jackson started last season with the Buckeyes still trying to figure out their running back room and depth chart. Now, they know Jackson is their guy.
Dobbins is one of the great running backs in recent Buckeyes’ history. But considering he rushed for over 1,000 yards last season when he didn’t even start the season as the starting running back and behind an offensive line that struggled to consistently run block, Jackson’s career is off to a really promising start.
Expectations are high going into this season.
