Dissecting the RB room for the Utah State Aggies in 2024.
Utah State Aggies’ RB Depth Chart
Devon Booth
Utah State Aggies’ RB Davon Booth was unranked for the majority of the recruiting services before receiving a 3⭐️ from 247 Sports with an overall rating of 80. He is 5’10” 205lbs and was part of the 2020 recruiting class. Booth was a standout at El Monte High in California, where as a Senior he ran for 2,935 yards on 239 carries and compiled 36 touchdowns. He also caught 22 passes for 627 yards and an additional 11 touchdowns.
Booth was also a dual sport athlete, competing in track and field. He chose the JUCO route in 2021 and attended Cerritos College for two years. There, he compiled 2,006 rushing yards on 235 carries and 15 touchdowns. He added 33 receptions for 350 yards with 3 additional touchdowns.
Booth would start the 2023 season as a co-starter on Utah State’s depth chart, but with no real leader in the running back room. Utah State used a trio of running backs for their rotation, but Booth was the leader early on.
Davon Booth had his breakout game against James Madison, where he was counted on and given 21 carries for 103 yards. Booth would go on to receive double digit carries in five of the last eight games of the season. In totality, he would lead the Aggies backfield in carries (120), yards (805) and touchdowns (6). And, it looked like he became the running back we saw from his high school and his JUCO days. Booth brings a good combination of contact balance and speed to the RB room and offers an additional threat as a capable pass catcher. Booth has one year of eligibility left.
Rahsul Faison
Rahsul Faison was a low 3⭐️ in the composites with an overall rating of 77.32 for On3. He is 5”11” and weighs 200 pounds. Rahsul was part of 2019 recruiting class.
As a high school Senior, Faison attended Salisbury High in Connecticut where he rushed for 1,890 yards on 199 carries and had 30 touchdowns.
Faison chose the JUCO route and for 2020 attended Lackawanna College. However, he did not appear in any games. He would later transfer to Marshall University in 2021, and would not appear in any games. Faison ended up at Snow College in Utah for 2022 where he gained 355 yards on the ground on 88 carries for 6 touchdowns. Faison would wind up in Logan for the Aggies where there were depth issues at RB. Faison was able to earn the co-starting position.
Faison saw the lion’s share in two games this past season against Nevada and New Mexico. He is more of the thumper, and while he had 11 receptions this past season, is not really a threat in the receiving game. Faison would finish second in the Aggies backfield in carries (118), yards (736) and touchdowns (5). He has one year of eligibility left.
Robert Briggs Jr
Robert Briggs Jr was a 3⭐️ in the composites with an overall rating of 82.23 for On3. He is 5’6” and weighs 185 pounds. Robert Briggs was part of 2022 recruiting class.
Briggs attended Bellville High in Texas. During his time at Bellville, Briggs amassed over 3,300 yards with 43 touchdowns. He added 68 catches for 1,357 yards and 20 touchdowns. He was also a factor as a returner and played cornerback.
Briggs saw immediate playing time as a True Freshman in 2022 for the Aggies. He rushed for 353 yards on 74 carries and added a touchdown. He also caught seven passes.
This past season as a Sophomore, Briggs saw a similar role as the 3rd back of the rotation. Briggs rushed for 80 times and gained 420 yards. He also added two touchdowns while catching six passes.
Briggs is more of a change of pace, jitterbug, scat-back type of RB. His smaller frame will prevent him from taking a bigger chunk of the workload. Briggs will be a Junior with two years left of eligibility.
Reggie Foster
Reggie Foster was unranked in the composites. He is 5’9” and weighs 185 pounds. Reggie Foster was part of the 2023 recruiting class. Foster had one other offer, which was Missouri.
Foster attended American Heritage High in Florida where he amassed 336 rushing yards on 67 carries with 6 touchdowns. Foster did not see any action in 2023 and should be added depth to the position where he could see some carries in 2024. With Foster being a rotational player in High School, it would be nice if he can get in on special teams coverage, just to get accustomed to the speed of the games; as well as some carries when the game is out of reach on either end of the spectrum.. Foster has four years of eligibility remaining.
Running Back Battle
While Utah State deploys a three-back system (and all three found success), I do believe there is a battle for who is named the starting running back. Davon Booth, Rahsul Faison and Robert Briggs were all effective with their carries and each had standout games that showed why Utah State uses all three.
Booth is someone that I’m highest on of the trio. That is not to knock the other two, but I see traits with Booth that would work if given a bigger role. Booth and Faison are similar in size and movement, though Booth is a little better laterally and Faison being a more downhill runner. Booth hasn’t been featured as much in the passing game. This past season he was used to get the needed yards and set the tempo. Utah State used Faison and Briggs as receivers out of the backfield.
If Utah State treats Booth as the pure RB, he should absorb more of the carries. This will allow Faison to work on passing situations with Briggs as the sparkplug/change of pace back. This will be an interesting camp battle that I’m excited to see play out. At the end of the day, all three will get to eat and Foster can continue to hone his craft and be the next in line for 2025.
Positional Outlook
The running back room is a position of strength for Utah State. It’s always been a position that is overlooked due to the system that is being ran. It’s assumed a spread system with four WRs and an up tempo offense means it’s exclusively quick timing passes – but it’s not. It’s a great way for the backs to pick up five to six yards. It allows Utah State to be ahead on the chains. By making it up tempo, defenses do not have time to react.
While all the great stats were all for the wide receivers in 2023, if the Aggies condensed the running back room to two guys, we would have seen a 1,200 yard running back and a lot more notoriety. I would like to see Utah State continue to run the ball to get more plays under their belt. They won’t limit possessions due to their up tempo offense, but they can at least allow the defense additional time on the bench to rest. Running more plays on the ground will also allow the passing game to open up more freely and overall become a much better team.
Far too often we saw Utah State trail early. They were a slow first quarter team. By running the ball, this will allow everybody to calm down, recollect themselves and not make any turnover worthy plays; let the running game set the tempo so that you can go over the top and you can feature your All-American WR Jalen Royals. Utah State has the pieces to become a better team in 2024 and that will start with this position room.
Andy Pham
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