Utah State Aggies: Player Watch – Running Back Rahsul Faison

The Player Watch, highlighting Utah State Aggies running back Rahsul Faison.

• Rahsul Faison
• Position: Running Back
• Utah State Aggies
• 5’11” 200 lbs

Who is Rahsul Faison?

Rahsul Faison was a 3⭐️ running back in the composites. He attended Salisbury High in Connecticut and was part of the 2019 recruiting class. At Salisbury High, Faison was a three-year contributor. As a Sophomore, he rushed for 2,084 yards with 29 touchdowns. Then as a Junior, he had 2,920 yards with 42 touchdowns. Finally as a Senior, he rushed 199 times for 1,890 yards with 30 touchdowns. Faison played an integral role in bringing home two district titles to Salisbury High.

Faison initially committed to Stony Brook, but would end up taking the JUCO route for a year where he ended up at Lackawanna College for the 2020 season. He would then transfer to the University of Marshall for the 2021 season. After not making the rotation at Marshall, Faison moved out west to Snow College in Utah in 2022. There, he had 88 carries for 355 yards with 6 touchdowns. After that season, Faison would earn ten offers, but would commit to the Utah State Aggies.

Faison would join fellow first year player Davon Booth in the aggies backfield. Those two would be part of a three-headed backfield for Utah State. Faison would finish second on the team in carries (118), yards (736) and touchdowns (5) while bringing in 11 catches. He would hold his own as a runner, averaging 6.2 yards per attempt with a long of 60 yards. Faison would have five games of 10 or more carries with a season-high of 181 yards. He would also have three games of over 90 yards. Faison’s breakout game took place in November against Nevada where he ran the ball 22 times for 181 yards and a touchdown.

Positional Outlook

Rahsul Faison played the most snaps of any running back on the Aggies’ roster last year with 361, while also seeing 118 carries. Of his 736 rushing yards, 443 was after contact, which equals to 3.75 yards after initial contact. Faison forced 37 missed tackles, showing his elusiveness. He also had 20 rushes of over 10 yards, with 44% of his runs being determined as breakaways while earning 36 first downs.

In the passing attack, Faison was targeted 12 times with 11 receptions and zero drops. Faison will once again be part of a three-headed committee for Utah State next year. He was proven to be effective with his touches.

It was great to see him get playing time after his time at Marshall where he wasn’t able to get into the rotation. Utah State appeared to be his last ditch effort to try and make it as a collegiate football player. Faison has shown a lot of determination to get where he is at and he has earned all of his accolades.

Strengths

Rahsul Faison brings with him a strong work ethic. He is a person that is mentally strong. He went two years without making the rotation at Lackawanna College and at Marshall. He believed in himself and moved out west to Snow College in Utah just to prove that he has what it takes to be a collegiate football player. Faison was able to make the rotation and made the most of his opportunities. He turned that into ten offers and chose to attend Utah State where they brought in another JUCO transfer in Davon Booth. That did not deter Faison at all, and he was able to earn the most snaps in that backfield. That type of confidence is something that you cannot teach.

Faison is a pure football player. He has a good frame to add on an additional 5 to 10 pounds which could help him develop into a more bruising running back this upcoming season. The three-headed backfield helped all three backs last year and kept them fresh for the entire season. Faison has traits that makes him a coach’s favorite and can carve out additional work this upcoming season. 

Improvements/Concern

Rahsul Faison took some time to get up to speed. It took him seven games to receive double digit carries; and while Faison had three games of over 50 yards, Utah State never gave him a full workload. It appears at this time that Faison will serve as a complementary piece in the rotation.

Davon Booth played one less game and earned two more carries than Faison. Faison and Booth are almost mirrors of one another with similar size and overall raw data. However, Faison doesn’t have the twitchy lateral agility that Booth has. Faison does have a bigger frame, though, and if he adds on another 5-10 pounds he could be used as the short yardage back. That would allow him to gain a role and create a variance between the two.

Faison had more pass blocking reps than Booth due to Faison playing one more game. However, that should be an area of improvement for Faison. Booth had 82 pass block reps and he seemed to be a capable blocker, though graded out as a below-average player. If Faison can show his pass blocking chops in spring and fall camp, that could lead to additional snaps this upcoming season. 

2024 Outlook

The Aggies like to play up tempo and run a lot of plays. By using wide splits with their wide receivers, opposing defenses cannot load the box. Therefore, running lanes will be available for the running backs If Faison adds some additional weight, he could be a key factor in short yardage situations as a goal line back to get more touchdowns.