<p>Rushing for over 2,000 yards in a single season is an amazing feat and very few college football players have hit the mark. It is a goal of every running back in the FBS and, interestingly enough, the number who make it seems to be increasing every year.</p><h3>Star Running Backs Who Rushed for 2,000 Yards</h3><p>College football is filled with star players and among running backs, those who can rush for over 2,000 yards join a special club of elite athletes. As of the end of the 2015 season, only 26 have topped this lofty goal and they are among the best players the FBS has seen.</p><p>This distinguished group is led by the spectacular Barry Sanders, who ran for 2,628 yards for Oklahoma State in 1988. Other high-profile backs to pull off the feat include Marcus Allen, LaDainian Tomlinson, Ricky Williams, and Larry Johnson.</p><p>With spread offenses, faster-paced games, and longer schedules, more running backs are joining this club than ever before. You will notice that 5 of the 26 players on this list have been added since 2010, that&#39;s almost one-fifth of the club.</p><table border="1" cellpadding="1" cellspacing="1"><thead><tr><th> </th><th>School</th><th>Year</th><th>Yards</th><th>Yards per Carry</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><th>Barry Sanders*</th><td>Oklahoma State</td><td>1988</td><td>2,628</td><td>7.64</td></tr><tr><th>Melvin Gordon<strong>*</strong></th><td>Wisconsin</td><td>2014</td><td>2,587</td><td>7.54</td></tr><tr><th>Kevin Smith<strong>*</strong></th><td>UCF</td><td>2007</td><td>2,567</td><td>5.70</td></tr><tr><th><strong><a data-inlink="xsv9t5moph2lLasEZLLXxw&#61;&#61;" href="https://www.thoughtco.com/earl-campbell-1335560" data-component="link" data-source="inlineLink" data-type="internalLink" data-ordinal="1">Marcus Allen</a>* </strong></th><td>USC</td><td>1981</td><td>2,342</td><td>5.81</td></tr><tr><th>Derrick Henry<strong>*</strong></th><td>Alabama</td><td>2015</td><td>2,219</td><td>5.62</td></tr><tr><th>Troy Davis</th><td>Iowa State</td><td>1996</td><td>2,185</td><td>5.44</td></tr><tr><th>Andre Williams <strong>*</strong></th><td>Boston College</td><td>2013</td><td>2,177</td><td>6.13</td></tr><tr><th><strong>Ladainian Tomlinson* </strong></th><td>TCU</td><td>2000</td><td>2,158</td><td>5.85</td></tr><tr><th>Tony Dorsett<strong>*</strong></th><td>Pittsburgh</td><td>1976</td><td>2,150</td><td>5.81</td></tr><tr><th>Mike Rozier<strong>*</strong></th><td>Nebraska</td><td>1983</td><td>2,148</td><td>7.81</td></tr><tr><th>Matt Forte</th><td>Tulane</td><td>2007</td><td>2,127</td><td>5.89</td></tr><tr><th>Ricky Williams<strong>*</strong></th><td>Texas</td><td>1998</td><td>2,124</td><td>5.88</td></tr><tr><th>Ron Dayne<strong>*</strong></th><td>Wisconsin</td><td>1996</td><td>2,109</td><td>6.49</td></tr><tr><th><strong>Larry Johnson* </strong></th><td>Penn State</td><td>2002</td><td>2,087</td><td>7.70</td></tr><tr><th>Donald Brown<strong>*</strong></th><td>Connecticut</td><td>2008</td><td>2,083</td><td>5.68</td></tr><tr><th>Lorenzo White<strong>*</strong></th><td>Michigan State</td><td>1986</td><td>2,066</td><td>4.93</td></tr><tr><th>Byron Hanspard</th><td>Texas Tech</td><td>1996</td><td>2,084</td><td>6.15</td></tr><tr><th><strong>Damien Anderson*</strong></th><td>Northwestern</td><td>2000</td><td>2,063</td><td>6.63</td></tr><tr><th>Rashaan Salaam <strong>*</strong></th><td>Colorado</td><td>1994</td><td>2,055</td><td>6.90</td></tr><tr><th>Charles White<strong>*</strong></th><td>Southern California</td><td>1979</td><td>2,050</td><td>6.17</td></tr><tr><th>Tevin Coleman</th><td>Indiana</td><td>2014</td><td>2,036</td><td>7.54</td></tr><tr><th>Ron Dayne<strong>*</strong></th><td>Wisconsin</td><td>1999</td><td>2,034</td><td>6.04</td></tr><tr><th>Christian McCaffrey<strong>*</strong></th><td>Stanford</td><td>2015</td><td>2,019</td><td>5.99</td></tr><tr><th>J.J. Arrington <strong>*</strong></th><td>California</td><td>2004</td><td>2,018</td><td>6.98</td></tr><tr><th>Ray Rice<strong>*</strong></th><td>Rutgers</td><td>2007</td><td>2,012</td><td>5.29</td></tr><tr><th>Troy Davis</th><td>Iowa State</td><td>1995</td><td>2,010</td><td>5.83</td></tr></tbody></table><p><em>*Includes bowl game stats.<br/>Stats according to <a href="http://www.sports-reference.com/cfb/" data-component="link" data-source="inlineLink" data-type="externalLink" data-ordinal="2" rel="nofollow">Sports-Reference.com</a>.</em></p><h3>The Official Stats Are a Little Murky</h3><p>College football stats have changed many times over the years and some &#39;official&#39; lists do not include all of the players listed above. Also, there was a point in the early 2000s when bowl games began to count toward a player&#39;s official season yards. At times in this transition, the school would count the bowl game while the NCAA did not.</p><p>At any rate, it&#39;s important to acknowledge that each of these players did rush for over 2,000 yards in the season. That alone is a great accomplishment, especially when compared to the NFL where, as of 2016, only seven running backs have joined the 2,000-yard club and the last was Adrian Peterson in 2012.</p><p>As student athletes, these players deserve the credit.</p>