Arts, Music, and Recreation Sports The 2,000 Yard Club of College Football A Single Season Stat That's Shared by Elite FBS Athletes Share Flipboard Email Print Larry Johnson rushed for 2,087 yards in 2002 for Penn State. (Tom Pidgeon/Getty Images) Sports Football College Football Basics How to Play & Coach Best of Football Plays & Formations Baseball Basketball Bicycling Billiards Bodybuilding Bowling Boxing Car Racing Cheerleading Climbing Cricket Diving Extreme Sports Golf Gymnastics Ice Hockey Martial Arts Professional Wrestling Skateboarding Skating Skiing Snowboarding Soccer Surfing Swimming Table Tennis Tennis Track & Field Volleyball Other Sports & Activities View More by Tim Hyland Updated March 17, 2017 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.Star Running Backs Who Rushed for 2,000 YardsCollege 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.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.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's almost one-fifth of the club. SchoolYearYardsYards per CarryBarry Sanders*Oklahoma State19882,6287.64Melvin Gordon*Wisconsin20142,5877.54Kevin Smith*UCF20072,5675.70Marcus Allen* USC19812,3425.81Derrick Henry*Alabama20152,2195.62Troy DavisIowa State19962,1855.44Andre Williams *Boston College20132,1776.13Ladainian Tomlinson* TCU20002,1585.85Tony Dorsett*Pittsburgh19762,1505.81Mike Rozier*Nebraska19832,1487.81Matt ForteTulane20072,1275.89Ricky Williams*Texas19982,1245.88Ron Dayne*Wisconsin19962,1096.49Larry Johnson* Penn State20022,0877.70Donald Brown*Connecticut20082,0835.68Lorenzo White*Michigan State19862,0664.93Byron HanspardTexas Tech19962,0846.15Damien Anderson*Northwestern20002,0636.63Rashaan Salaam *Colorado19942,0556.90Charles White*Southern California19792,0506.17Tevin ColemanIndiana20142,0367.54Ron Dayne*Wisconsin19992,0346.04Christian McCaffrey*Stanford20152,0195.99J.J. Arrington *California20042,0186.98Ray Rice*Rutgers20072,0125.29Troy DavisIowa State19952,0105.83 *Includes bowl game stats.Stats according to Sports-Reference.com.The Official Stats Are a Little MurkyCollege football stats have changed many times over the years and some 'official' 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's official season yards. At times in this transition, the school would count the bowl game while the NCAA did not.At any rate, it'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.As student athletes, these players deserve the credit. Continue Reading