Breaking down the top RB classes in the 2027 cycle so far

Some of the biggest recruiting headlines this summer have surrounded top running back prospects. The position is chock-full of blue-chip talent and a majority of the best burners in the nation have already made their college decisions.

According to the Rivals Industry Ranking, a weighted average that utilizes all major recruiting media companies, 90 of the top 100 RB prospects in the cycle are now committed, as of Aug. 24. That includes 47 of the top 50 and all of the top 25.

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A slew of programs have landed a burner this cycle, but which schools are loading up with talent at the position? Rivals breaks down the top 2027 running back classes following rankings updates and some major decisions that have come since July.

4-star Tre Segarra (No. 121 NATL., No. 7 RB)
4-star Trey Martin (No. 161 NATL., No. 10 RB)
3-star Brennen Lacey (No. 465 NATL., No. 35 RB)

The first recruiting cycle of the Lane Kiffin era in Baton Rouge has brought twists and turns, but the month of June was good to LSU. It landed 10 of its 16 commits in the class over that 30-day span, including all three of its running back pledges.

It starts with Segarra, now the No. 2 senior prospect in the state of South Carolina. Comped to former Florida star and NFL RB Dameon Pierce, the 5-foot-10, 210-pounder rushed for 1,460 yards and 17 touchdowns as a junior. His stock has remained on the rise.

Martin committed one day after Segarra and he’s moved up the rankings since, now checking in as the nation’s No. 10 burner. He’s the No. 6 senior in Louisiana and will captain Franklin Parish this fall. Lacey was the first to commit on June 7 and he could obtain blue-chip status with a big senior campaign for Frisco (Texas). This is quite the haul for position coach Kevin Smith.

4-star Landen Williams-Callis (No. 49 NATL., No. 3 RB)
4-star Noah Roberts (No. 263 NATL., No. 19 RB)

The last top-100 prospect to come off the board was Williams-Callis, who announced his commitment to Texas on Aug. 1. The Longhorns were long trending for the reigning Texas Gatorade Player of the Year and they eventually beat out Texas A&M and others in a big recruiting victory for position coach Jabbar Juluke.

As a junior for Randle (Texas), Williams-Callis rushed for over 3,500 yards and 59 touchdowns. Over the last three seasons, he’s accrued over 750 carries across 45 games and turned them into 7,554 yards and 125 scores.

He joins Roberts, who’s been in the class since the beginning of May. The No. 5 senior prospect in Arizona, the 6-foot-1, 190-pounder stars for Basha, one of the top high school programs in the state. He’s ran for 29 scores and caught 13 more in his prep career.

4-star Lathan Whisenton (No. 155 NATL., No. 9 RB)
4-star Isaiah Rogers (No. 194 NATL., No. 14 RB)

For the second cycle in a row, Notre Dame is set to sign a pair of blue-chippers in the backfield. Marcus Freeman, position coach Ja’Juan Seider and the Irish staff continue to recruit the position as well as anybody. They identified their two top targets and closed on them both in March.

First came Whisenton, now the No. 18 recruit in Texas. He rushed for over 1,500 yards and 24 touchdowns as a junior. Five days later, the Irish beat out Indiana, Penn State, Georgia and others for Rogers, the No. 2 recruit in Massachusetts.

Notre Dame has a firm grasp on the No. 2 spot in the Rivals Industry Team Recruiting Rankings. Whisenton and Rogers are two of 19 Irish pledges that are featured in the recently-updated 2027 Rivals300.

Five-Star Plus+ David Gabriel Georges (No. 8 NATL., No. 2 RB)
3-star Asa Barnes (No. 552 NATL., No. 40 RB)

Gabriel Georges carried arguably the most high-profile recruitment this cycle. It came to a head on July 22 as Tennessee managed to keep the Baylor School (Tenn.) superstar in the Volunteer State, beating out Ohio State.

He rushed for 27 touchdowns last season and began his senior campaign with a dominant three-TD showing over the weekend. ‘DGG’ reminds Rivals’ Scouting and Rankings Team of Quinshon Judkins. The 5-foot-11, 220-pound bruiser looks SEC-ready right now.

Not long after Gabriel Georges committed, Tennessee added Barnes, another in-state RB, to the class. He’s another senior who leads the charge for his offense at Westview. Barnes held his fair share of Power Four offers, but honed in on playing for De’Rail Sims and the Vols.

Five-Star Plus+ Kemon Spell (No. 7 NATL., No. 1 RB)
3-star Noah Parker (No. 818 NATL., No. 66 RB)

Gabriel Georges has swiped many of the headlines this summer, but it’s Spell that remains RB1 in both the Rivals Industry Ranking and the Rivals300. His recruitment was a wild one for a few months, but once Georgia locked in on the 5-foot-10, 205-pounder, it was a wrap.

Formerly a longtime Penn State commit, Spell backed off that pledge back in October after the Nittany Lions fired head coach James Franklin. He proceeded to hit the reset button on his process, took some visits and named multiple different leaders over the next few months. It was a visit to Athens in late January that really made its mark, though. Spell left locked in with Kirby Smart and Co. and has kept things awful quiet since.

He’s rushed for over 3,400 yards and 52 touchdowns over the last two seasons for McKeesport (Pa.). Spell joined Parker, an in-state bruiser who’s been committed to UGA since November. He officially shut his recruitment down in April and is looking to bolster his stock with a big senior campaign for Macon County.