- BEST IN STATE -

NC College Football Rushing Leaders: Five players have joined 1,000-yard club

UNC’s Omarion Hampton, NC Wesleyan’s Anthony Byrd lead the way after Week 12

Eric Lusk

Published

November 21, 2024

A graphic depicting the top rushers in North Carolina college football after Week 12, including UNC’s Omarion Hampton, NC Wesleyan’s Anthony Byrd and Catawba’s LJ Turner.

The top six rushers in North Carolina college football after week 12, ordered by most rushing yards.

The list of North Carolina college football players in the 1,000-yard rushing club has grown to five.

North Carolina Central’s J’Mari Taylor added his name to the list last Friday night with a 206-yard, three-touchdown outing against Howard. Taylor now has 1,068 yards on the season.

UNC’s Omarion Hampton continues to be our state’s top overall rusher. His strong performance against Wake Forest (244 yards on 35 carries, 1 TD) puts him at 1,422 yards on the season with two regular season games remaining against Boston College and NC State.

Our 1,000-yard club includes at least one player from every NCAA division: FBS, FCS, D2 and D3.

Taylor, Hampton and Davidson’s Mari Adams lead the state in rushing touchdowns with 14.

Here are the top 15 running backs in the Old North State after Week 12, arranged by most rushing yards. A second list follows of the top rushing touchdown scorers.

NC College Football Leaders | Rushing Yardage

Omarion Hampton (North Carolina | FBS): 248 Attempts, 1,422 Rushing Yards, 14 Touchdowns in 10 Games Played. Averages 142.2 Yards Per Game and 5.7 Yards Per Attempt.
Anthony Byrd (NC Wesleyan | D3): 203 Attempts, 1,341 Rushing Yards, 10 Touchdowns in 9 Games Played. Averages 149.0 Yards Per Game and 6.6 Yards Per Attempt.
LJ Turner (Catawba | D2): 174 Attempts, 1,224 Rushing Yards, 13 Touchdowns in 8 Games Played. Averages 153.0 Yards Per Game and 7.0 Yards Per Attempt.
Mari Adams (Davidson | FCS): 166 Attempts, 1,137 Rushing Yards, 14 Touchdowns in 10 Games Played. Averages 113.7 Yards Per Game and 6.8 Yards Per Attempt.
J’Mari Taylor (North Carolina Central | FCS): 180 Attempts, 1,068 Rushing Yards, 14 Touchdowns in 10 Games Played. Averages 106.8 Yards Per Game and 5.9 Yards Per Attempt.
Chancellor Lee-Parker (Brevard | D3): 145 Attempts, 945 Rushing Yards, 10 Touchdowns in 9 Games Played. Averages 105.0 Yards Per Game and 6.5 Yards Per Attempt.
Demond Claiborne (Wake Forest | FBS): 189 Attempts, 919 Rushing Yards, 11 Touchdowns in 10 Games Played. Averages 91.9 Yards Per Game and 4.9 Yards Per Attempt.
Mason Sheron (Davidson | FCS): 145 Attempts, 813 Rushing Yards, 10 Touchdowns in 10 Games Played. Averages 81.3 Yards Per Game and 5.6 Yards Per Attempt.
Travon Tensley (Shaw | D2): 160 Attempts, 812 Rushing Yards, 4 Touchdowns in 10 Games Played. Averages 81.2 Yards Per Game and 5.1 Yards Per Attempt.
Rushawn Baker (Elon | FCS): 160 Attempts, 753 Rushing Yards, 9 Touchdowns in 11 Games Played. Averages 68.5 Yards Per Game and 4.7 Yards Per Attempt.
Star Thomas (Duke | FBS): 180 Attempts, 742 Rushing Yards, 5 Touchdowns in 10 Games Played. Averages 74.2 Yards Per Game and 4.1 Yards Per Attempt.
Trevon Hester (Winston-Salem State | D2): 145 Attempts, 741 Rushing Yards, 5 Touchdowns in 9 Games Played. Averages 82.3 Yards Per Game and 5.1 Yards Per Attempt.
Rahjai Harris (East Carolina | FBS): 146 Attempts, 730 Rushing Yards, 7 Touchdowns in 10 Games Played. Averages 73.0 Yards Per Game and 5.0 Yards Per Attempt.
Sincere Baines (UNC Pembroke | D2): 121 Attempts, 714 Rushing Yards, 8 Touchdowns in 11 Games Played. Averages 64.9 Yards Per Game and 5.9 Yards Per Attempt.
Branson Adams (Western Carolina | FCS): 124 Attempts, 695 Rushing Yards, 4 Touchdowns in 11 Games Played. Averages 63.2 Yards Per Game and 5.6 Yards Per Attempt.

NC College Football Leaders | Rushing TDs

J’Mari Taylor (North Carolina Central | FCS): 14 Touchdowns in 10 Games Played.
Mari Adams (Davidson | FCS): 14 Touchdowns in 10 Games Played.
Omarion Hampton (North Carolina | FBS): 14 Touchdowns in 10 Games Played.
LJ Turner (Catawba | D2): 13 Touchdowns in 8 Games Played.
JR Martin (Mars Hill | D2): 11 Touchdowns in 9 Games Played.
Demond Claiborne (Wake Forest | FBS): 11 Touchdowns in 10 Games Played.
Anthony Byrd (NC Wesleyan | D3): 10 Touchdowns in 9 Games Played.
Chancellor Lee-Parker (Brevard | D3): 10 Touchdowns in 9 Games Played.
Mason Sheron (Davidson | FCS): 10 Touchdowns in 10 Games Played.
Jalynn Williams (Western Carolina | FCS): 9 Touchdowns in 6 Games Played.
Carson Gresock (Gardner-Webb | FCS): 9 Touchdowns in 10 Games Played.
Jackson Parris (Barton | D2): 9 Touchdowns in 11 Games Played.
Rushawn Baker (Elon | FCS): 9 Touchdowns in 11 Games Played.
Alex Boyd (Lenoir-Rhyne | D2): 8 Touchdowns in 7 Games Played.
Quavaris Crouch (Johnson C. Smith | D2): 8 Touchdowns in 8 Games Played.
Sincere Baines (UNC Pembroke | D2): 8 Touchdowns in 11 Games Played.
Marquece Williams (Catawba | D2): 7 Touchdowns in 9 Games Played.
Rahjai Harris (East Carolina | FBS): 7 Touchdowns in 10 Games Played.

Eric Lusk Publisher & Editor

Eric Lusk started NC Football News in 2023. He's an old newspaper guy with a fondness for underdogs, redemption stories and the triple-option offense. He's a proud graduate of Jesse O. Sanderson High School and UNC's School of Journalism. He's thankful for God's mercy, family and second chances.

See Full Bio