Eagles would be wise to monitor these sub-radar, late-round RB prospects
. Israel Abanikanda, Pitt. . player. 866. .
Pittsburgh’s Israel Abanikanda’s FBS-leading 20 touchdowns could make the Eagles want to keep him in Pennsylvania.
You read that right. Pittsburgh’s Israel “Izzy” Abanikanda had the most rushing touchdowns in college football among FBS teams with 20 touchdowns and an ACC-leading 1,426 yards on the ground in 2022. Despite this, Abandikanda is still hovering around the tenth-ranked running back on most Big Boards, and the former Panther has the potential to earn fourth or fifth-round grades.
Abanikanda is also only 20 years old and will be until October. He has great size for his position, weighing in at 215 pounds, Abanikanda is can break tackles and have a role in pass blocking. Izzy also possesses great speed, which he showcased when he rushed for a whopping six touchdowns in Pittsburgh’s 2022 matchup with Virginia Tech.
HAVE A DAY ISRAEL ABANIKANDA!!
— The Checkdown (@thecheckdown) October 8, 2022
6 TDS ON THE DAY 🤯
(via @ACCFootball)pic.twitter.com/ZdJrG0JaDD
The main knock on Abanikanda’s game is that sometimes he lacks vision, and can be seen running straight into piles or running into tacklers when a hole might have been open elsewhere. Patience and vision can be developed however, especially when considering Abanikanda’s exceptional youth.
Eagles’ running backs coach Jemal Singleton also has a history of bringing out the best in young running backs. He has been a huge part of the Eagles’ rushing attack reaching new levels over the past two seasons since joining the team in 2021.
Singleton helped Miles Sanders to a career year this past season. He was also a big part of Cincinnati Bengals star Joe Mixon’s emergence in 2019 and 2020. Frank Gore’s final 1,000-yard seasons came under Singleton’s watch as Indianapolis Colts running backs coach in 2016 and 2017.
Abanikanda could be a perfect rotational back that would work well with the pieces the Eagles already have on offense. While he may not get the opportunities to find the endzone 20 times as a rookie, he is a player that will still be younger than 25 when he enters the final year of his rookie deal in 2027.
