Golesh explained the reasoning behind Auburn's heavy transfer portal haul at running back
Auburn completely rebuilt its offense in the transfer portal, but no position gained more production than running back. The Tigers already return Jeremiah Cobb, who rushed for 969 yards in 2025, but added three more experienced and productive running backs out of the portal.
When speaking to reporters Wednesday at Senior Bowl practice, Golesh explained their thought process. “It was a matter of adding just college reps,” Golesh said. “You feel like the younger you are in that room, the scarier it is.” While Cobb brings three years of experience to the room, the two behind him at the end of the 2025 season were both freshmen. Transfers Bryson Washington , Nykahi Davenport and Tae Meadows bring multiple years of college experience and each have had more carries than Auburn’s young running backs behind Cobb . Washington is arguably the biggest addition. He rushed for 788 yards and six touchdowns in 2025, but tallied over 1,000 yards in the previous season. “Bryson brings really two and a half years of starting game experience at the Power Four level,” Golesh said. “More than anything, the kind of kid he is, he was hungry to go play in an offense where you can run the ball. Wanted to play in the SEC. Wanted to play against the best talent in the country.” Golesh and offensive coordinator Joel Gordon’s offenses at USF ran the ball often and typically rotated running backs. In 2025, no USF running back had more than 98 carries but three had more than 70. The Bulls’ top running back, Nykahi Davenport, was one of the other three additions to the room. He rushed for 612 yards and seven touchdowns in 2025, and Golesh thinks his best may still be yet to come. “With as excited as we were about Nykahi, he’s still a baby. I mean, he was a redshirt freshman. Missed his whole freshman year,” Golesh said. “Everything he did was kind of on raw talent, and he’s still gotta continue to develop.” Meadows, the final addition to the room, rushed for 695 yards and six touchdowns this past season, but it was his first year getting significant carries. Having all three, along with Cobb, gives Auburn no shortage of options at the position. Byrum Brown, Auburn’s new quarterback, will also be a factor, as he rushed for 1,008 yards at USF this past season. That combination allows Auburn to potentially have one of the conference’s most explosive run games next season. And it’s all thanks to the priority of depth of Golesh and his new staff. Peter Rauterkus is an Auburn Sports Reporter for AL.com covering football, basketball and all things Auburn sports. He joined AL.com in July 2024. Prior to joining the sports staff at AL.com, Peter spent time...
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