The running back room in East Lansing was far from a pleasant place to be in 2020, with Michigan State averaging just 91.4 yards per game on the ground and a measly 2.68 per carry during the pandemic-shortened season. Both statistics were near the bottom of the 127-team FBS rankings, and to add insult to injury, the Spartans didn’t have a single running back score a rushing touchdown.

Some new faces in the room may be the answer for head coach Mel Tucker this season, thanks to the transfer portal.

Kenneth Walker III and Harold Joiner join the mix

New to East Lansing this season are Kenneth Walker III and Harold Joiner, both sporting Spartans colors in 2021 via transfers

Walker III had 1,158 yards and 17 touchdowns on 217 carries over his 20 games at Wake Forest. He had breakaway runs of 96 and 75 yards, and tallied 5 100-yard games in 2 seasons with the Demon Deacons. The junior came to MSU in January and has worked his way up the depth chart. Over the summer, he spent time working out in Naperville, Illinois, with Spartans quarterback Payton Thorne and wide receivers Jayden Reed and Cade McDonald. Those three were teammates at Naperville Central High School, and the workouts gave Walker an opportunity to get familiar with his new teammates.

During the spring, Walker performed well. Coming out of fall camp, though neither Tucker nor offensive coordinator Jay Johnson have explicitly named a No. 1 running back, it’s expected Walker, wearing jersey No. 9, will get the most touches this fall.

Joiner came to MSU from Auburn, arriving in May. He joins returning backs Connor Heyward, Elijah Collins and Jordon Simmons as the options behind Walker.

During his 3 seasons at Auburn, Joiner played in 17 games, recording 15 carries for 103 yards. With an extra year of eligibility thanks to the NCAA’s COVID-19 waiver, he has 3 years of eligibility remaining.

At 6-foot-4, Joiner stands 3 inches taller than any other Spartans running back. His size affords him more versatility, and Tucker can use Joiner to slide from the backfield to line up as a receiver in multiple formations. While at Auburn, he also brought in 6 catches for 128 yards and 1 receiving touchdown.

The returners

Returning to the Spartan backfield, and hoping to put the woes of 2020 behind them, are redshirt senior Connor Heyward, redshirt junior Elijah Collins and sophomore Jordon Simmons.

Heyward started in 6 of 7 games in 2020, and had a team-high 65 carries for 200 yards. After briefly entering the transfer portal in 2019, he returned to MSU in 2020. A 3-year letter-winner, he’s played in 36 career games at MSU, including 15 starts. He also currently leads all active Spartans with 1,932 career all-purpose yards.

In 2018, Heyward led the Spartans in rushing with 529 yards and 5 touchdowns, and was named one of 5 finalists for the Paul Hornung Award — given to the nation’s most versatile player. He was also tabbed honorable mention All-Big Ten as a kick returner the same season.

For Collins, the 2020 season started with high expectations, but after struggling with COVID-19 issues, he was limited to 90 yards on 41 carries. In 2019, he led the Spartans in rushing with 988 yards, ranking 4th in the Big Ten, while also adding 5 rushing touchdowns.

The most likely first touch after Walker III would be the sophomore, Simmons. During the pandemic-shortened 2020 season, he found playing time right away as a true freshman, playing in 5 of the 7 games, even getting the start against Indiana. While he led the Spartans with 219 rushing yards and 43.8 yards per game, his 56 carries ranked 2nd on the squad. He also added 5 catches for 34 yards.

Of concern for Simmons is his durability — he missed games with Ohio State and Northwestern last season due to injury.

So, back to the question

All of this brings us back to the original question — does Tucker have the answer to the running back problem that plagued the Spartans in 2020?

On the surface, it would certainly appear so.

While it hasn’t been officially announced yet, it’s reasonable to anticipate Walker would be the Spartans top pick to carry the ball in 2021, and if he can bring with him the success he saw with Wake Forest, the Spartans faithful will be happy. But it would also be safe to assume that Tucker and Johnson will likely make use of several backs, spread the workload, and make situational substitutions.

To know for certain how well it all works, we’ll have to wait and see.