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Previewing Boston College Football's 2026 Position Groups: Running Backs
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- Previewing Boston College Football's 2026 Position Groups: Running Backs
Boston College Football.
The majority of Boston College football's offense was constructed from the transfer portal, and that is especially true of the running-backs room.
The Eagles added two transfer ball carriers, one of them being former Liberty Flame Evan Dickens, who rushed for over 1,000 yards last year, to complement their returning production while also accounting for the loss of Turbo Richard, who transferred to Indiana.
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Here is a full breakdown of the position group.
At a Glance
It isn't far-fetched to say that BC's run game will be the focal point of the offense this year.
The addition of Dickens , for starters, is a game-changer, as the Marietta, Ga., native ranked fifth in the country in total rushing yards last season with 1,339, including fourth in rushing scores with 16.
Dickens compiled six games with 100 or more total rushing yards, including three games with over 200 rushing yards, en route to Group of Five Second-Team All-American honors, and he will be looking to take another big step in his career with the Eagles in 2026.
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"I'm still hungry for more," Dickens said after the first practice of fall training camp. "Obviously, I had a really successful season last season, but that's in the past. I'm looking forward to mimicking or even having a better season this year. I'm still hungry. I'm not satisfied, and I'm gonna keep plotting."
If that doesn't get you fired up as a BC fan, I don't know what will.
Before his time at Liberty, Dickens spent two years at Georgia Tech, so this is actually his second stop in the ACC. Only this time around, he is expected to be one of the most heavily-featured offensive weapons for his team, compared to being used in a reserve role for the Yellow Jackets.
Among the returners, sophomore Bo MacCormack III will be expected to take a big leap from year one to year two, and he may even get the opportunity to split carries with Dickens at some point.
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The Buckingham Browne & Nichols (BB&N) product is a workhorse back who keeps his pad level down and grinds his way through the trenches, and he is certainly a candidate for players who could break out.
BC also added former Maryland running back Nolan Ray from the portal, and the Southfield, Mich., native is coming off a redshirt-sophomore campaign in which he totaled 289 yards and two touchdowns on 67 carries, averaging 4.3 yards per carry.
Freshman Sedric Addison, who hails from Suwanee, Ga., and accounted for over 2,100 yards and 29 touchdowns in four years of action at Peachtree Ridge, has a chance to also be involved in the ground attack at some point, and so could redshirt freshman Mekhi Dodd, a product of Catholic Memorial in West Roxbury, Mass.
This offseason, head coach Bill O'Brien brought in former Michigan running backs coach Mike Hart to lead the position group after most recently serving as an offensive analyst with Eastern Michigan.
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Hart was a four-year starter for the Wolverines from 2004-07 and was drafted by the Indianapolis Colts in the sixth round of the 2008 NFL Draft, so his playing experience, combined with 14 years of college coaching, will be invaluable to his pupils.
"Obviously, he's been in the league, which is somewhere I want to go," Dickens said. "So I spend a lot of time in the meeting room picking his brain about how it is, like what these coaches at the next level are looking for in a running back, and how I can evolve my game to be at that level that he was at. So he's been a real joy."
Projected Early-Season Depth Chart
1. Evan Dickens
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2. Bo MacCormack III
3. Nolan Ray
4. Sedric Addison OR Mekhi Dodd
2026 Boston College Running Backs
Evan Dickens - Redshirt Junior, 5-10, 195
A former consensus three-star running back from IMG Academy, Dickens is one of the most experienced ball carriers in the nation after posting 1,339 rushing yards and 16 scores on the ground with Liberty last season. He previously played at Georgia Tech.
Bo MacCormack III - Sophomore, 5-10, 200
MacCormack appeared in nine games as a backup last season, totaling 15 carries for 43 yards and a touchdown. He is from Westford, Mass., ranked as a top 10 overall recruit in the state in the class of 2025, and finished his high school career as the all-time leading rusher in Massachusetts state history with 6,699 rushing yards and 100 rushing touchdowns.
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Nolan Ray - Redshirt Junior, 6-0, 210
The Maryland transfer appeared in 25 games with three starts over his three-year career for the Terrapins, recording over 600 yards and four touchdowns. He was named to the Doak Walker Award preseason watchlist in 2025, and was selected to the Shaun Alexander Freshman of the Year Award watchlist in 2024.
Sedric Addison - Freshman, 5-11, 205
A three-star prospect who was ranked the 49th-best running back in the nation in the class of 2026, per 247Sports, Addison totaled 14 touchdowns (8 rushing, 6 receiving) as a senior, which was the best in Region 7 6A in Georgia.
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Mekhi Dodd - Redshirt Freshman, 6-0, 210
The Mattapan, Mass., native played in two games as a reserve running back while maintaining his redshirt, registering five yards on two carries and tallying one catch for three yards. He was rated among the top 10 overall recruits from Mass. and top 100 nationally among all running backs by 247Sports and On3 after rushing for over 1,000 yards and 17 touchdowns for CM in 2024.
Anthony Ferrucci - Redshirt Junior, 5-7, 195
Ferrucci saw action in one game last year, totaling four carries for 14 yards against Fordham. He is from Fishers, Ind., and went to Guerin Catholic.
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Tim Longo - Redshirt Freshman, 5-9, 195
A St. Anthony's (South Huntington, N.Y.) and Milton Academy (Milton, Mass.) product, Longo transitioned from wide receiver to running back after joining the program during the summer leading up to the 2025 season.
Billy Barrett - Freshman, 5-8, 185
Barrett manufactured over 1,000 yards of total offense with 12 touchdowns en route to first-team all-conference honors as a senior at Mountain Lakes High School, where he won the New Jersey Group I State Championship as a junior.
This is the second story of Boston College Eagles On SI's summer position previews series. We're providing an in-depth look at every position group through the rest of August.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com/college/bostoncollege as Previewing Boston College Football's 2026 Position Groups: Running Backs .
