Despite being lightly recruited and being listed as a defensive end by some recruiting services, James Conner burst onto the season as a big, bruising running back as a true freshman in 2013. He shared the backfield with Isaac Bennett two years ago but still managed to be a productive running back and capped off his first collegiate year by being named the Little Caesar’s Bowl MVP with his 229 yards and a touchdown on 26 carries.
As a sophomore, Conner took over the role as the bellcow of the Panther backfield and he certainly shined. He ran for over 100 yards in 7 of his 13 games and rush for over 200 yards on 3 occasions including his 220 yard, 4 touchdown effort against North Carolina and his 263 yard, 3 touchdown effort against Duke. Conner definitely established himself as a true lead ball carrier that was capable of putting the offense on his shoulders with his 1,765 yards and 26 touchdowns and he was rewarded with All-American accolades at the end of the season which was the first time that had happened for a Pittsburgh Panthers running back since Mike Heyward nearly 30 years ago.
James Conner’s season was such a historic one for the school as Conner managed to break three records that were previously held by the legendary Tony Dorsett. Conner bested Dorsett’s best marks for rushing touchdowns (26), total touchdowns (26), and points (156).
Positives:
Conner is a big man that carries the ball a lot. His listed size of 6’2″ 240 pounds is going to grab a lot of attention and could bode well for him handling a lot of carries at the next level. He shows good vision and is able to recognize cutback lanes. Despite being a large running back, he has some pretty nice feet that can make people miss in the open field. Conner can be tough to bring down when he’s going north-south. He doesn’t give up on runs very easily. Decisive runner.
Needs work on:
He’s not a home run threat at all and really lacks speed to get to the edge against any defense that has a shred of athleticism. Looks real slow once he gets to the open field. Though he has good size, he doesn’t hold up well in pass protection. Instead of using his size to take on blitzers, he prefers to dive at feet. Only has 8 catches in two years so it remains to be seen whether or not he can be a threat in the passing game. Will get tackled on first contact by smaller defenders when he’s running sideways and doesn’t seem to possess great balance.
Where he stands:
There has been quite a bit of buzz regarding Conner as a first round prospect almost on the level of Ohio State’s Ezekiel Elliott and Alabama’s Derrick Henry, but he’s just not there yet. His press clippings, stats, and size would lead you to be believe he’s a top tier NFL prospect but speed and athleticism is a major concern for him. He doesn’t always play to his size and he’s not going to be able to run away from anyone at the next level. I don’t believe that Conner will warrant much more than a 4th round pick and that’s only if he’s able to improve in the pass game as both a blocker and a receiver.
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