There were no running backs selected among the top 10 in last year’s NFL draft (Georgia’s Knowshon Moreno went No. 12 to Denver), but Mel Kiper projects Clemson’s C.J. Spiller to go 10th to Jacksonville. Spiller had 1,212 rushing yards and 503 receiving yards last season, and he was the only Bowl Subdivision player to score at least one touchdown in every one of his team’s games.
Mel Kiper ranks Spiller among the “best character guys” in Clemson and Atlantic Coast Conference history.
“He’s the all-purpose dynamo that a Reggie Bush was or a Felix Jones was,” Kiper said. “He’s kind of a cross between a Reggie Bush and a Felix Jones. Speedwise, he could be in the 4.3s, so he gives you so many dimensions and so much versatility as a runner, receiver and a return man. He can give you all that all-purpose yardage and be a great decoy when he’s in the game, too.
“When Reggie Bush fakes a reverse, he takes guys with him. That’s what happens when you’ve got a guy with that kind of speed and explosiveness.”
Spiller and Bush are the only college players with 3,000 career rushing yards, 1,500 kickoff return yards, 1,000 receiving yards and 500 punt return yards.