He may not be as big as Ohio State’s Carlos Hyde or as fast as Oregon’s De’Anthony Thomas, but you will be hard-pressed to find a running back in all of college football as complete as he is.
Heck, he’s not even the fastest or biggest running back on his team.
The running back we’re talking about is the Wisconsin Badgers senior and jack-of-all-trades, James White.
White has played in the shadow of another running back at Wisconsin for the majority of his career.
During his freshman year it was John Clay and Montee Ball who stole the show, yet White still went on to win Big Ten freshman of the year. During his sophomore and junior seasons, Ball became the NCAA’s all-time leader in touchdowns and even made a Heisman push. This season, it’s been the young Melvin Gordon who has been the talk of town with electrifying long plays and highlight reel touchdowns.
But White has stayed in the background and continued to do what he does so well, play exceptional football in every facet of the game.
It’s been White’s chance to shine over the past two weeks with a total of 42 carries for 279 yards and four touchdowns while adding eight catches for 66 yards and another score.
With more fans taking notice of the senior’s all-around performance on the field, White also knows he’s playing his best football.
“I’m just trying to be as versatile as possible out there. Be sharp on pass protection. Be a viable option in the receiving game and don’t miss any cuts as a running back. I’m trying to play as complete as possible,” White stated following his dominant performance against a hot BYU team
Head Coach Gary Andersen has mentioned that White is the most “complete” back he’s ever coached and he believes White has even bigger aspirations.
“He has a big desire to play at the next level and that’s a big part of what drives him here at Wisconsin,” explained Andersen when talking about the motivation James uses to become a better football player.
Similar to his time at Wisconsin, White isn’t going to jump off the page when NFL scouts take a look at him for the 2014 NFL Draft. He’s going to be a guy that drops back to the third or fourth round and makes a team very happy because of his underrated skill-set.
One of the least talked about running back traits in the NFL is pass protection, an area that White has honed in and should excel at the next level.
At one point in the game against BYU, White made a critical blitz pick-up on third down which allowed Joel Stave to convert the first down and keep the Badgers driving down the field. Those are the kind of plays that go unnoticed in the box score, but will be instrumental in his value as a pro.
While White doesn’t have all the flash that guys like Ron Dayne, John Clay and Montee Ball had as they entered the NFL, he has a more realistic skill-set that could make him an impact player there.
White has the upside of a guy down in New Orleans named Darren Sproles who was a fourth-round draft pick by the San Diego Chargers in 2005. Not a lot of people knew who he was out of Kansas State back then, but they do now.
Keep an eye on White as he finishes his senior season with the Badgers and give him a follow on twitter @mighty_mouse_20.
What has your interpretation of White’s career been at Wisconsin? Is he vastly underrated? Let me know by commenting below.
Nick Grays is a senior writer at the Sports Bank where he covers the Wisconsin Badgers and Green Bay Packers. He also enjoys sharing Fantasy Advice and pretends to be a Golf expert from time-to-time. Follow him on Twitter by clicking here or visit his blog Nick Knows Best. If social media is not your thing, shoot him an email at grays@uwalumni.com.
Images obtained from UWBadgers.com