Leading up to the first game of the historic 2026 season, hornetsports.com will take a look at each position group. Today features the running backs coached by Nick Alaimalo.

• Last season Sacramento State set its school record and was second in the FCS by averaging 262.6 rushing yards per game. The team totaled 3,151 yards which ranked second in program history and scored 39 rushing touchdowns. However, the team returns just 4.8 percent of that production and has only two backs which were on the 2025 team back for this season.
• Jamar Curtis was injured for most of the year but returned healthy for the final game of the season against UC Davis where he rushed for 105 yards and touchdown. Curtis enters 2026 with 3,214 career rushing yards — the second highest total in all of NCAA Div. I (FBS/FCS). The Walford, Md., native has tallied 17 career 100-yard performances and has 11 games with multiple touchdown runs.
• Curron Borders rushed for 361 yards in 2024 and was poised for a breakout campaign last season before an injury sideline him for the entire season. Borders completed the rehab process and returned for a productive spring.
• The team will get a boost with a pair of four-year transfers. Davion Godley rushed for 1,142 yards and eight touchdowns in two seasons at Weber State. This past season, he led the team with 73.1 yards per game and set his career high with 193 rushing yards against Butler. Cincere Rhaney was a three-star recruit out of high school before committing to San Diego State. He amassed 4,603 yards and 50 touchdowns in his career while averaging 8.2 yards per carry.
• Junior college transfers Bryant Collins and Daniel Swinney will add depth and experience to the room. Collins rushed for 936 yards and 12 touchdowns at West LA JC in 2025, was named first team all-state Region IV and was a unanimous first team all-league selection. As a freshman, he was league MVP with 1,117 yards and nine touchdowns in eight games. Swinney rushed for 1,846 yards and 22 touchdowns in two years at Iowa Western CC. He was named the MVP of the JC National Championship game last season after rushing for 153 yards.
• True freshmen Isaiah Ene and Montrell Rice join the program after decorated high school careers. Ene was a three-star recruit of nearby Granite Bay HS. He rushed for 4,788 yards and 71 touchdowns in four varsity seasons. As a senior, he was the Sacramento Bee Large School Player of the Year. Rice rushed for 1,740 yards and 18 touchdowns as a senior at Tennyson HS in Hayward, Calif. He set his season high with 306 yards and three touchdowns against Newark Memorial HS.