Carlos Locklyn is hands down the best running backs coach in the country. There’s a reason every starting running back he’s coached at Ohio State has rushed for 1,000-plus yards and it’s not luck. It’s a track record built on player development, recruiting instincts, and a system that has produced elite production at every stop of his career, culminating in back-to-back standout seasons in Columbus.
The Numbers Don’t Lie
Since Ryan Day hired Locklyn away from Oregon in April 2024, the results at Ohio State have been immediate and sustained. In his first season, Locklyn inherited a backfield featuring TreVeyon Henderson and Quinshon Judkins, and the duo combined for 2,326 rushing yards and 25 touchdowns as Ohio State won the College Football Playoff national championship. Both running backs cleared the 1,000-yard mark that season, making them the third pair of Ohio State running backs to each rush for 1,000 yards in the same year. During the Buckeyes’ four-game CFP run alone, the tandem piled up 520 yards and 10 touchdowns while averaging 6.3 yards per carry.
That kind of production would be a career year for most coaches. For Locklyn, it was just the beginning.
In 2025, with Henderson and Judkins off to the NFL as second-round draft picks, Locklyn turned to a true freshman, Bo Jackson, to carry the load. Jackson didn’t just hold his own he rushed for 1,090 yards and six touchdowns, becoming only the fifth true freshman in Ohio State program history to reach the 1,000-yard mark. He also posted six 100-yard games, ranked third nationally among freshman rushers, and earned Freshman All-America honors. Two different seasons, two different sets of players, and the same result: 1,000-yard production out of the backfield.
A Track Record That Started Before Ohio State
Locklyn’s ability to develop 1,000-yard rushers didn’t begin when he arrived in Columbus. Before Ohio State, he spent two seasons as running backs coach at Oregon, where he helped build one of the Pac-12’s most productive rushing attacks. Under his guidance, Oregon finished in the top 30 nationally in rushing offense in both 2022 and 2023, including a No. 12 national ranking in 2022.
At the center of that success was Bucky Irving, who developed into a two-time 1,000-yard rusher and All-Pac-12 selection under Locklyn before going on to be drafted into the NFL. Before Oregon, Locklyn spent a season at Western Kentucky, where the Hilltoppers ranked second nationally in both scoring offense and total offense en route to a Conference USA Championship Game appearance. Locklyn also has non-coaching-specific roots in the run game as a player at Chattanooga, he rushed for 1,555 career yards and still holds the program’s single-season rushing average record.
Put it all together, and the pattern is hard to ignore: wherever Locklyn has coached running backs, the players in his room have consistently produced 1,000-yard seasons.
What Makes Locklyn Different
Part of what separates Locklyn from other position coaches is his ability to get top production out of very different types of players. Henderson and Judkins were established, experienced backs with proven track records before Locklyn ever coached them. Bo Jackson, by contrast, was an unproven true freshman who had to earn his role in fall camp. Locklyn got 1,000-yard results out of both scenarios in back-to-back years a sign that his coaching translates across experience levels, not just with pre-formed talent.
Locklyn has also shown he can push young players in real time. During spring practice ahead of the 2025 season, as Ohio State looked to replace Henderson and Judkins, Locklyn spoke highly of sophomore James Peoples’ development, saying the young back was pushing to be great. That kind of hands-on evaluation and player development has become a hallmark of how Locklyn runs his room — he identifies backs capable of stepping into a larger role and builds a plan to get them there.
His recruiting instincts have followed the same pattern. Locklyn has been an active presence on the recruiting trail since arriving in Columbus, working to keep Ohio State’s running back pipeline stocked with the next wave of talent. Prospects who have been recruited by him have spoken about his consistency and communication throughout the process, which has helped Ohio State continue landing highly regarded running back targets even with a crowded backfield.
Why This Matters for Ohio State Heading Forward
Ohio State’s offense under Ryan Day has always been built around explosive skill talent, but a truly complete attack needs a run game that can control tempo and finish games. Locklyn has given the Buckeyes exactly that. Two different national championship-caliber seasons, two different lead backs, the same 1,000-yard outcome that’s the kind of consistency programs build their identity around.
With Bo Jackson now entering his second season with real starting experience, and with Locklyn continuing to recruit at a high level, there’s little reason to expect the trend to slow down. If history is any indication, whoever lines up as Ohio State’s starting running back in 2026 and beyond will have a very real shot at joining the growing list of 1,000-yard rushers who came through Locklyn’s room.
Final Thoughts
Coaching titles like “best in the country” get thrown around loosely in college football, but Carlos Locklyn’s résumé backs it up with results, not just reputation. From Chattanooga to Western Kentucky to Oregon and now Ohio State, Locklyn has built a career around turning talented running backs into 1,000-yard producers — and at Ohio State, he’s done it in back-to-back seasons with completely different personnel. As long as that trend continues, Locklyn’s case as the top running backs coach in college football only gets stronger.
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