Oregon State’s two leading rushers will return in 2017. Predictably, there’s been some personnel upheaval in the Beavers’ backfield as a result.
Taking the traditional Twitter tack to make his announcement, Paul Lucas confirmed that he will be transferring from OSU. The running back stated he made the “tough decision... after careful consideration and talking with my parents.”pic.twitter.com/7gJZwyseRe
— Pablo (@plucas3221) December 13, 2016
A three-star 2015 recruit, Lucas was rated as the No. 5 player at any position in the state of Arizona. A wide receiver initially, Lucas made the move to the backfield during the midst of his true freshman season.
After rushing for 172 yards on just 23 carries (7.5 ypc) in 2015, Lucas ran for just 113 yards on 33 carries this past season. He added six receptions for 83 yards, although he didn’t tally a touchdown by either rushing or receiving.
Leading rusher Ryan Nall, a sophomore with 951 yards this past season, and Artavis Pierce, a freshman who was second on the team with 523 yards, will both be back next season. With the departure of senior Tim Cook (137 yards), Lucas would’ve been the Beavers third-leading returning running back.