Ashton Jeanty

Ashton Jeanty
Jeanty with the Boise State Broncos in 2023
Boise State Broncos – No. 2
PositionRunning back
ClassJunior
MajorCommunication
Personal information
Born: (2003-12-02) December 2, 2003 (age 21)
Jacksonville, Florida, U.S.
Height5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)
Weight215 lb (98 kg)
Career history
College
Bowl games
High schoolLone Star (Frisco, Texas)
Career highlights and awards

Ashton Jeanty (/ˈdʒɛnti/ JEN-tee; born December 2, 2003), is an American football running back. A college football All-American for the Boise State Broncos, he won the Maxwell and Doak Walker Awards and was the Heisman Trophy runner-up after leading the NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) in rushing yards and touchdowns in 2024.

Early life

Jeanty was born on December 2, 2003, in Jacksonville, Florida.[1][2] The son of a U.S. Navy chief petty officer, he first played football at Great Bridge Middle School in Chesapeake, Virginia. As a high school freshman at Naples Middle/High School, a school for military dependents near Naples, Italy, he was initially placed at quarterback before being moved to running back after two games. Playing against teams from other base schools throughout Europe, Jeanty ran for over 1,200 yards and scored 21 touchdowns in the team's six-game season.[3]

After that season, Jeanty told his parents that he wanted to return to the U.S. to play high school football.[3] He eventually attended Lone Star High School in Frisco, Texas, where he rushed for 1,843 yards with 41 total touchdowns as a senior.[4] He committed to Boise State University to play college football.[5]

College career

2022 season

As a true freshman at Boise State in 2022, Jeanty split playing time with George Holani. He played in all 14 games with two starts and finished the year with 821 yards on 156 carries and seven touchdowns.[6][7] In the 2022 Frisco Bowl, he rushed for 178 yards and a touchdown.[8]

2023 season

Jeanty returned to Boise State in 2023 [9] and again shared duties with Holani. During that season, Jeanty led the team in rushing yards with 1,347 and 14 touchdowns. He also had 569 receiving yards, the second highest on the team and the most of any running back in the nation,[10] and 5 receiving touchdowns. He was second in the nation in yards from scrimmage and was named the Mountain West Offensive Player of the Year.[11]

2024 season

In the 2024 season-opening game against Georgia Southern, Jeanty rushed for 267 yards, breaking a 46-year-old single-game record for Boise State,[12] and 6 touchdowns, which tied the Paulson Stadium record and the Mountain West record. His rushing performance was the best of any FBS rusher during Week 1. At the close of the 2024 regular season, Jeanty led the FBS in both yards from scrimmage and rushing yards, as well as both rushing touchdowns and total scoring.[13] Jeanty was given first-team All-Mountain West honors, as well as being named the conference's Offensive Player of the Year.[14]

Jeanty is said to be the top running back prospect in the 2025 NFL Draft and was runner-up for the Heisman Trophy.[15][16] Jeanty won the Maxwell Award and Doak Walker Award, being named a unanimous All-American by the Associated Press.[17][18] He declared for the draft on January 7, 2025.[19]

Statistics

Year Team Games Rushing Receiving
GP GS Att Yards Avg TD Rec Yards Avg TD
2022 Boise State 14 2 156 821 5.3 7 14 155 11.1 0
2023 Boise State 12 10 220 1,347 6.1 14 43 569 13.2 5
2024 Boise State 14 14 374 2,601 7.0 29 23 138 6.0 1
Career 40 26 750 4,769 6.4 50 80 862 10.8 6
Legend
Led NCAA Division I FBS
Bold Career high

Personal life

Jeanty is a Christian.[20]

References

  1. ^ Riley, Gavin (August 6, 2024). "Ashton Jeanty took an unconventional path to college football. Now, he's about to take it by storm". www.gavinriley.com. Retrieved September 29, 2024.
  2. ^ Kassim, Ehsan (September 21, 2024). "Who is Ashton Jeanty? What to know of Boise State football's Hesiman hopeful running back". USA TODAY. Retrieved September 29, 2024.
  3. ^ a b Uggetti, Paolo (October 25, 2024). "Boise State's Ashton Jeanty has turned the ground game into a blockbuster". ESPN.com. Retrieved October 25, 2024.
  4. ^ Riddle, Greg (November 4, 2021). "How Frisco Lone Star's Ashton Jeanty could stand alongside Texas high school football legends". Dallas News. Retrieved November 13, 2023.
  5. ^ Riddle, Greg (September 14, 2021). "Frisco Lone Star three-star running back/receiver Ashton Jeanty commits to Boise State". Dallas News. Retrieved November 13, 2023.
  6. ^ From Italy to Idaho, freshman Ashton Jeanty might be the next great BSU running back
  7. ^ Can Ashton Jeanty surpass George Holani as RB1?
  8. ^ Boise State freshman sets Frisco Bowl record as Broncos rally to beat Mean Green
  9. ^ Roberts, Rachel (September 15, 2023). "Powered by 'borderline surreal' moves, Boise State running back among nation's leaders". Idaho Statesman. Retrieved October 1, 2024.
  10. ^ [1]
  11. ^ [2]
  12. ^ [3],
  13. ^ [4],
  14. ^ "Mountain West Announces 2024 Football All-Conference Teams and Individual Honors". Mountain West Conference. December 3, 2024. Retrieved December 27, 2024.
  15. ^ Miller, Natalie (September 29, 2024). "RB Ashton Jeanty pushing for a first-round draft grade and a Heisman trophy". The Draft Wire. USA Today. Retrieved October 1, 2024.
  16. ^ "2024 Heisman Trophy Voting". College Football at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved December 27, 2024.
  17. ^ "AP All-America team: Travis Hunter, Xavier Watts back on first team; Ashton Jeanty is unanimous pick". AP News. December 16, 2024. Retrieved December 27, 2024.
  18. ^ "Ashton Jeanty Wins Doak Walker Award and Maxwell Award". Boise State University Athletics. Retrieved December 27, 2024.
  19. ^ Uggetti, Paolo (January 7, 2025). "Boise State star RB Ashton Jeanty declares for NFL draft". ESPN.com. Retrieved January 9, 2025.
  20. ^ Mercer, Kevin (October 9, 2024). "Boise State RB Ashton Jeanty says 'my identity is in Christ' as he builds Heisman resume". Sports Spectrum. Retrieved December 4, 2024.