TCU position outlook: Kyle Hicks takes his turn as the No. 1 back

The Star-Telegram takes a look at the 2016 TCU football team position-by-position as the season approaches. The first game is at 7 p.m. Sept. 3 vs. South Dakota State at Amon G. Carter Stadium.

TCU knew it would not have last season’s leading rusher, Aaron Green, now in the NFL. The loss of Shaun Nixon for the year to injury, however, leaves the Horned Frogs down a runner.

Nixon, who also missed 2014 because of a knee injury, played a lot of receiver last season but was expected to return to tailback and provide competition for Kyle Hicks. But Hicks took the opportunity and ran with it in spring, emerging as the No. 1 candidate in the backfield. The former Arlington Martin star will get a chance quickly to make an impact.

The personnel

Kyle Hicks (5-10, 210, Jr.), versatile back who the Frogs trust running and catching. He carried 11 times and caught four passes in the rainy slog against Baylor last year.

Darius Anderson (5-11, 194, Fr.), four-star recruit ranked the No. 3 back in Texas by 247Sports. Ran for 30 touchdowns in an unbeaten state championship season at Rosenberg George Ranch.

Trevorris Johnson (5-11, 226, Jr.), power back who has slimmed down, according to coach Gary Patterson. His 5.9 yards per carry average is the best of the backs on the roster.

Sewo Olonilua (6-3, 225, Fr.), imposing four-star recruit who averaged 11.4 yards per carry as a senior at Humble Kingwood. Also played linebacker. Rated No. 1 athlete in Texas by 247Sports.

Derrick Green (5-11, 234, Sr.), transfer from Michigan, where he played 23 games and started seven. Career numbers of 212 carries, 898 yards (4.2 yards average) and seven touchdowns.

Key stat

17 Games with 40-plus rush attempts for TCU in two years in the Air Raid offense. The Frogs have 1,070 rush attempts in the past 26 games.

What they’re saying

“Right now, Kyle is the guy. I think there’s a separation. And then probably the best true running back, second, is probably Darius Anderson. ... I think they all have their place in the offense.”

Coach Gary Patterson

“I’m pretty confident about our running back group. We lost Shaun, but we have Trevorris Johnson still, we have Sewo, we have a freshman that came in, Darius Anderson. We just got Derrick Green. I’m pretty confident about the amount of skill we have in that room.”

Running back Kyle Hicks

Final analysis

Kyle Hicks is the clear No. 1 option for the TCU ground game, because not much is proven behind him. Trevorris Johnson has 96 carries, but he was hardly used at the end of last year — just three carries in the final four games. Michigan transfer Derrick Green was expected to need time to get up to speed in a new system on a new team. After that, it’s freshmen Darius Anderson and Sewo Olonilua. They’re both four-star recruits who have made a good impression. But this unit will be led by Hicks, who’ll get the ball both handed and thrown to him.

This story was originally published August 22, 2016 at 11:13 AM with the headline "TCU position outlook: Kyle Hicks takes his turn as the No. 1 back."