NC State football: Five best running backs

Some history could be made this fall in NC State football. Dave Doeren is six wins away from setting a new school record for most victories.

How many of Doeren’s players over the past 10 years would rank among the best in their position groups? Throughout the summer, TheWolfpacker.com is ranking the top five at all spots on the field in NC State football history.

At the running back position, while Doeren had marquee players, none crack the list.

5. Tremayne Stephens (1994-97)

In a close call between Stephens and Stan Fritts and Anthony Barbour, the nod goes to Stephens, a two-time All-ACC selection, including first team as a senior in 1997 after he rushed for 1,142 yards on 204 carries.

Stephens finished his Wolfpack career with 3,553 yards on the ground, third most in NC State football history. There is nearly 700 yards between Stephens and the player next on the list — Matthew Dayes. Stephens’ 19 career rushing scores is also third most for the Pack.

Stephens joins Ted Brown (more on him below) as the only running backs to lead NC State in rushing yards for four years in a row.

Stephens played two seasons in the NFL

4. Willie Burden (1971-73)

No NC State running back had rushed for more than 1,000 yards in a season until Burden accomplished that in 1973, rushing for 1,014 yards on just 150 carries for 6.8 yards per carry. Of the other nine running backs to wear a Wolfpack uniform to break 1,000 yards, the next highest was Barbour’s 6.1 yards in 1992.

Two years before breaking 1,000 yards, Burden had set a school record with 910 yards on the ground. His 2,529 rushing yards in three seasons remain 10th most ever for NC State football, as is his 22 rushing scores.

Burden was first-team All-ACC in 1972 and 1973, and in the latter was named the ACC Player of the Year.

Burden was drafted in the sixth round by the Detroit Lions but played mainly in the Canadian Football League instead, where he was the 1975 CFL Player of the Year.

3. Joe McIntosh (1981-84)

In 1981, McIntosh was named the ACC Rookie of the Year, starting a career that would only trail Brown in productivity. He ran for a career-high of 1,190 yards that season, the most ever by a NC State football freshman and still fourth all-time for a single season in program history.

McIntosh went over 1,000 yards again as a junior with 1,081 yards. Over his career, McIntosh finished with 3,642 rushing yards, second to only Brown. McIntosh is also second to Brown in career yards per game at NC State (93.4) and 100-yard rushing contests (20).

After being named first-team All-ACC twice, McIntosh was selected in the fifth round by the Detroit Lions.

2. Dick Christy (1955-57)

Christy rushed 348 times for 1,817 yards, an average of 5.2 yards per carry, which still ranks eighth best all-time for NC State. His 7.1 yards per rush (85 carries for 602 yards) in 1955 remains a school record. During that season, Christy became the first Wolfpack running back to register at least three 100-yard rushing games in a year.

In 1957, he once again rushed for at least 100 yards in a game three times while scoring 13 total touchdowns (seven rushing, four receiving and two kick returns). That is still tied for the ninth most scores in a single season at NC State. He famously ran for four touchdowns against South Carolina, a game in which Christy accounted for all 29 points scored, which is one off the school record for a single game. The Pack clinched the ACC title with a three-point win that day.

After the 1957 season, Christy was named the ACC Player of the Year and Athlete Of the Year as well as first-team All-American by the Associated Press and UPI. Christy was the first NC State football player to be chosen for both of those conference awards. His No. 40 is retired by the program.

Christy spent five seasons in the pros, playing in the 1962 AFL All-Star Game after leading the New York Titans in rushing, punt returns and kickoff returns. He led the AFL and NFL in punt returns in 1961 and kick returns a year later.

1. Ted Brown (1975-78)

The reality is that Brown is a clear No. 1, and then it’s a debate over the rest of the list. There is no disputing Brown’s place in the pecking order.

The College Football Hall of Fame inductee still holds just about every prominent NC State record for rushing yards 45 yards after completing his career. He was also a first-round NFL Draft pick that played eight seasons in the pros.

The only debate about Brown is his place among the greatest running backs in ACC history.