Israel Abanikanda

Abanikanda is preparing to head into his third season of college football with Pittsburgh, and he will likely be seeing the ball a lot more than in years past. As a sophomore, Abanikanda had an impressive season with 651 yards and 7 rushing touchdowns, as well as 197 receiving yards and one receiving touchdown. These numbers were far greater than the season before, but it is likely that Abanikanda can produce much more. Quarterback Kenny Pickett has been the highlight of the team for a few years now, and with his incredible passing abilities, the amount of running the Pittsburgh offense did was limited. Pickett threw for 4,319 yards last season which was great for the team overall, but decreased opportunities for running backs like Abanikanda. With Pittsburgh’s new quarterback Kedon Slovis now running the offense, it is likely that the balance of passing to throwing will be a little more equal, which should give the ball to Abanikanda more often.