Ohio State proved throughout the 2024 season it had the best one-two running back combination in college football.
Both TreVeyon Henderson and Quinshon Judkins set their egos aside and committed to being in a backfield timeshare, understanding their individual numbers would likely be lower but there’d be far less wear and tear on their bodies in their final year before turning pro. Both Henderson and Judkins still eclipsed the 1,000-yard mark, becoming only the third pair of OSU tailbacks to run for more than 1,000 yards in a single season.
“It kept us fresh, man,” Henderson said Friday at the NFL Scouting Combine. “That one-two punch, it was special. I was just so thankful to have the opportunity to play alongside him.”
Judkins finished with 1,060 yards on 194 carries with 14 rushing touchdowns, all three of those totals coming in as career-low season totals over a three-year college career. But Judkins’ yards per carry went up by more than a full yard at OSU (5.5) compared to his sophomore year at Ole Miss (4.3).
“I think just growing as a complete player, working on pass protection, getting better at little things I went to work on over the year,” Judkins said Friday of where he improved the most.
Henderson finished with 10 rushing touchdowns and ran for 1,016 yards on 144 carries, the second-fewest carries of his four-year Ohio State career. But he averaged a whopping 7.1 yards per carry while also improving significantly as a pass blocker.
“An area of my game I’m looking to highlight is my pass protection,” Henderson said, who added he wants to be an every-down running back at the next level. “I feel like that shows what type of player you are. Whether that’s selfish and you only care about when the ball is in your hands, or if you’re unselfish and care when the ball isn’t in your hands. Pass protection, it really shows that.”
Because the two essentially split carries over a 16-game season en route to winning a national title, Henderson and Judkins may have flown under the radar from an individual standpoint ahead of the 2025 NFL Draft. That changed on Saturday.
While most of their OSU teammates elected to save running the 40-yard dash and participating in the vertical and broad jumps for the Buckeyes’ pro day on March 26 because they’ve only had a few weeks to train, Judkins and Henderson felt they were ready now.
“You’ll see,” Judkins said with a smile when asked if he had any predictions for his testing numbers a day before he worked out.
What transpired was Judkins and Henderson arguably raising their draft stock the most of any Ohio State players this week. Judkins had the highest broad jump of any running back that tested at 11 feet, while coming in with a 38.5 vertical. His 40-yard dash was 4.48 seconds, an excellent time for someone who measures in at 6-foot and 221 pounds.
After an impressive broad jump, Ohio State RB Quinshon Judkins runs a 4.48u.
— NFL (@NFL) March 1, 2025
: #NFLCombine on @NFLNetwork
: Stream on @NFLPlus pic.twitter.com/7J9zdAlDew
Henderson had a 38.5-inch vertical jump and a 10-foot-8 broad jump and ran a 4.43 in the 40.
TreVeyon Henderson runs a 4.43u and gets a BIG ovation from the Ohio State fans in attendance
— NFL (@NFL) March 1, 2025
: #NFLCombine on @NFLNetwork
: Stream on @NFLPlus pic.twitter.com/vlZJbo5TaH
“They did a good job, man, of just bringing us in and the way they went about training us, man, they did a really good job,” Henderson said of his training facility, House of Athlete in Tampa, led by former NFL wide receiver Yo Murphy.
During their week in Indianapolis, Judkins confirmed he had countless meetings with NFL teams, including the Pittsburgh Steelers and Las Vegas Raiders, while Henderson mentioned meeting with the Chicago Bears, Houston Texans and Raiders among other teams.
“I’m a bigger guy that brings size, speed, vision, elusiveness and power,” Judkins said of the skillset he could bring to NFL teams. “Can run between the tackles, also outside and just have natural great hands.”
The consensus around NFL draft analysts is Boise State running back Ashton Jeanty will be the first running back taken in the NFL Draft in April, and it’s likely North Carolina running back Omarion Hampton – who also tested extremely well – will be the second. But from there, it wouldn’t be surprising if Judkins and Henderson, in no particular order, are the third and fourth tailbacks chosen in what’s considered to be one of the deepest drafts for running backs in years.
At the worst, both should be day two picks. But with testing results in their favor, it’s not out of the question either could end up in the late first round.
