CEDAR CITY, Utah - Much like the wide receivers on the 2017 football roster, the running backs have a pair of very big shoes to fill when they hit the field this season.

In 2016 Malik Brown carried the brunt of the load at the running back position for the T-Birds. He carried the ball 182 times for a total of 1,027 yards. He rushed into the end zone seven times and ended up as the third leading scorer for the Thunderbirds last season. Pair that with his 18 catches on the year, and Brown was an absolute offensive monster for the Thunderbirds.

Raysean Pringle was also a major factor for SUU in the run game in 2016. Even though now he's playing on the defensive side of the ball for the Green Bay Packers, Pringle carried the ball 63 times for 450 yards and six touchdowns. He averaged 6.6 yards per carry.

This season the T-Birds have a very young core of running backs that are showing promise, with a sophomore leading the way.

James Felila is the top returner at the running back position for the Thunderbirds. In 2016 as a freshman, he carried the ball 34 times for 158 yards. He reached the end zone two times during the season.

"He was pretty good last year," SUU running back coach Sam Elliott said. "The guys that played in front of him were incredible, but there was a lot of discussion last year about him being our starter. He was that good, but so were Raysean and Malik. The improvement has come, but he could have been the guy last year."

When it comes to Felila's backup, Elliott pointed towards Janiero Green Jr., a former Junior College All-American at Modesto Junior College in California.    

"Right now we have Janiero Green as the second guy, and that's because he's grasped it so well," he said. "When he runs the ball he shows incredible balance. He's got to work a little bit on his ball security, but because he picked it up so quick and understands a lot of the little details and doesn't make assignment errors, he's our guy right now in the number two spot."  

When asked what else has stood out about his group Elliott said Terrance Beasley has shown a lot of promise with his ability to pick up the scheme so quickly and has plenty of speed. He also noted that Lelon Dillard shows a lot of physicality and has a lot of power and Siddique Newkirk has plenty of shiftiness and is showing a lot of potential.

All in all, Elliott said he can't wait to see what the running backs are able to do once the lights come on. Elliott put his feelings about them very simply.

"My group is awesome," he said.

Keep tabs on the Thunderbirds through Fall Camp by following @SUUFB on Twitter and Instagram and by liking the Southern Utah Football page on Facebook.