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The Miami Dolphins' one-two punch at running back has been speed complementing speed in the last couple years. But in lieu of another athlete with 4.3 speed, the Dolphins went a different route in the 2025 NFL draft.
With the No. 179 pick in Round 6, the team added Oklahoma State running back Ollie Gordon II.
The 226-pound back is a bruising, powerful runner with a nose for the end zone and a thirst for contact. For the Dolphins, it could finally mean a higher success rate in third- and fourth-and-short situations.
So who is Miami's new power back? Here are five things to know about Gordon:
The Doak Walker Award honors the best running back in college football and Gordon was the easy choice in 2023. He led the nation in rushing with 1,732 yards and yards from scrimmage with 2,062.
Getting a Doak Walker winner so late in the draft is pretty unprecedented. Gordon is the first recipient of the award to fall out of the first four rounds of the draft in over two decades. Of the last seven winners, Gordon is the only one who wasn't picked in the first two rounds.
Gordon also finished seventh in the Heisman Trophy vote in 2023.
Before Gordon was putting up huge numbers in Stillwater, Okla., he was a dominant player at Trinity High School in Euless, Texas. Coincidentally, that's the same school where Kader Kohou played his high school ball, although their time at Trinity didn't overlap.
Gordon played running back at first, but finished his time at Trinity with a move to quarterback for his senior season.
"I feel like I have more control of the team now,” Gordon told The Dallas Morning News back in 2021. “I really always worked out with the quarterbacks. It wasn’t a big change, but I was ready for it.”
The goal for Gordon was to emulate his favorite player, Cam Newton. According to the Oklahoman, he grew up a Carolina Panthers fan because of his love of the quarterback.
In July 2024, Gordon was arrested by Oklahoma Highway Patrol on suspicion of driving under the influence.
Police told ESPN that the running back was driving 17 miles per hour over the speed limit and swerving between lanes before he was pulled over. After refusing a sobriety test, police say he registered a blood alcohol level of 0.10 and 0.11 -- above the Oklahoma legal limit of 0.08 percent.
The situation generated even more attention when Oklahoma State coach Mike Gundy brushed off the situation and said he wouldn't keep Gordon out of the lineup. The coach also said that drinking a few beers and getting behind the wheel is nothing he hasn't done.
"I’m not justifying what Ollie did, I’m telling you what decision I made," Gundy said at Big 12 Media Day. "I thought, ‘OK, I’ve probably done that 1,000 times in my life and it was just fine so I got lucky. People get lucky.'"
When Gordon is asked to help keep a pass rush at bay, his goal isn't just to keep his quarterback from being sacked.
"When I’m in that pass pro mode, I’m trying to take you out," Gordon told reporters Saturday. "That’s going to be your last play blitzing. If I’ve got to cut you, if I’ve got to run through your face -- that’s going to be your last play blitzing, and I’m going to make you think about it. So that first time, if I don’t get you, I promise later in the game, I’m going to get you. I promise you that one.”
Following his Doak Walker winning campaign in 2023, Gordon had just 880 rushing yards in 2024.
“He had bad quarterback play, a subpar line and every defense was keyed on stopping him. Just watch his 2023 tape and skip 2024," a scout told NFL.com.
Still, the significant drop off in statistics is the biggest reason Gordon was still on the board when the Dolphins were on the clock in Round 6.
"It’s not the first time that we’ve come across an evaluation even at that particular school where you have someone have a really big year followed by maybe a year that they didn’t anticipate or was underwhelming for them," Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel said.
"The biggest thing is you try to meet the player, engage with him and see what the experience, how it’s affected him. You’re hoping that it burns a fire inside and I think it was pretty evident when we visited with him that he was eager to prove himself. So I think the ’23 tape was very impressive and based upon our interactions with him, we feel optimistic that is the version that we’re going to improve upon moving forward."
This article originally appeared on Dolphins Wire: Dolphins draft Ollie Gordon: 5 things to know about new Miami RB
Continue reading...
With the No. 179 pick in Round 6, the team added Oklahoma State running back Ollie Gordon II.
The 226-pound back is a bruising, powerful runner with a nose for the end zone and a thirst for contact. For the Dolphins, it could finally mean a higher success rate in third- and fourth-and-short situations.
So who is Miami's new power back? Here are five things to know about Gordon:
Gordon won the 2023 Doak Walker Award
The Doak Walker Award honors the best running back in college football and Gordon was the easy choice in 2023. He led the nation in rushing with 1,732 yards and yards from scrimmage with 2,062.
Getting a Doak Walker winner so late in the draft is pretty unprecedented. Gordon is the first recipient of the award to fall out of the first four rounds of the draft in over two decades. Of the last seven winners, Gordon is the only one who wasn't picked in the first two rounds.
Gordon also finished seventh in the Heisman Trophy vote in 2023.
Gordon once dreamed of being the next Cam Newton at quarterback
Before Gordon was putting up huge numbers in Stillwater, Okla., he was a dominant player at Trinity High School in Euless, Texas. Coincidentally, that's the same school where Kader Kohou played his high school ball, although their time at Trinity didn't overlap.
Gordon played running back at first, but finished his time at Trinity with a move to quarterback for his senior season.
"I feel like I have more control of the team now,” Gordon told The Dallas Morning News back in 2021. “I really always worked out with the quarterbacks. It wasn’t a big change, but I was ready for it.”
The goal for Gordon was to emulate his favorite player, Cam Newton. According to the Oklahoman, he grew up a Carolina Panthers fan because of his love of the quarterback.
Gordon was arrested last summer for a DUI
In July 2024, Gordon was arrested by Oklahoma Highway Patrol on suspicion of driving under the influence.
Police told ESPN that the running back was driving 17 miles per hour over the speed limit and swerving between lanes before he was pulled over. After refusing a sobriety test, police say he registered a blood alcohol level of 0.10 and 0.11 -- above the Oklahoma legal limit of 0.08 percent.
The situation generated even more attention when Oklahoma State coach Mike Gundy brushed off the situation and said he wouldn't keep Gordon out of the lineup. The coach also said that drinking a few beers and getting behind the wheel is nothing he hasn't done.
"I’m not justifying what Ollie did, I’m telling you what decision I made," Gundy said at Big 12 Media Day. "I thought, ‘OK, I’ve probably done that 1,000 times in my life and it was just fine so I got lucky. People get lucky.'"
Gordon takes pride in his pass blocking
When Gordon is asked to help keep a pass rush at bay, his goal isn't just to keep his quarterback from being sacked.
"When I’m in that pass pro mode, I’m trying to take you out," Gordon told reporters Saturday. "That’s going to be your last play blitzing. If I’ve got to cut you, if I’ve got to run through your face -- that’s going to be your last play blitzing, and I’m going to make you think about it. So that first time, if I don’t get you, I promise later in the game, I’m going to get you. I promise you that one.”
The Dolphins think Gordon can shake off a rough 2024
Following his Doak Walker winning campaign in 2023, Gordon had just 880 rushing yards in 2024.
“He had bad quarterback play, a subpar line and every defense was keyed on stopping him. Just watch his 2023 tape and skip 2024," a scout told NFL.com.
Still, the significant drop off in statistics is the biggest reason Gordon was still on the board when the Dolphins were on the clock in Round 6.
"It’s not the first time that we’ve come across an evaluation even at that particular school where you have someone have a really big year followed by maybe a year that they didn’t anticipate or was underwhelming for them," Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel said.
"The biggest thing is you try to meet the player, engage with him and see what the experience, how it’s affected him. You’re hoping that it burns a fire inside and I think it was pretty evident when we visited with him that he was eager to prove himself. So I think the ’23 tape was very impressive and based upon our interactions with him, we feel optimistic that is the version that we’re going to improve upon moving forward."
This article originally appeared on Dolphins Wire: Dolphins draft Ollie Gordon: 5 things to know about new Miami RB
Continue reading...
