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Closer Look: CJ Donaldson Brings Experienced Option To Buckeye Backfield

Tony Gerdeman 4 min read February 21, 2025

Ohio State lost a combined 2,076 yards rushing from last season in the form of departed tailbacks Quinshon Judkins and TreVeyon Henderson, so OSU running backs coach Carlos Locklyn went out and signed West Virginia transfer CJ Donaldson, who has 2,058 yards rushing in his three-year career.

Donaldson is a senior who has one year of eligibility remaining. He has averaged 4.9 yards per carry in his WVU career and has scored 31 touchdowns in 32 career games. Originally from Miami, Donaldson was a three-star wide receiver prospect who was ranked as the No. 52 tight end in the 2022 recruiting class because of his 6-foot-2, 215-pound frame.

What To Like

CJ Donaldson (6-2 238) has played a lot of football, but has split carries in each of his three years. This means that 1) he’s not a worn-down senior; and 2) he’s used to sharing carries with teammates. Donaldson has started 13 games in his career and has carried the ball over 400 times. He brings a ton of experience to an Ohio State running back room that currently features one true sophomore, one redshirt freshman, and three true freshmen.

Donaldson is a big back who will run hard and fall forward. The sledding has rarely been easy for him at West Virginia. He’s never played in an offense that could truly threaten via the air, which has allowed defenses to gear up for the run. Donaldson is too big to be a jump-cut kind of back, but he does have a way of sliding through tight fits. Many of those fits over the past two years, however, were just a bit too tight.

The Potential

As a runner, CJ Donaldson isn’t looking to waste any time. He wants to get to the second level. He will wait for blocks, but he’s not going to dance and hold out for the perfect opening because the perfect opening may never appear. And sometimes, you’ve just got to get what you can get. In an Ohio State offense, Donaldson should have more room to maneuver as defenses have to allocate more resources to stopping the passing game.

The clips below are from Donaldson’s first career college game. Had he been utilized more, perhaps the Mountaineers would have actually held on to win the game. You’ll see a tailback who does not go down easily and enjoys the fight.

The Expectations

In high school, CJ Donaldson played wide receiver. There was some power forward to it, but he has good hands and is comfortable running routes. His path is kind of the opposite of what happened for former Buckeye wide receiver Noah Brown, who was a 6-foot-2, 220-pound jack-of-all-trades in high school as well.

Brown bulked his way up to 240 pounds at Ohio State, but was able to stay at receiver. Donaldson was immediately moved to tight end when he arrived at West Virginia, but didn’t stay there long and he eventually found his way to running back where he’s been a contributor since day one.

CJ Donaldson could be the rare 240-pound third-down running back. He is not your typical third-down option, but his background as a pass catcher will be put to good use in the Ohio State offense. He can also hold his ground pretty well as a pass blocker. Buckeye fans saw all season long how valuable TreVeyon Henderson was in that role last year.

Bottom Line

The bottom line here is that Ohio State needed an experienced running back on the roster. Expectations are very high for sophomore tailback James Peoples this year, but every coach feels better with more experience. Peoples and redshirt freshman Sam Williams-Dixon learned from watching a pair of talented pros last year. With CJ Donaldson in the fold, the young backs don’t have to carry the entire load, figuratively or literally.

There is also the not-so-small fact that Donaldson is very hungry to show all that he can do, which he maybe wasn’t able to do at West Virginia. And keep an eye on him in short-yardage situations as well.

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