Justice Haynes should take the reigns as Georgia Tech’s top rusher.

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Georgia Tech averaged 197.5 rushing yards per game in 2025, the second-highest mark in the conference.

The Yellow Jackets will have to find a new way to produce those numbers in 2026 without quarterback Haynes King, who was the star of the NFL’s Hall of Fame game just two weeks ago.

Replacing King

King’s departure creates an obvious hole, but the Yellow Jackets brought in Michigan transfer Justice Haynes and Indiana transfer Alberto Mendoza while returning Hosely and J.P. Powell.

On paper, the group has plenty of rushing ability.

Haynes averaged 7.1 yards per carry at Michigan in 2025, while Hosely averaged the same mark for Georgia Tech. Powell averaged 14.4 yards per carry, although that came on a much smaller workload. Mendoza was also highly efficient as a runner in his limited time at Indiana, averaging 14.6 yards per carry.

Moneyballing

Brent Key’s offense averaged 35.2 rushing attempts per game in 2025.

King accounted for 43.75% of those carries, while Jamal Haynes handled 27.1%, Hosely received 21.42% and the remaining players accounted for 7.73%.

Justice Haynes is the obvious candidate to absorb a large portion of that workload. If he inherits King’s carries, Haynes is projected for 109.34 yards per game. 

Assuming Hosely takes on Jamal Haynes’ carries, his 7.1 yards per attempt should take him to 67.73 yards each game. Powell could see an upgraded role as well.

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