2025 HSSN football position-by-position breakdown: Scouting the running backs

By: Chris Harlan
Monday, August 11, 2025 | 6:03 PM

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TribLive HSSN will break down the top players at one position per day until Week Zero. Here is a look at the top running backs for the 2025 season.

1. Kemon Spell

McKeesport

Junior, 5-9, 185

Two websites that analyze college football recruits — 247Sports and ESPN — list Spell as the No. 1 running back nationally in the 2027 class. His opponents in the WPIAL probably won’t disagree. The Penn State recruit rushed for 1,617 yards and 24 touchdowns on 142 carries last season as a first-team all-conference player for the WPIAL Class 4A runner-up. He averaged 11.4 yards per carry bolstered by seven touchdown runs of 55 yards or more. His longest TD was a 71-yarder against Belle Vernon. Regarded as a consensus four-star prospect among recruiting sites, 247Sports ranked him 14th overall among all recruits in his class. ESPN had him 15th. Spell chose Penn State over offers from Pitt, West Virginia, Florida State, Michigan, Michigan State, Notre Dame, Ohio State, UCLA and Wisconsin.

Watch Kemon Spell highlights

2. Armand Hill

West Mifflin

Junior, 5-10, 180

Hill is yet another explosive runner already committed to a Power 4 school. The West Virginia recruit rushed for 1,693 yards and 23 touchdowns on 188 carries last season, earning first-team all-conference honors in the Greater Allegheny along with Spell. He averaged 9 yards per carry. His rushing touchdowns included five longer than 55 yards, including a season-best 85 yarder. Among college recruits, Rivals.com ranked Hill as the 11th-best running back nationally in the 2027 class while 247Sports ranked him 14th overall at his position. All labeled him a four-star prospect. He also received Power 4 offers from Pitt, Penn State, Maryland, Michigan and Syracuse before committing in March to the Mountaineers.

Watch Armand Hill highlights

3. Tyler Eber

Thomas Jefferson

Junior, 5-10, 170

No running back showed more durability than Eber, who led the WPIAL with 420 carries as a sophomore. He turned those chances into a WPIAL-leading 2,276 rushing yards and 33 touchdowns. He averaged 30 carries and 162.6 yards per game. He shouldered more than 40 carries three times, including a season-high 48 vs. West Allegheny. In five playoff games combined, Eber rushed for 934 yards on 198 carries, helping Thomas Jefferson win the WPIAL Class 4A title and reach the state semifinals. In all, he topped 100 yards rushing in 13 of 14 games, earning first-team all-conference honors in the Big Six. His longest touchdown run was a 61-yarder, part of a five-TD game against Chartiers Valley.

Watch Tyler Eber highlights

4. Caden Halajcio

Montour

Senior, 5-11, 185

A third-year starter, Halajcio handled 184 carries and topped 1,000 yards from scrimmage last season earning second-team all-conference honors in the Class 4A Parkway. He had four 100-yard games, including a 21-carry, 167-yard effort in the playoffs. He scored just four touchdowns in a pass-friendly offense, a TD total surely to rise this fall. He lists offers from Robert Morris, Mercyhurst, Clarion, Slippery Rock and Wheeling.

Watch Caden Halajcio highlights

5. Maclane Miller

Pine-Richland

Senior, 5-8, 195

Miller was a workhorse in Pine-Richland’s run to the WPIAL Class 5A title. He rushed for 1,303 yards and 15 touchdowns on 232 carries, earning first-team all-conference honors. Miller’s best game was a 36-carry, 208-yard, two-touchdown effort in the WPIAL semifinals. He averaged 5.6 yards per carry and 108.6 yards per game. His longest touchdown run was a 39-yarder. He received a Clarion offer in June.

Watch Maclane Miller highlights

One to watch

Chrys Black Jr.

Central Catholic

Sophomore, 5-8, 175

Black played a key role for Central Catholic’s defense a year ago by making 44 tackles and intercepting three passes. However, this year he’s also the Vikings’ lead running back. He accumulated 646 total yards last season as a rusher, receiver and kick returner. A dozen college coaches already have offered him a scholarship, including from Power 4 schools West Virginia, Cal, Indiana, Kentucky and Maryland.

Watch Chrys Black Jr. highlights

• • • • •

Position breakdowns

QB | RB | WR | TE | OL | DL | DE | LB | CB | S | K

Chris Harlan is a TribLive reporter covering sports. He joined the Trib in 2009 after seven years as a reporter at the Beaver County Times. He can be reached at charlan@triblive.com.

Tags: Central Catholic, McKeesport, Montour, Pine-Richland, Thomas Jefferson, West Mifflin