Matt L. Stephens

matthewstephens@coloradoan.com

The running back situation at CSU is starting to look far less bleak.

Dalyn Dawkins, a sophomore from Purdue, is transferring to Colorado State University, hoping to become the focal point of the Rams' balanced offensive attack when he becomes eligible to play in 2015.

"I was unhappy with my situation at Purdue, so regardless, I was going to transfer, I just needed to figure out where the best opportunity was," said Dawkins, 5-foot-9, 175 pounds. "I wanted to go somewhere that had a commitment to running the ball, and CSU was a good fit.

"Purdue threw the ball all of the time, and that's not what they told me they'd do when I was coming out of high school. They told me they were going to be run-heavy, and they were the complete opposite."

Dawkins, the nephew of former Denver Broncos safety Brian Dawkins, saw limited time for the one-win Boilermakers as a true freshman last season, carrying the ball 32 times for 115 yards while making nine receptions out of the backfield for 84 yards. And after watching CSU's improbable come-from-behind victory in the New Mexico Bowl over Washington State — where the Rams relied heavily on running back Kapri Bibbs — Dawkins was excited by seeing a team that could win using the ground game.

At Trinity High School in Louisville, Kentucky, he was considered a 3-star recruit by Rivals.com and was ranked as the No. 9 player in the state for the 2013 recruiting class. Dawkins was offered by the Rams and took one of his two official visits to Fort Collins but picked Purdue over offers from Illinois, Cincinnati, Ball State and Western Kentucky after a senior season that saw him rush for 1,479 yards and 18 touchdowns.

"I know my uncle has a big name up there in Colorado, and I don't want to say I want to replace him, but I definitely want to create a name for myself," Dawkins said. "But I look up to my uncle a lot. We have a great relationship. I talked to him before I transferred, and he gave me some advice. He knew about my situation."

Dawkins will have to sit out next season due to NCAA transfer regulations, but he should end up being an important addition to the CSU backfield. The Rams lost their top two rushers from 2013 after Kapri Bibbs decided to enter the NFL draft and Donnell Alexander elected to transfer, leaving the team looking for answers in the run game.

Though he won't be able to play right away, he should help young players like Deron Thompson and junior converted safety Jasen Oden learn the position after having played running back in a physical Big 10 conference. Even though he didn't enjoy working from a pass-oriented offense at Purdue, it did help him become a more complete player.

"Coming out of high school, I had a skill set ready to play right away as a freshman. I didn't really have any deficiencies," Dawkins said. "I know a lot about pass protection and scanning defenses that are useful in college. I can help a lot of younger guys because they usually struggle with blocking. I'm real good at that.

Dawkins is the second running back CSU has signed in the past month, also adding junior-college transfer Treyous Jarrells on April 25. Dawkins' other transfer options were Baylor, Western Kentucky and Louisville.

Follow reporter Matt L. Stephens at twitter.com/mattstephens and facebook.com/stephensreporting.