Editor’s note: For decades, pass efficiency has been a well-publicized measurement of quarterback performance. We think the running back position is well-suited for such measurement as well. So we created a formula that accounts for yards, scoring, yards per attempt (carries, catches and targets), fumbles and opponent strength. See the methodology below.

Every freshman has his “Welcome to College Football” moment.

Wisconsin freshman running back Jonathan Taylor’s came during fall camp when he was tasked with blocking redshirt senior linebacker Leon Jacobs, who has three inches and 30 pounds on Taylor.

“He was coming down with a head of steam and I had to run up and stop that man in his tracks,” Taylor told The All-American. “He kind of hit me with his forearm and I fell to the ground backwards. I was like, ‘OK, this is the big boy league right here.’ ”

College football is a big change for Taylor, who hails from one of the smallest high schools in New Jersey. The Wisconsin football team this season is almost double the size of Taylor’s graduating class.

For some players, that kind of a jump seems insurmountable. It’s too easy to dismiss the accomplishments of a player who played in a small school league, or at least to expect that his the numbers he put up as a senior in high school were overinflated.

But through two games this season, Taylor has become the Badgers’ leading rusher, accounting for four touchdowns and 310 yards on 35 carries. Most impressive, perhaps, is the fact that he has just three negative yards on those 35 carries.

“I did believe that he had the ability to play at this level, but to say that I thought he would do the things that he has done the first two weeks, no, not this early,” Wisconsin running back coach John Settle said. “He has exceeded my expectations.”

Settle said the only other true freshman back he has been around who is in the same category as Taylor would be former Wisconsin running back James White, who finished his freshman season as the Badgers’ leading rusher (1,052 yards) — one of two thousand-yard rushers on that Badgers team. But even White only had 17 carries and 84 yards (no touchdowns) in his first two games for Wisconsin.

Ask Taylor for one play that defines him as a player so far this season and he’ll point out his 64-yard touchdown run against Florida Atlantic on Sept. 9. It was Wisconsin’s first score of the game, but the run featured Taylor showing the vision to find the hole outside of the right tackle, breaking through four potential tackles and separating himself from the defense as he sprinted for the end zone.

“I think that run really exemplifies what I can do,” Taylor said. “I think it shows a bit of power — breaking through arm tackles — but it also showcases my speed.”

Taylor has proven to be the best option for Wisconsin’s run game this season, and he also has shown improvement in the blocking schemes. For the former, he can send some thanks to the offensive line and for the latter, he gives some gratitude to Jacobs, who gave him his first hit this year.

“I needed that,” Taylor said. “You come in ready, but once you get that initial (hit) it’s like, ‘OK, now I know where I need to go from here.’ ”

Here are the rankings of FBS running back efficiency entering Week 3 (minimum 28 carries). NOTE: Because of a discrepancy in the provider’s source data, USC running back Ronald Jones II was omitted from the original publication:

Rank Name School Rating 1 Ronald Jones II USC 8.05 2 Saquon Barkley Penn State 7.81 3 Bryce Love Stanford 7.69 4 Royce Freeman Oregon 7.61 5 Lexington Thomas UNLV 7.42 6 Rashaad Penny San Diego State 7.40 7 Jonathan Taylor Wisconsin 7.10 8 D’Angelo Brewer Tulsa 6.77 9 Corey Taylor II Tulsa 6.61 10 Josh Adams Notre Dame 6.24 11 Tre Bryant Nebraska 6.21 12 John Kelly Tennessee 6.13 13 Trayveon Williams Texas A&M 6.10 14 Marquis Young Massachusetts 6.09 15 Justin Crawford West Virginia 6.04 16 Damarea Crockett Missouri 6.02 17 J.K. Dobbins Ohio State 5.91 18 David Montgomery Iowa State 5.87 19 Diocemy Saint Juste Hawaii 5.81 20 Akrum Wadley Iowa 5.79 21 Dalyn Dawkins Colorado State 5.73 22 Kalen Ballage Arizona State 5.53 23 Derrius Guice LSU 5.48 24 Ryan Nall Oregon State 5.47 25 Warren Ball Akron 5.46 26 Ty Isaac Michigan 5.45 27 Qadree Ollison Pittsburgh 5.40 28 Shannon Brooks Minnesota 5.28 29 Jarred Craft Louisiana Tech 5.22 30 Mike Epstein Illinois 5.17 31 Izzy Matthews Colorado State 5.03

Methodology

The All-American’s Running Back Efficiency Rankings are based on five statistical inputs: Yards rushing, touchdowns, yards per attempt, fumbles (also known as protection percentage) and opponent strength. Yards per attempt includes carries, receptions and and targets. Opponent strength is based on Cody Kellner’s strength of schedule ratings at kellnerratings.com.

Yards rushing accounts for 30 percent of the formula, touchdowns 20 percent, yards per attempt 20 percent, protection percentage 10 percent and opponent strength 20 percent. Each input is standardized to the mean of the data set. A rating of 5 would signify an average efficiency rating among all players that qualified for consideration this week. Players must have a minimum number of 14 carries per game, on average, to qualify.

Other than opponent strength, all data is derived from SportSource Analytics.

(Top photo: Jeff Hanisch, USA TODAY Sports)

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