2024 Exclusive Sneak Peek: Carson Steele, RB UCLA
Welcome to the Exclusive Sneak Peek: Carson Steele, a Running Back from Greenwood, IN who attended Center Grove High School. Steele was a 3-star recruit and attended UCLA.
In 2021, Steele began his collegiate career at Ball State. As a freshman, he appeared in 13 games and put up an impressive stat line. He rushed for 891 yards and 6 touchdowns. He also caught 12 passes for 157 yards and a touchdown.
His sophomore season at Ball State was doubly impressive as he rushed for 1,556 yards and 14 touchdowns. In addition, he also caught 29 passes for 166 yards and a touchdown.
After his 2022 breakout, he transferred to UCLA where he put up solid stats, but nothing like his sophomore season. In 13 games, he rushed for 847 yards and 6 touchdowns. He also caught 17 passes and 163 yards for 2 touchdowns. After that season he would declare for the 2024 NFL Draft.
Measurables
NCAA Statistics
| Rushing | Receiving | Scrimmage | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | School | Conf | Class | Pos | G | Att | Yds | Avg | TD | Rec | Yds | Avg | TD | Plays | Yds | Avg | TD |
| *2021 | Ball State | MAC | FR | RB | 13 | 192 | 891 | 4.6 | 6 | 12 | 157 | 13.1 | 1 | 204 | 1048 | 5.1 | 7 |
| 2022 | Ball State | MAC | SO | 12 | 289 | 1556 | 5.4 | 14 | 29 | 166 | 5.7 | 1 | 318 | 1722 | 5.4 | 15 | |
| *2023 | UCLA | Pac-12 | SR | RB | 12 | 167 | 847 | 5.1 | 6 | 17 | 163 | 9.6 | 2 | 184 | 1010 | 5.5 | 8 |
| Career | Overall | 648 | 3294 | 5.1 | 26 | 58 | 486 | 8.4 | 4 | 706 | 3780 | 5.4 | 30 | ||||
| Ball State | 481 | 2447 | 5.1 | 20 | 41 | 323 | 7.9 | 2 | 522 | 2770 | 5.3 | 22 | |||||
| UCLA | 167 | 847 | 5.1 | 6 | 17 | 163 | 9.6 | 2 | 184 | 1010 | 5.5 | 8 | |||||
Scouting Reports
Strengths
- Has exceptional contact balance in traffic.
- He is tough to bring down in open space.
- Possesses a surprising ability to display burst to the edge.
- Is a rare combination of balance and agility mixed with great vision.
Weaknesses
- He struggles in pass protection and is limited to cut blocks.
- Lacks elite gear and the ability to hit home runs.
- He has sub-optimal playing speed and struggles to outrun any defender.
- Struggles to pick up and handle the blitz.
Pre-Draft Analysis
Expected Draft Capital: Round 6/7
Ideal Landing Spot: Minnesota Vikings
Steele has a mountain of potential but due to the lack of any solid competition, it’s unknown exactly how talented he truly is. He is likely to be a late Day 3 pick, possibly even undrafted, but has some appeal for a running back needy team.
The Minnesota Vikings are moving on from Alexander Mattison, and with Ty Chandler as the only NFL-ready running back left on the team, a late-round selection could be in the books if they choose not to invest an early pick at the position.
Check out The Fantasy Football Universe video breakdown of Carson Steele below.
