4. David Montgomery, Running Back
Iowa State appeared set at the running back position going into 2016 with Mike Warren coming off a stellar season. David Montgomery wouldn’t have any of that continuing, though, as he split time that year with Warren before breaking loose for 1,146 yards and 11 touchdowns to take control of the position.
Montgomery has battled injuries this year, forcing him to miss last week and the game vs. Oklahoma State, along with two sub-par performances by his standards vs. Iowa and Oklahoma. However, the Cincinnati native is now on a roll, having ran for 100 yards vs. Akron, TCU and West Virginia.
The junior, who many questioned if he would be able to play or not, carried the ball a season-high 29 times for 189 yards and a touchdown. His average of 6.5 yards per carry was the highest since 2016 when he went for 141 vs. West Virginia.
He now has 11 career games with at least 100 yards, including three times vs. the Mountaineers in three seasons. Montgomery sits at 523 yards and four touchdowns on the year.
The crazy stat from the upset of the Mountaineers: Montgomery finished with 189 yards rushing, which was more than the 152 total yards accumulated by the West Virginia offense in the entire contest.