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Chuba Hubbard is off the board with the 126th pick of the 2021 NFL Draft and he’s headed to the Carolina Panthers
It was a big-time career at #okstate for @Hubbard_RMN. The @Panthers just added a PLAYMAKER!#LetsRide | #GoPokes pic.twitter.com/2q9j23CCcI
— OSU Cowboy Football (@CowboyFB) May 1, 2021
The former Oklahoma State standout running back was one of three finalists for the 2019 Doak Walker Award as the nation’s top running back. Hubbard was a consensus All-American that season and finished first in the NCAA in rushing yards with 2,094 and 21 touchdowns. Hubbard also finished eighth in Heisman Trophy voting in 2019.
The Sherwood Park, Alberta (Canada) native goes to a Carolina Panthers team coached by former Baylor head coach Matt Rhule. Hubbard ran for 171 yards and two scores in a loss against Baylor in 2019 during Rhule’s last year with the Bears. Carolina’s leading rusher last season — Mike Davis — signed with the Atlanta Falcons in free agency and the team also loses its third and fourth leading rushers from last season in QB Teddy Bridgewater and WR Curtis Samuel.
Christian McCaffrey returns as one of the best running backs in the NFL after rushing for 225 yards in what was an injury-riddled season for the former Stanford back. Carolina’s next returning rusher behind McCaffrey is Rodney Smith, who ran for 156 yards on 41 carries last season — good for fifth-best on the team in 2020. Hubbard should have a chance to compete for the backup running back snaps immediately in Carolina, especially as the team adjusts to a new quarterback in Sam Darnold.
Hubbard ran for 3,938 yards and 36 touchdowns in his 33-game career as a Cowboy and wraps up his time in Stillwater as a consensus top-five running back in school history. Hubbard joins Teven Jenkins as Cowboys to be selected so far in the 2021 NFL Draft.