Mike Washington Jr. is a running back and 2026 NFL Draft prospect who finished his collegiate career with the Arkansas Razorbacks after previous stops at Buffalo and New Mexico State. A native of Cicero, New York, Washington attended Cicero-North Syracuse High School and was rated a two-star recruit in the 2021 class before committing to Buffalo. He redshirted his first year before becoming the Bulls' lead rusher in 2022, posting 625 yards and seven touchdowns. He continued developing his role at Buffalo, accumulating 1,119 rushing yards and ten touchdowns across three seasons with the program, then transferred to New Mexico State for 2024, where he ran for 725 yards and eight touchdowns at 4.6 yards per carry. He then transferred to Arkansas for his final collegiate season in 2025 and put together the best year of his career, rushing for 1,070 yards and eight touchdowns at 6.4 yards per carry while serving as the Razorbacks' primary ball carrier and adding 73 career catches for 470 yards through the air across all his stops. He was invited to the 2026 Panini Senior Bowl and NFL Scouting Combine, where he clocked an elite 4.33-second 40-yard dash, one of the fastest times recorded by a running back at the event.
Standing 6-foot-2 and approximately 225 pounds, Washington is known for a rare size-speed combination for the running back position, explosive straight-line speed that allows him to run past linebackers and exploit pursuit angles in the open field, quick jump cuts and sharp decisiveness in identifying and attacking gaps between the tackles, and reliable pass-protection ability as a willing and physical blocker against defensive linemen. NFL evaluators project him as an early-down power option and change-of-pace runner at the next level, where his combination of elite timed speed, a power running style that produces yards after contact, and his impressive final-season production in the SEC position him as a mid-to-late round selection with the physical profile and competitive toughness to carve out a role in an NFL backfield rotation.
