It was a bit of a give and take day for the Tigers on Thursday. Ryan Silverfield and the staff added former Mississippi State running back Ke’Travion Hargrove, but they also lost Asa Martin to the transfer portal.
Memphis recruited Hargrove out of high school, but he chose to play for the Bulldogs. The former four-star running back redshirted in his freshman season and didn’t see the field in 2022. Hargrove entered his name in the transfer portal in September, but he ultimately withdrew and reentered in December.
Although he was unable to see the field in Starkville, Hargrove is undoubtedly talented. Coming out of high school, he was the No. 20 overall running back in the 2021 class. At Mississippi State, Hargrove was stuck behind two really good running backs in Jo’quavious Marks and Dillon Johnson.
On the other hand, Memphis lost its most productive all-around running back in Asa Martin. The former Auburn and Miami back had 435 rushing yards, 312 receiving yards and eight total touchdowns last season.
Despite losing Martin, Memphis still has a lot of talented (albeit unproven) backs. With former Old Dominion running back Blake Watson, Sutton Smith and Hargrove, the backfield has the talent to be better in 2023.