Mark Fletcher Jr. Projected for 1,500 Yards in 2026 After Breakout 2025 Season
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After coming within one score of a national title, the Miami Hurricanes are returning most of their offensive core for the 2026 college football season.
Barring the departure of starting quarterback Carson Beck, who already has a replacement in former Duketransfer Darian Mensah, the Hurricanes will have mostly every running back and wide receiver from their College Football Playoff run back.
Among those returning, however, no player may be more central to Miami’s 2026 plans than rusher Mark Fletcher Jr.
Now entering his senior and fourth year at Miami, Fletcher closed the 2025 season on a tear, helping the Hurricanes reach the CFP National Championship game by posting 507 rushing yards across three playoff games alone, averaging 6.8 yards per carry.
Fletcher capped his breakout season with two second-half touchdowns in the title game to keep Miami close against Indiana.
Over the full 2025 season, Fletcher rushed for an ACC-high 1,192 yards, scoring 12 touchdowns over 216 carries and averaging 5.5 yards per attempt. Fletcher added 140 receiving yards, hauling in 17 receptions and scoring two more touchdowns.
According to ESPN’s Andrea Adelson, Fletcher is poised to become one of the nation’s top players in 2026 after being left out of the top-10 players from the 2025 season, where he clocked in at 75th.
When asked which returning athletes could reach the top 10 of the 2026 preseason player rankings, Adelson pointed to Fletcher as a breakout pick.
FREIGHT. TRAIN. FLETCHER.
📺: @espn#GoCanes | #NationalChampionshippic.twitter.com/qdb8Pk24wF
— Miami Hurricanes Football (@CanesFootball) January 20, 2026
“Fletcher turned heads with his performance in the College Football Playoff,” Adelson wrote. “If he continues on the upward trajectory he showed late in the season, Fletcher has the potential to be a 1,500-yard back.”
Fletcher was named Third-Team All-ACC in 2025, and his return gives Miami one of the most complete backfields in college football, along with Girard Pringle, Marty Brown, and Jordan Lyle.
Miami enters 2026 seeking redemption after falling 27–21 to Indiana in the title game, with its first game scheduled for Sept. 4 at Stamford.
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This story was originally published by Athlon Sports on Jan 28, 2026, where it first appeared in the College Football section. Add Athlon Sports as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
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