JACKSONVILLE – He's fast. Uniquely fast.
That's part of Jaguars rookie running back Bhayshul Tuten's NFL story – and whether or not it's the most important part, Elijah Brooks said it's certainly the most electric part.
It's a part that should make him matter to the Jaguars' offense. And quickly.
"He's a freak of nature when it comes to running," Brooks said.
Tuten, selected by the Jaguars No. 104 overall in the 2025 NFL Draft, enters the league having been the fastest running back at February’s NFL Scouting Combine – and Jaguars Head Coach Liam Coen following the draft cited Tuten as a major reason the Jaguars' offense had increased its quick-strike ability this offseason.
"He can get to the second or third level and score from anywhere on the field," Coen said.
Brooks, who coached Tuten the last two seasons at Virginia Tech, said that was the case at the collegiate level to a striking degree – enough so that Brooks said he had to rethink a bit how he coached. At least when it came to Tuten.
"I used to get frustrated during the games when he would break out in open field and he would jog the last 25 yards," Brooks said. "He would come to sidelines, and I would get on him saying, 'You can do that. You can't be lax. You have to finish those runs.' I just realized that only fast people like him realize no one is going to catch him.
Brooks added with a laugh, "I don't know what that feels like. He always used to give me a look like, 'Coach, no one is going to catch me.'''
Brooks said while he knew Tuten was fast, he didn't know precisely how fast he was in relation to other top players until the combine. Tuten at the event ran a 4.32-second 40-yard dash, the fastest among players at his position and the sixth-fastest time overall.
Jaguars General Manager James Gladstone said before the combine he thought of Tuten as a likely value Day 3 selection, but said after Tuten's combine 40: "I don't know that I would have guessed that he would be available on Day 3."
"Nonetheless, he found himself there taken off pretty quickly at 104," Gladstone said.
Speed was one reason Tuten was so coveted. Production was another.
Tuten, a senior who played two seasons at North Carolina A&T before playing two seasons at Virginia Tech, rushed for 3,600 career collegiate yards and 41 touchdowns. He averaged 5.99 yards per carry for his career.
He rushed for 1,159 yards and 15 touchdowns in 2024 and he was a second-team All-Atlantic Coast Conference selection the past two seasons. Gladstone during the draft cited an ability to maintain production from one collegiate level to the next as a desirable trait.
"I've coached in the Big 10 and sent guys to the SEC when I was a high school coach," said Brooks, who coached at DeMatha Catholic High School and Maryland before coaching Tuten at Virginia Tech. "Bhayshul could have played anywhere in the country and been successful because he's used to having a chip on his shoulder.
"He's grateful and excited to go to the Jags in the fourth round, but he felt like he was capable of going earlier. At the end of the day, he's just always trying to prove. Regardless of where he went, he was going to be successful."
Tuten also caught 91 passes for 892 yards and nine touchdowns in college, returning 40 career kickoffs for 23.8-yard average and two touchdowns.
"He is a complete back," Brooks said. "He'll help in the return game. He can catch the ball out of the backfield. He's an exceptional runner. When you hand the ball, he can do it all."
And if the Jaguars these days are focused on finding players who fit Gladstone's definition of "intangibly rich" players, Brooks said Tuten is such a player.
"He's just a phenomenal kid," Brooks said. "He was just a joy to have in the running back room and he just is a high-character kid who just has a lot of fun playing a game and in life. That's him. I think it's a perfect match.
"The Jaguars are doing a really good job of putting together like-minded players and coaches, and I think he's a perfect fit."
