Bishop Sankey

Sankey was rated as the No. 150 overall prospect in the nation and No. 17 running back by Scout.com coming out of Gonzaga Prep in Spokane, Wash. He matriculated over the Cascades to play for the Huskies in western Washington, and saw action in 12 of 13 games in 2011, finishing with 71 yards and a touchdown on eight carries. With Jessie Callier continuing to battle knee injuries, Sankey burst onto the scene in 2012, earning honorable mention All-Pac-12 honors while racking up 1,429 rushing yards on 289 carries. He averaged 110.0 rushing yards per game and scored 16 touchdowns. He polished off the season by earning MVP honors at the MAACO Bowl in Las Vegas by rushing for a bowl-record 205 yards on 30 carries while adding another 74 yards on six receptions. Despite inconsistent offensive line and quarterback play at times in 2013, Sankey broke Corey Dillon's single-season school rushing record with 1,870 yards and scored 20 touchdowns in 13 games. That, along with a chance in coaching staffs, was good enough to convince Sankey to toss his hat into the ring for the 2014 NFL Draft. "The time is right," Sankey said on Dec. 30. "I've proven what I needed to prove. I have to look at the position I play and the number of carries." Hard-working son of an Air Force sergeant is a respected team leader who has the physicality and mentality to be a starter in the NFL

much more effective interior runner than he looks due to impressive core strength and forward lean. possesses subtle quickness as would-be tacklers arrive to slip and slide through contact and is too strong for arm tackles. rarely takes flush hits. lowers his shoulder when preparing to do so, covering the ball with both hands.

Pass blocks the same way in which he runs, showing subtle power and quickness to quietly get the job despite less than ideal size. Quick to step up in pass protection, showing good technique to deflect, slide and anchor, as necessary, rather than slamming into bigger pass rushers. Soft, natural hands out of the backfield.

slim shoulders and possesses a relatively slight frame for the position, overall. good but not great balance, occasionally swinging his arms to maintain control and in doing so will leave the ball exposed. saw an awful lot of touches (653) over his final two seasons, leading to some concerns about how tread is left on his tires.

COMPARES TO

giovani bernard, cincinnati bengals - like bernard, sankey does not possess the ideal frame for a bell-cow running back, but his vision, agility, burst and underrated power make him every effective as an "air" back. capable of handling third down duties, as well, sankey ranks as one of 2014's best all-purpose backs and, like bernard (the first back selected in the 2013 draft), he could earn the highest grade among all runners of his class for some teams.

--Rob Rang

strengths

Natural football player who is better than the sum of his parts. Possesses excellent vision. Quickly identifies the hole and shows good burst to and through the line of scrimmage. Good lateral agility, including an impressive jump-cut to elude defenders in tight spaces.

durable. never missed a game and emerged as workhorse. recognized by the uw coaching staff as a hard worker and team leader. voted team captain as a junior.

WEAKNESSES

The Inland Northwest Youth Awards Male Athlete of the Year for 2010

named 4A first-team all-state by the Associated Press in 2010

two-time Seattle Times all-state selection at running back

Greater Spokane League MVP as a senior in 2010

finished career as all-time leading rusher in Greater Spokane League history with 4,355 yards

broke the GSL record in a game vs. Mead when he rushed for 359 yards. Ran for 253 yards and three scores vs. Mt. Spokane and followed that with 299 yards and four touchdowns agianst University

rushed for 235 and four TDs vs. Shadle Park

also had 229 rush yards and four scores vs. Central Valley

rushed for 2,518 yards as a senior, also a GSL record

helped Bullpups to a 7-3 overall record and 7-2 mark in the Greater Spokane League as a senior in 2010

rushed for 2,011 yards and 17 touchdowns in nine games as a junior, earning first-team All-GSL and honorable mention 4A all-state from the AP

had four 200-yard rushing performances as a junior. PrepStar All-American

rated the No. 150 overall prospect (all positions) and the No. 17 running back recruit in the nation by scout.com

listed as the No. 235 overall recruit and No. 19 running back in the country and the No. 5 prospect in Washington by rivals.com

one of five seniors from the state named a "blue-chip prospect" by the Seattle Times

an honorable mention "Northwest Nugget" from the News-Tribune

named to the Tacoma News-Tribune's "Western 100" list of top recruits in the West

played for coach Dave McKenna.