Huskies RB Myles Gaskin will return for 2018 season

He’s staying after all.

Washington’s potential run to next year’s College Football Playoff received a serious jolt Sunday when star junior tailback Myles Gaskin tweeted he was returning.

Gaskin had 222 carries for 1,380 yards and 21 touchdowns this season. He rushed for more than 120 yards in four of the Huskies’ final five regular season games. Gaskin also rushed for 11 touchdowns during that span.

A three-year starter, Gaskin has 4,055 rushing yards and 45 touchdowns. He’s now 52 yards shy of surpassing Napoleon Kaufman to become the school’s all-time leading rusher.

Gaskin already holds the program record for most career rushing touchdowns.

His decision to stay means Gaskin won’t wade into what was becoming a deep pool of draft-eligible running backs.

CBS Sports considered Gaskin to be the No. 12 running back prospect while USA Today had him 15th. WalterFootball.com rated Gaskin to be 18th.

If that wasn’t enough, Gaskin would have also been in a flooded field of underclassmen. More than 100 underclassmen are entering the draft which is the most ever, according to The Orlando Sentinel. The previous record was 96 set in 2016, the paper reported.

Gaskin’s decision was the final domino left related to determining UW’s roster next season. The Huskies lost senior linebacker Keishawn Bierria and receiver Dante Pettis to graduation.

Redshirt junior defensive tackle Vita Vea, the Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year, announced last week he was leaving to pursue the draft. Vea is considered to be the No. 1 defensive tackle prospect for the draft, per WalterFootball.

Gaskin’s return means the Huskies can pair him with emerging freshman running back Salvon Ahmed for a 1-2 attack.

Ahmed, a former four-star prospect, dazzled in his first season in various roles. He ran 61 times for 388 yards and three touchdowns while also serving as the team’s kickoff returner.

The Huskies will enter next season with eight running backs and that includes Richard Newton. Newton, a three-star prospect, is the only running back UW signed in its 2018 class.

This story was originally published January 14, 2018 at 4:22 PM with the headline "Huskies RB Myles Gaskin will return for 2018 season."