Running back, West Florida (from Western Carolina), 2023–26
Markel Townsend
- Number
- No. 28
- Height
- 5′8″
- Weight
- 185 lb
- Class (2026)
- Freshman
- Hometown
- Columbia, SC
Markel Townsend plays running back for West Florida, after Western Carolina (2023–25). Last time out, against West Alabama: 12 carries, 104 yards, a career high in rushing yards.
2026 so far
382 rushing yards, 1 TD
Last game: 12 carries, 104 yards ★ vs. West Alabama, W 37–3
Next game: at Eastern Kentucky, Oct 24
Filled bars: wins; outlined: losses.
Career highs
104rushing yards, career highvs. West Alabama, 20269catches, career highvs. East Tennessee State, 2025Rushing
* The season in progress, so far.
| Season | Team | Car | Yds | Avg | TD | Long |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | Western Carolina | 17 | 61 | 3.6 | 0 | 10 |
| 2025 | Western Carolina | 70 | 322 | 4.6 | 6 | 38 |
| 2026* | West Florida | 62 | 382 | 6.2 | 1 | 54 |
| Career | 149 | 765 | 5.1 | 7 | 54 | |
Receiving
| Season | Team | Rec | Yds | Avg | TD | Long |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | Western Carolina | 2 | 21 | 10.5 | 0 | 11 |
| 2025 | Western Carolina | 26 | 173 | 6.7 | 0 | 19 |
| 2026* | West Florida | 7 | 54 | 7.7 | 0 | 19 |
| Career | 35 | 248 | 7.1 | 0 | 19 | |
Season lines from CollegeFootballData, regular season and bowls. * That team-season’s player lines are missing part of the team’s yards in our source, so these numbers may be short.
On the roster
| Season | Team | No. | Pos | Class | Ht | Wt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | Western Carolina | 28 | RB | Yr 1 | ||
| 2025 | Western Carolina | 28 | RB | Yr 3 | ||
| 2026 | West Florida | 28 | RB | Fr. (Yr 4) | 5′8″ | 185 |
As each season’s roster listed the player (CollegeFootballData). Classes before the latest listing are counted back from it; “Yr 1” is the year on file where that count can’t place a season he played (a redshirt, transfer or 2020 year); height and weight as last listed.
Per play
| Season | Team | Plays | EPA/play | Pctile | Median | Total | Usage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Western Carolina (FCS) | 89 | 0.20 | 79th (n=576) | 0.10 | 18.0 | 13% |
| 2026 | West Florida (FCS) | 1 | -0.56 | – | – | -0.6 | – |
Expected points added: how much the player’s plays moved the team’s expected score, per play and in total. Plays: total EPA divided by EPA per play, the plays the source credits to him (for a receiver roughly his catches and runs, not every target; for a passer, not every attempt), so it can differ from attempts plus carries. Percentile: against the position’s regulars that season across all divisions on file (quarterbacks with 150+ plays, backs 60+, receivers and tight ends 30+), with how many there were (n) and their median; a dash means too few plays to rank. A season in progress uses the full-season bar scaled by games played, never below 75 plays for quarterbacks, 30 for backs and 20 for receivers. The cohort grows or shrinks with the source’s coverage each season (2025 lists far more players), so compare percentiles rather than raw EPA across years. FCS seasons are marked. Usage: the share of the team’s plays the player was part of (shown from 20 plays). From CollegeFootballData, 2013 on.
Game by game
2026 West Florida 6 games, 382 rushing yards, 1 TD
| Date | Opponent | Result | Car | Rush yds | Rush TD | Rec | Rec yds | Rec TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 27 | vs. Southern Illinois | W 34–31 | 5 | 33 | 1 | – | – | – |
| Sep 5 | at Central Arkansas | W 42–14 | 11 | 23 | 0 | 2 | 15 | 0 |
| Sep 19 | vs. Austin Peay | L 16–38 | 9 | 93 | 0 | 3 | 42 | 0 |
| Sep 26 | at Southeast Missouri State | W 20–17 | 13 | 31 | 0 | 1 | −4 | 0 |
| Oct 3 | at Abilene Christian | L 7–35 | 12 | 98 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Oct 17 | vs.West Alabama | W 37–3 | 12 | 104 | 0 | – | – | – |
No box score in the source for Oct 10 vs. Northeastern State, so that game is not listed.
2025 Western Carolina 10 games, 322 rushing yards, 6 TD
| Date | Opponent | Result | Car | Rush yds | Rush TD | Rec | Rec yds | Rec TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 6 | at Wake Forest | L 10–42 | 3 | 5 | 1 | 3 | 13 | 0 |
| Sep 13 | vs. Elon | L 31–37 | 3 | 12 | 0 | 5 | 23 | 0 |
| Sep 20 | vs. Samford | W 50–35 | 13 | 56 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Sep 27 | at Campbell | W 42–35 | 2 | 5 | 0 | – | – | – |
| Oct 4 | at Wofford | W 23–21 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 3 | 18 | 0 |
| Oct 11 | vs. Furman | W 52–7 | 10 | 53 | 1 | 1 | 19 | 0 |
| Oct 18 | at The Citadel | W 45–38 | 15 | 90 | 1 | 3 | 30 | 0 |
| Nov 1 | at Chattanooga | W 35–28 | 7 | 28 | 1 | 1 | 11 | 0 |
| Nov 15 | vs. East Tennessee State | L 35–52 | 10 | 30 | 1 | 9 | 58 | 0 |
| Nov 22 | at VMI | W 48–6 | 6 | 37 | 1 | – | – | – |
2023 Western Carolina 4 games, 61 rushing yards
| Date | Opponent | Result | Car | Rush yds | Rush TD | Rec | Rec yds | Rec TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 2 | vs. Arkansas | L 13–56 | 6 | 20 | 0 | 1 | 11 | 0 |
| Sep 23 | vs. Charleston Southern | W 77–21 | 5 | 15 | 0 | – | – | – |
| Sep 30 | atThe Citadel | W 49–14 | 4 | 14 | 0 | 1 | 10 | 0 |
| Nov 18 | atVMI | L 24–27 | 2 | 12 | 0 | – | – | – |
Box scores from CollegeFootballData, 2004 on. ✦ postseason; ★ a career high on file.
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