Kansas running back Sevion Morrison (28) celebrates with teammates after scoring a touchdown during the first half of an NCAA college football game against Kansas Saturday, Oct. 26, 2024, in Manhattan, Kan. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)

A Kansas running back who could potentially have been in line for a big role in 2025 has announced that he plans to enter the transfer portal.

Redshirt junior Sevion Morrison, who played three seasons at KU while primarily backing up running backs Devin Neal and Daniel Hishaw Jr., made the announcement in an Instagram post on Friday morning and confirmed the news to Jon Kirby of JayhawkSlant.com. The native of Tulsa, Oklahoma, will go elsewhere for his sixth and final year of collegiate eligibility.

Morrison ran for 391 yards and four touchdowns during his three years in Lawrence, at times battling injuries. He saw some of his most extended action late in 2024 as the primary backup to Neal at times when Hishaw was hurt or out for personal reasons. At Kansas State on Oct. 26, Morrison rumbled for a game-opening 38-yard touchdown in the first quarter; against Colorado on Nov. 23, he received 11 carries, more than he had in the entire 2023 season combined, and took them for an efficient 47 yards.

The departure of Morrison comes at an inopportune moment for KU. The Jayhawks are losing their all-time leading rusher and workhorse running back in Neal, and Hishaw’s future is uncertain after he missed the final two games of the year due to a family matter, though he hadn’t made any public comment on his plans for 2025 one way or the other as of Friday.

KU has already acquired the commitment of experienced Iowa transfer Leshon Williams, but behind him, the rest of next year’s room could be quite inexperienced with players like Johnny Thompson Jr., who will be a redshirt sophomore, and Harry Stewart III, who will be a redshirt freshman. The Jayhawks signed incoming freshmen John Kelly, of Texas, and Justin Thurman, of Florida, on Wednesday.

Morrison is the fourth Jayhawk to announce plans to enter the portal, after defensive backs Brian Dilworth and Kaleb Purdy and defensive end DJ Warner. Offensive tackle Logan Brown also declared for the draft on Wednesday.