Sometimes, it looks like Texas State football running back Torrance Burgess Jr. is standing still. As the blocks set, he shuffles his feet before bursting through the gap - not the first one that opens, but the right one.
Patience is key in the run game, and for Burgess, it's been key for his career.
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He transferred to Texas State from UTEP in 2024, broke his fibula four games into the 2025 season and had to earn the starter role headed into this season. Through it all, he trusted that his talent would eventually shine, he told the American-Statesman this week. The 5-foot-8, 176-pound back, committed to Tyler Junior College in 2021, and five years and two transfers later, is the nation's second-leading rusher, powering a Texas State offense that ranks No. 1 in yards per game.
"It's just something about waiting, right?" former Bobcats running backs coach Barrick Nealy said. "Torrance is reaping the benefits of that."
Defining his own career at Texas State
Burgess said his high school coach told him his junior year that he wasn't destined for Division I college football. Torrance Burgess Sr. and his wife, Carla, recall sitting with their son, watching a presentation about how his small stature would prevent him from reaching the next level.
That day is seared into Burgess' memory.
"It was tough at the time, but I was like, 'Nah. I'm not going to let him define my career,'" the younger Burgess said.
Even so, the recruiting sites seemed to agree. Burgess had no FBS interest out of high school. Tyler Junior College and Division II West Texas A&M were his only offers. While Burgess' father wanted him to go to West Texas A&M, something felt off during the visit. When he mentioned potentially betting on himself by going the JUCO route and transferring, the coach dismissed it.
"If the D-1s wanted you there, they'd already have you," his coach told him.
The comment struck a nerve, Burgess' father recalled. "TJ," as he calls his son, hates being told he can't do something. But he isn't arrogant. He's confident.
Burgess ended up at Tyler Junior College instead in 2021, entering that summer as the team's sixth running back on the depth chart. He eventually broke out regardless, leading the team with 987 total yards.
That's when Texas State coach GJ Kinne, then at Incarnate Word, first noticed Burgess - though he didn't pull the scholarship trigger. Nealy, UTEP's running backs coach at the time, had no such reservations; Burgess joined the Miners in 2022. Nealy played quarterback for Texas State from 2003-05, and Kinne hired him in 2024 as his running back coach. Burgess came with him.
Texas State, however, already had first-team all-conference RB Ismail Mahdi and trusted backup Lincoln Pare. Nealy said he asked Burgess' parents to trust him, telling them their son's opportunity would come.
"You're going to have these tough conversations," Nealy said. "I remember Carla (Burgess' mother) telling me … ‘Although I don't really understand right now, I trust in the Lord, and I trust you with my son."'
'Divine intervention'
If Burgess' leg snapped one quarter later against Nicholls in 2025, he wouldn't have been eligible for 2026. NCAA rules at the time stated that an athlete must not have competed in more than 30% of their team's scheduled competitions to qualify for an extra year of eligibility. Because Burgess' injury came in the second quarter of the fourth game, he fell just within that rule.
"The way it happened, I feel like it was divine intervention," Burgess' father said.
It might've been a blessing in the long term, but the recovery process taxed Burgess mentally, he said. Instead of going to stadiums with his teammates, he spent Saturdays alone at home, grinding through rehab. He seriously considered transferring at the end of the season. Gifted another year of football, he didn't want to spend it riding the bench.
"Just letting them know, I understand if that's not in your vision," Burgess said.
Burgess decided to stay. After all, he thought, who would want to pick up a running back coming off an injury?
Former Texas State running back Greg Burrell's dismissal cleared Burgess' path to playing time. The Pearland native said he always knew he could be a top running back. Kinne, Nealy and Burgess' parents echoed the sentiment. None of them saw this coming, though.
Burgess averages 7.8 yards per attempt and 139.6 yards per contest, both the best marks in the country. Only Missouri running back Jamal Roberts leads him in total yards, and he's played one extra game. Burgess doesn't run a 4.2 40-yard dash. His measurements on Texas State profile page are probably a generous estimate. None of that has mattered through six games.
"He's just seeing the field so well. His vision, quickness and make you miss in the box," Kinne said. "I mean, we haven't had that ever since I've been here."
Burgess is naturally humble. His parents said that at UTEP, he would take himself out of the game, allowing his teammates more opportunities. Nealy raves about his protégé's character, work ethic and the way he lifts those around him.
Despite the success in 2026, Burgess has a chip on his shoulder the size of the Lone Star State. Whatever doubters still exist are simply fuel for his engine.
"Every time something gets tough or gets hard, I look back and say, ‘Remember your why,"' Burgess said. "They don't believe it? Go make them believe."
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This article originally published at 'Go make them believe': Texas State RB Torrance Burgess Jr. powers nation's top offense.