Something didn’t happen during the NFL’s 2022 season that had happened for 43 consecutive campaigns. This season, for the first time since 1978, no former Auburn running back carried the football during an NFL regular-season game.

The Tigers had three alumni with rushing attempts in 2022. Tennessee Titans quarterback Malik Willis ran for 123 yards and one touchdown on 27 carries, Las Vegas Raiders quarterback Jarrett Stidham ran for 84 yards on 14 carries and Cleveland Browns wide receiver Anthony Schwartz ran for 57 yards and one touchdown on four carries.

In 1978, the only former Auburn player who had a rushing attempt was Green Bay Packers punter David Beverly. In 1979, William Andrews entered the league from Auburn. In 1980, Joe Cribbs arrived from the Plains. And in 1981, James Brooks went from Auburn to the NFL.

In the seasons between 1978 and 2022, eight former Auburn running backs reached 1,000 rushing yards 21 times. But there hasn’t been one of those since the 2008 campaign.

RELATED: AUBURN’S TOP 10 NFL PASSERS

The top 10 NFL ball-carriers among Auburn alumni (as measured by rushing yards):

1. Stephen Davis: 8,052 rushing yards

Washington Redskins 1996-2002, Carolina Panthers 2003-05, St. Louis Rams 2006: Davis averaged 4.1 yards on 1,945 carries and scored 65 rushing touchdowns during his NFL career. Davis ran for 6,419 of his yards in a five-season span from 1999 through 2003, with a high of 1,444 yards in 2003.

2. James Brooks: 7,962 rushing yards

San Diego Chargers 1981-83, Cincinnati Bengals 1984-91, Cleveland Browns 1991, Tampa Bay Buccaneers 1991: Brooks averaged 4.7 yards on 1,685 carries and scored 49 rushing touchdowns during his NFL career. Brooks led the NFL in kickoff-return yards in 1982, caught 30 career TD passes and led the NFL in all-purpose yards twice. His top rushing season featured 1,239 yards in 1989.

3. William Andrews: 5,986 rushing yards

Atlanta Falcons 1979-83, 1986: Andrews averaged 4.6 yards on 1,315 carries and scored 30 rushing touchdowns during his NFL career. Andrews ran for 1,000 yards in four of his first five seasons, with a strike-shortened 1982 campaign the only exception. Andrews made it back from a knee injury after missing two full seasons, playing as a tight end and running back in his final campaign. His top season featured 1,567 rushing yards in 1983.

4. Rudi Johnson: 5,979 rushing yards

Cincinnati Bengals 2001-07, Detroit Lions 2008: Johnson averaged 3.9 yards on 1,517 carries and ran for 49 touchdowns during his NFL career. After two NFL seasons, Johnson had 67 rushing yards, but he ran for 5,178 in the next four years with a high of 1,458 in 2005.

5. Cam Newton: 5,628 rushing yards

Carolina Panthers 2011-19, 2021 New England Patriots 2020: The No. 1 choice in the 2011 NFL Draft averaged 5.0 yards on 1,118 carries and scored 75 rushing touchdowns during his NFL career. His TD total is the most for a quarterback in NFL history. Newton’s top single-season rushing total came in 2017, when he had 754 yards.

6. Ronnie Brown: 5,391 rushing yards

Miami Dolphins 2005-10, Philadelphia Eagles 2011, San Diego Chargers 2012-14, Houston Texans 2014: Brown averaged 4.2 yards on 1,281 carries and scored 38 rushing touchdowns during his NFL career. His top season came in 2006, when Brown ran for 1,008 yards.

7. Joe Cribbs: 5,356 rushing yards

Buffalo Bills 1980-83, 1985, San Francisco 49ers 1986-87, Miami Dolphins 1988, Indianapolis Colts 1988: The former Sulligent High School standout averaged 4.1 yards on 1,309 carries and scored 27 rushing touchdowns during his NFL career. Cribbs likely would be at least No. 3 on the list if not for his two seasons playing in the USFL for the Birmingham Stallions. Cribbs ran for at least 1,097 yards in three of his first four seasons with the NFL’s Bills, with the strike-shortened 1982 campaign the exception. Cribbs came home to play for the Birmingham franchise in the USFL in 1984. After two seasons, the USFL folded. Cribbs returned to the NFL, but in four more seasons, he added only 1,310 yards to his rushing total. During his two seasons in the USFL, Cribbs ran for 2,514 yards and led the league in rushing in 1984.

8. Brandon Jacobs: 5,094 rushing yards

New York Giants 2005-11, 2013, San Francisco 49ers 2012: Jacobs averaged 4.5 yards on 1,141 carries and scored 60 rushing touchdowns during his NFL career. Jacobs played for two Super Bowl winners with the Giants. His top single-season total was 1,089 rushing yards in 2008.

9. Carnell “Cadillac” Williams: 4,038 rushing yards

Tampa Bay Buccaneers 2005-10, St. Louis Rams 2011: The former Etowah High School standout averaged 3.8 yards on 1,055 carries and scored 21 rushing touchdowns during his NFL career. Williams was the NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year in 2005, when Ronnie Brown was the other running back on the All-Rookie team. Williams reached his career high that season with 1,178 rushing yards.

10. Bo Jackson: 2,782 rushing yards

Los Angeles Raiders 1987-1990: The former McAdory High School standout and 1985 Heisman Trophy winner averaged 5.4 yards on 515 carries and scored 16 rushing touchdowns during his NFL career. Jackson’s NFL career got off to a delayed start because of baseball and came to an early end because of a hip injury. His average of 73.2 rushing yards per game is the best among Auburn alumni.

The second, third and seventh rushers on the Tigers’ NFL rushing-yards list were teammates at Auburn, and so were the sixth, eighth and ninth rushers. Brooks, Andrews and Cribbs were together at Auburn during the 1977 and 1978 seasons. In the 2003 season, Brown, Jacobs and Williams were teammates on the Plains. After that season, Jacobs transferred to Southern Illinois.

FOR MORE OF AL.COM’S COVERAGE OF THE NFL, GO TO OUR NFL PAGE

Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter at @AMarkG1.