Education
Perkins attended Chandler in Chandler, Arizona, where he was teammates with his childhood friend and future college teammate Brett Hundley. As a senior, Perkins was named first-team all-state after rushing for 1,297 yards and 20 touchdowns. He was also the most valuable player (Most Valuable Player) of the track team, which won the state title.
Considered a three-star recruit by Rivals.com, he was rated as the 40th best athlete prospect of his class.
On December 4, 2011, he committed to University of California, Los Angeles over offers from Fresno State and Northwestern.
Career
He played college football for the University of California, Los Angeles Bruins, leading the Pac-12 Conference in rushing as a sophomore in 2014. He earned second-team All-Pac-12 honors the following year. Perkins redshirted as a true freshman in 2012.
In 2013, he became the Bruins" primary rusher after starter Jordon James sprained his ankle.
Perkins started four games, and rushed for 573 yards on 134 carries (43 avg) and six touchdowns. He also caught 24 passes for 296 yards.
In 2014, he worked his way into a pivotal role in the offense. As a backup to James in the season opener, Perkins ran for 80 yards.
He later became the team"s starter.
He finished the season as the Pac-12 leader with 1,575 yards rushing, the second highest in University of California, Los Angeles history behind Johnathan Franklin (1,734 in 2012). In 2015, Perkins ran for a career-high 219 yards against Brigham Young University. He finished his junior year with 1,343 yards and 14 touchdowns, and was named second-team All-Pac-12. After the season, he declared for the 2016 NFL Draft.
His father, Paul "Bruce" Perkins, played football fullback at Arizona State and briefly in the NFL.
