Notre Dame Football: Who Will Replace Josh Adams?
The 2018 Notre Dame football rushing attack will need a boost from new faces.
When running back Josh Adams left Notre Dame football early for the NFL, the Fighting Irish were dealt a huge blow.
Replacing Adams’ 1,430 yards and nine touchdowns from last season won’t be easy. The task became even more difficult back in January when running backs C.J. Holmes and Deon McIntosh — who combined for 400 yards and five — touchdowns, were kicked off the team. Kevin Stepherson and Brandon Tiassum were also shown the door.
Notre Dame now must look ahead and hope one of their talented young backs will step up in a big way.
Dexter Williams is the leading candidate, as he showed flashes of greatness in his nine games last season. He ran for 360 yards on just 39 carries for an incredible 9.2 yards per carry. It was a relatively small sample size, but the explosive potential is there. For his career, Williams has 641 yards and eight touchdowns.
The main issue with Williams is his health, as injuries limited him to just 39 carries last season.
It could be another rough season for Williams, as Eric Hanson of the South Bend Tribune reported in June that Williams could miss some games at the start of the season for discipline issues.
Hanson also notes an interesting quote from Brian Kelly on aforementioned former running backs Deon McIntosh and C.J. Holmes:
“Right now they’re not with the program, but I haven’t closed the door totally…There are so many different things that are in play here. … There are things that have to be worked out if either one of them were to come back on the team.”
Unless things change, the only other running back that has a collegiate carry to his name is Tony Jones Jr. A former 247 Sports four-star recruit from IMG Academy, Jone has 223 yards on 44 carries with three touchdowns in his only season. He has never rushed for more than 60 yards in a single game.
Wide receiver-turned-running back Jafar Armstrong — who has already drawn comparisons to former Irish standout Theo Riddick — is sure to get a look after a strong spring showing. Armstrong contributed 48 yards on five attempts with a touchdown. That said, he has never seen the field during a regular season game.
Armstrong has the look of a playmaker who is able to extend plays with his elusiveness and run through tackles. He essentially has everything you would want from your running back.
Given Armstrong’s history as a receiver, he would also give Brandon Wimbush an excellent checkdown option that provides explosive potential.
In addition to Armstrong, Avery Davis is another candidate who could emerge after redshirting last season.
Davis — a four star recruit according to 247 Sports — had offers from Utah and Auburn among others before committing to Notre Dame. He also played in the Under Armor All-America game before enrolling, so he has experience against other elite recruits.
Like Armstrong, running back is not Davis’ natural position, as he was originally recruited as a duel threat quarterback.
Davis played, quarterback, running back and wide receiver during the spring game. He contributed 80 total yards during the game, with 30 of those yards coming on the ground.
Incoming freshmen Jahmir Smith and C’Bo Flemister are both 247 Sports three-star recruits.
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If last year is any indication, both will redshirt. The difference this year is the new redshirt rule in which players can play in four games or less and retain redshirt status. If either player enters the 2019 season without one, it could be an indication that 2018 was a long season on the ground.