Replace And Reload: Running Back

Breaking down the Notre Dame running back position, which must replace Tony Jones Jr.

Matt Cashore, USA TODAY Sports

Notre Dame senior running back Tony Jones Jr. will not be back in 2020 for a fifth-season, leaving a gaping experience hole at the running back position.

There are plenty of bodies, but there are just as many questions. It’s time to break down whether not Notre Dame is in position to replace and reload at the position, or if it will have to rebuild.

WHAT WAS LOST

For the third straight season the Notre Dame offense will have to replace its leading rusher, and unlike the last two seasons there is not a proven back ready to take over.

Jones was tasked with replacing Dexter Williams, and he did so much better than given credit for. Jones had more 100-yard games (five) this season than Williams (four) had in 2018. According to Pro Football Focus, Jones graded out higher as a rusher (81.6) than Williams did in 2018 (79.8), and his rate of runs of at least 10 yards was almost identical (17.4% for Jones, 17.7% for Williams).

According to PFF, Jones forced 32 missed tackles on 144 carries this fall while Williams produced just 20 missed tackles on 158 tackles last season. Jones also averaged more yards after contact per run than Williams (3.81 for Jones, 3.48 for Williams).

Jones was a strong pass blocker while Williams graded out as below average in that department. What Jones lacked, and why he was not as appreciated as Williams, was that he did not produce the explosive runs that we saw from Williams. But the reason Jones graded out higher than Williams as a runner is that Jones was a more consistent and more efficient player.

Jones had 131 rushing yards against Virginia, 102 yards against Bowling Green and a career-high 176 yards in the win over USC. The senior became just the third back of the Brian Kelly era to rush for at least 100 yards in three straight games, joining Josh Adams (2017) and CJ Prosise (2015).

Jones finished his career with 1,481 rushing yards and 12 touchdowns, and caught 27 passes for 273 yards and two more scores.

WHAT RETURNS

Notre Dame returns four scholarship running backs from its 2019 roster. That group will enter next season with 901 career rushing yards and 15 touchdowns, although 383 yards and seven of those scores were produced by Jafar Armstrong in 2018.

Notre Dame’s leading returning rusher is quarterback Ian Book, who rushed for 546 yards this past season. The second leading returning rusher is actually sophomore wide receiver Braden Lenzy, who racked up 200 yards on 13 carries.

Here’s a look at the returning running back stats from this past season:

The three returners that were a part of the rotation this season averaged just 3.8 yards per carry, so there is a lot this group will have to prove during the offseason.

Jafar Armstrong — The 2019 season was a bust for Armstrong, who showed a great deal of promise during fall camp. On the first drive of the season we saw Armstrong haul in a crossing route for a 16-yard gain and he carried the ball twice for 10 yards, but a groin injury cost him the remainder of that game and the next four.

When he returned the junior failed to show the explosiveness we saw from him in 2018, and he could never get going. He managed just 37 yards on 19 carries against Virginia Tech and rushed for eight yards on eight carries against Iowa State. Armstrong lacked decisiveness and never looked comfortable as a runner. He was at his best in the pass game, which isn’t a surprise for the converted wide receiver.

If he can get back to how he looked really in 2018 he’ll have a chance to be the top rusher for Notre Dame in 2020, but there is an even bigger question that surrounds Armstrong. Can he stay healthy? In the last two seasons Armstrong seven games due to injury and wasn’t fully healthy in several others. Even if he has a great offseason the Irish staff will have to be prepared to not have him at some point.

Jahmir Smith — When Armstrong went down it was Smith that stepped into the lineup, and he was impressive, scoring two touchdowns in the win over Louisville. Then he missed the next two games with an injury. During a five-game stretch that began with Bowling Green and ended with Duke, Smith rushed for 148 yards on 24 carries (6.2 YPC) as part of the running back rotation. Then he got injured once again and went for zero yards on seven carries in the final four games of the season.

Smith has impressive foot quickness and shows a strong downhill burst, and the sophomore displayed a knack for exploiting small creases and making defenders miss in space. He’s a physical runner, although he tends to have too much of a forward lean at times, which causes him to lose some balance. Smith can get a bit impatient as a runner, something he’ll have to improve, but he has the combination of size, power and agility to be an every down back.

The rising junior will need to improve his pass blocking moving forward, but he must do what every other back on the roster must do, and that is prove he can stay in the lineup. This is a unit that struggled to stay healthy, and it was an issue that plagued the entire depth chart. If Smith can do that during the offseason and the season he has a chance to make a big leap in production in 2020.

C’Bo Flemister — The lightest back on the roster is Flemister, who checks in at just 200 pounds, and he has the slightest frame on the depth chart. What I love about Flemister as a back is that despite his lack of stature he was arguably the most physical runner on the roster, which says a lot about his mentality.

Flemister had some odd stat lines this season, which included a -2 performance on seven carries against New Mexico, but he scored a touchdown in the game. He ran well in wins over Virginia and Bowling Green, and he ran effectively when he got late game snaps against Duke, Navy, Stanford and Iowa State.

The issue with Flemister is that he’s still learning the nuances of the position. From a pure talent standpoint he has skills to be an effective runner. Flemister has shown a good burst and long speed, and he is more than willing to put his shoulder down and run through a defender. Here’s a look at that burst:

Flemister has a slashing runner style that complements Smith quite well, and I could see a scenario in which the two 2018 recruits form a potent one-two punch in the backfield. Like Smith, Flemister must get a lot better as a pass blocker, but he showed good effort in pass pro. Like his production at running back, his issues are about the need for technique enhance and gaining experience.

If Flemister puts in the work this offseason to become a more disciplined player from a footwork, track and read standpoint he will find an important role in the 2020 offense.

Kyren Williams — Williams impressed in the spring and early in fall camp as a dual-threat player, showing prowess as a pass catcher and runner. Williams lacks great burst, but he has good foot quickness and he’s a natural route runner. I don’t see Williams as being an every down back for the Irish, but his toughness and pass catching skills will give him a chance to earn a spot in the rotation next season.

Williams has the ability to line up in the slot and make plays in the pass game, which makes him a perfect player to utilize in Notre Dame’s two-back alignments. With Williams in the game as the second back the offense can still give the defense a three-receiver type of look.

NEWCOMER

First-year running backs coach Lance Taylor made an immediate impact on the recruiting trail, landing five-star running back Chris Tyree. Barring injury the Irish staff absolutely must find a way to get Tyree onto the field the day he arrives in South Bend, which will be this summer.

Tyree is not an every down back that is going to carry the ball 20 times a game, that’s just not his game at this point. What Tyree brings to the game is explosiveness and legit home run skills. The Chester, Va. native is the most explosive running back to sign with Notre Dame since Julius Jones back in 1999. He should be able to make an immediate impact as a runner, receiver and return man.

Freshman have had trouble making an immediate impact at Notre Dame, especially on offense, and the reason we are often told is the player lacks a grasp of the playbook, lacks technique or some other justification having to do with a player’s lack of experience. I get all that, but when it comes to a player like Tyree there should be no excuses for not getting him touches next year. Find out what he can do, find out what he’s comfortable with, coach him up and just get him the ball.

WRAPPING IT UP

Right now the expectation is that Notre Dame will have a running back by committee approach next season. There is no one on the roster that has shown the ability to stay healthy in a rotation role, much less as a featured player. That makes pointing out a player that is going to now become an every-down back quite challenging.

The positive for Notre Dame is the veterans - Armstrong, Smith, Flemister - have complementary skills, and all have shown flashes of being playmakers. They can play in a rotation together and provide the defense with different skill sets, and with Armstrong’s prowess as a pass catcher he can be on the field with one of the other two backs.

Ideally, Notre Dame needs at least one back to step up and grab hold of the number one spot and prove himself to be a dependable playmaker. At the very least you want to see a back or two grab hold of a specific role, which would then make it easier to slide players into specific roles.

I expect the running backs to produce good numbers next season due to the depth and talent that does return, and the fact that Taylor is a talented and proven coach. But if we don’t see a player or two emerge as “the guy” then getting the necessary production against the best team’s on the schedule will be a challenge. If that’s the case you’ll see the better defenses put more emphasis on shutting down the pass game and heating up the quarterback, which will hinder the offense’s ability to produce enough points to win those matchups.

There is enough talent on the depth chart and Taylor is a good enough coach for the running back position to become a strength, but right now the unit enters the offseason as the biggest question mark on the roster.

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