Backups
Dexter Williams
Best Season: (2018) 158 carries, 995 rushing yards (6.3 yds/carry), 12 rushing TDs
Career: (2015-2018) 257 carries, 1,636 rushing yards (6.4 yds/carry), 20 rushing TDs
Irish fans spent most of Dexter Williams’ career wondering when he was going to crank it into gear. He had flashed during his first three seasons, but it wasn’t until the Stanford game during his senior year (following a four-game suspension) that he broke out in a big way.
As important as moving from Brandon Wimbush to Ian Book was during the 2018 season, Williams’ emergence as a playmaker was necessary for the Irish to reach the heights that they did. Jafar Armstrong and Tony Jones were solid backs but Williams was a threat every single time he touched the ball.
Averaging nine yards per carry as a junior playing backup to Josh Adams showed just how explosive he could be. That he was able to maintain 6.3 yards per carry over the course of nine games his senior year was further proof. The Irish were dragging their feet through the first four games of the year but when Williams took a handoff 45 yards for a score in the first quarter against Stanford in his first game back, it was the shot in the arm they needed. His 97-yard touchdown run the next week against Virginia Tech early in the third quarter with only a one-point lead was one of the biggest plays of the entire season.
Williams was the lead back for only a short time. But his timing couldn’t have been better.
C.J. Prosise
Best Season: (2015) 157 carries, 1,029 rushing yards (6.6 yards/carry), 11 rushing touchdowns, 1,337 yards from scrimmage, 12 total touchdowns
Career: (2013-2015) 167 carries, 1,155 rushing yards (6.9 yards/carry), 12 rushing touchdowns, 2,051 yards from scrimmage, 15 total touchdowns
Williams and the starter we selected were the easy picks for this team. The third spot? Not so much.
One of the candidates for the third spot will be revealed later as the All-Purpose back on our mock 53-man roster. But the player that received the call (not actual call, just a fake one unless someone has his number) for the team had an out of nowhere season that was vital to Notre Dame’s success in 2015. That player is C.J. Prosise.
Going into 2015, Malik Zaire was getting all the publicity as a potential Heisman candidate. Zaire to Will Fuller and the stable of the Irish receivers were going to be devastating. But just six quarters into the season, that all changed. An unproven quarterback, DeShone Kizer, would be taking the reins, and a converted wide receiver playing running back was going to be that much more important.
Prosise delivered in a big way. He had three consecutive games with at least 140 rushing yards on at least nine yards per carry and in a clash with eventual National Runner-Up Clemson, he made the biggest offensive play in the game for the Irish hauling in a pass from Kizer and racing 56 yards for a touchdown. In a very sloppy game, it was a thing of beauty. He went on to be the highest drafted Notre Dame running back of the decade (3rd round, Seattle).
Finally – The Starter/WorkhorseStarter