Blue & Gold Illustrated: 2019 Notre Dame Football Preview
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BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED 2019 FOOTBALL PREVIEW ✦ 57 RUNNING BACKS POSITION COACH Lance Taylor was announced as the new running backs coach for Notre Dame in February 2019. He comes to South Bend after spending the last two seasons as the wide receivers coach with the Carolina Panthers, where he helped a young corps of wideouts that included D.J. Moore, Devin Funchess and Curtis Samuel. Moore, the Panthers' first-round pick in 2018, amassed 788 receiving yards and 55 catches, which ranked second and fourth among rookie wide- outs, respectively. Prior to his time with the Panthers, Taylor served as the running backs coach at Stanford from 2014-16. He coached, among others, Christian Mc- Caffrey, who finished the 2015 season with 2,019 rushing yards, 645 receiving yards and scored 13 total touchdowns en route to becoming the Heis- man Trophy runner-up. Taylor also mentored Bryce Love, the 2017 Heisman Trophy runner-up who was selected by the Washington Redskins in the fourth round of the 2019 NFL Draft. The year before joining the Stanford coaching staff, Taylor worked with the Panthers as an assistant coach. Prior to that year in Carolina, he was with the New York Jets for three seasons in a myriad of roles, including coaching the tight ends and doing quality control. Taylor also served as the wide receivers coach at Appalachian State in 2009. In his lone season with the Mountaineers, the wide receivers had a phe- nomenal year while setting school records in recep- tions (284) and receiving yards (3,621). Taylor's first job as a coach came as a graduate assistant for Alabama from 2007-08. Alabama is also where he received his degree and played wide receiver from 1999-2003. RETURNING PLAYERS JAFAR ARMSTRONG • RB Jr. • Lee's Summit, Mo. Ht.: 6-1 • Wt.: 220 • Appeared in 10 contests with two starts last season, and rushed for 383 yards and seven touchdowns. • Made his Notre Dame debut against Michigan in the first week of the 2018 campaign, and had 15 carries for 35 yards and a pair of touchdowns. • Had a standout performance against Wake For- est, carrying the ball eight times for 98 yards and two scores. • Cross-trained at running back and wide receiver during the spring of 2017. • Did not see game action in 2017. • Set the Kansas state record for career touchdown receptions with 45 and the Bishop Miege High School record with 3,744 career receiving yards. • Ranked by Rivals as a three-star recruit, the No. 3 player in the Kansas and the No. 77 wide receiver in the land coming out of high school. Year G-GS Att. Yards Avg. TD 2018 10-2 72 383 5.3 7 C'BO FLEMISTER • RB So. • Zebulon, Ga. Ht.: 5-11 • Wt.: 195 • Saw snaps in two games dur- ing his freshman season, high- lighted by returning three kick- offs for 65 yards against Ball State. • Tallied 2,348 yards and 35 touchdowns during his senior season at Pike County High School. • Named the Class AAA Offensive Player of the Year and landed on the Georgia Sports Writers Association's All-State first team. • Tabbed as a three-star prospect by Rivals. TONY JONES JR. • RB Sr. • St. Petersburg, Fla. Ht.: 5-11 • Wt.: 227 • Appeared in every game in 2018, and notched 392 rushing yards and three touchdowns. • Excelled in win over Vanderbilt, running for 118 yards on 17 car- ries and catching three passes for 56 yards. • Helped seal the victory against USC with a late fourth-quarter touchdown reception of 51 yards. • Played in 12 games with one start as a sopho- more, and ran for 232 yards on 44 carries (5.3 yards per attempt). • Did not see game action in 2016. • Showed his explosive nature in his final two sea- sons at IMG Academy in Bradenton, Fla., averag- ing 6.6 yards per carry in his senior season and 11.7 yards per carry as a junior. • Played in the U.S. Army All-American Bowl. • Rated by Rivals as a three-star recruit, the No. 75 player in Florida and the No. 21 running back in the country. Year G-GS Att. Yards Avg. TD 2017 12-1 44 232 5.3 3 2018 13-3 83 392 4.7 3 Total 25-4 127 624 4.9 6 JAHMIR SMITH • RB So. • Sanford, N.C. Ht.: 5-11 • Wt.: 207 • Played snaps in two games dur- ing his first year at Notre Dame, and carried the ball six times for 28 yards. • Excelled at Lee County High School, rushing for 3,858 yards and 67 touch- downs in his last two seasons. • Tabbed as a first-team All-Metro running back by The Raleigh News & Observer in 2016 and 2017. • Selected for the 2017 Shrine Bowl (North Carolina all-stars vs. South Carolina all-stars), but did not participate. • Ranked by Rivals as a three-star recruit, the No. 16 prospect in North Carolina and the No. 20 running back in the land. NEWCOMER KYREN WILLIAMS • RB Fr. • St. Louis Ht.: 5-9 • Wt.: 209 • Named the 2018 Class 5A Offensive Player of the Year in Missouri and awarded The St. Louis Post Dispatch 2018 Offensive Player of the Year. • Landed on the 2018 USA Today All-State first team. • Tallied 2,035 yards on the ground, 725 yards through the air and 40 touchdowns in his senior season at St. John Vianney High School. • Caught 48 passes or more in each of his four years of high school. • Ranked by Rivals as a three-star recruit, the No. 6 player in Missouri and the No. 34 running back in the nation. BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED 2019 FOOTBALL PREVIEW ✦ 57 C'Bo Flemister had only one carry as a freshman in 2018, but he was used as the kick return man in game two against Ball State and returned three for 65 yards. PHOTO BY BILL PANZICA