Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1165986
6 SEPT. 23, 2019 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED BY LOU SOMOGYI F irst-year Notre Dame running backs coach Lance Taylor has added a new meaning to the back- field shift. After losing junior starting running back Jafar Armstrong to an abdomi- nal muscle tear in the Sept. 2 season opener at Louisville that might side- line him the next month, the Notre Dame backfield dealt with another possible setback during a scrimmage Sept. 7 when sophomore Jahmir Smith, who scored twice at Louis- ville on his eight carries, suffered a sprained toe. As a contingency option, junior Avery Davis — who redshirted as a quarterback in 2017, moved to run- ning back in 2018 and shifted to cor- nerback this spring — returned to running back while the Fighting Irish prepared for their home opener ver- sus New Mexico Sept. 14. He will not cross-train at cornerback. "Avery is a great teammate," head coach Brian Kelly said of yet another position change for Davis. "If I was Avery, I would be sick of the head coach, too. He just wants to get on the field. We're in a need situation. He wasn't getting a lot of time defen- sively, so he was anxious about the opportunity and excited about the opportunity of coming on the offen- sive side of the ball and seeing what he could do to help us. " … Avery is not a complementary piece for Jahmir. He's a complemen- tary piece for Jafar." The 5-11, 202-pound Davis ap- peared in nine games last season in a reserve role, and carried 22 times for 70 yards (3.2 yards per carry), plus caught five passes for 30 yards. Senior Tony Jones Jr. will be the bell cow figure among the corps, and he finished with 110 yards and a touchdown on 15 carries against Louisville. Physicality, versatility as a runner, receiver, and blocker, and as- signment correctness are the calling cards for the 5-11, 224-pound Jones, who has had his own injury setbacks the past couple of years. "He is comfortably fitting who he is," Kelly said. "He's not trying to be somebody else. He's assignment correct. He's physical at the point of attack. "He's doing his job, and he's being Tony Jones and I kind of like that." If Smith is unable to help against New Mexico, also aiding the back- field corps will be freshman Kyren Williams (5-9, 205) and sophomore C'Bo Flemister (5-11, 200), who will be the deep men on kickoff returns with Armstrong sidelined. Williams appeared for one play on offense at Louisville, but he was not reinserted after dropping a pass. Flemister finished the final series of the game for the Irish with three carries for five yards. He picked up seven yards on his first attempt. ARMSTRONG'S STATUS UNCERTAIN Kelly did not put a timetable on how long Armstrong will be shelved other than saying "a few weeks." With the reattachment process in- volved in the surgery, it could take at least a month. Armstrong had his first touch ver- sus Louisville on the game's third play, a five-yard run, and followed with a 16-yard reception and another five-yard run on the ensuing two plays. At that point, he left the field in pain and did not return to action. "He's had a sports hernia injury that was repaired in high school, so we feel good that there was no struc- tural damage," Kelly said. If one month is the best-case situa- tion, that could see Armstrong return sometime by the back-to-back home games versus Bowling Green (Oct. 5) and USC (Oct. 12) — or buy more time to recover with the Oct. 19 bye prior to the trip to Michigan (Oct. 26). The loss of Armstrong hurts scheme-wise because of his ability to split out as a receiver, the posi- UNDER THE DOME BACKFIELD IN MOTION Injuries to Jafar Armstrong and Jahmir Smith result in Avery Davis returning to offense Armstrong suffered an abdominal muscle tear in the first series against Louisville. Following surgery, he is expected to be out of the lineup for at least a month. PHOTO BY MIKE MILLER