Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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18 OCT. 3, 2026 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED since running back Logan Diggs handled 28 carries for 130 yards against UNLV in 2022. The Irish want to be flexible enough in their running game plan to ride the hot hand. James showed he's capable of the added responsibility. "He's really playing at a high level right now," said Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman. "He's running hard. He's break- ing tackles. He's playing with velocity. He's seeing it and committing to it, and there's a lot of positivity coming out of his play." WORKHORSE UNLOCKED Nolan James Jr.'s work led to him capitalizing on opportunities BY TYLER JAMES T he way Notre Dame football leaned on sophomore running back No- lan James Jr. with 26 carries in a 27-10 victory over Michigan State looked a little bit like what James ex- perienced in his final season at DePaul Catholic in Wayne, N.J. James, according to his MaxPreps pro- file, topped out at 35 carries in a 28-17 victory over Olney (Md.) Good Counsel in September of his senior season. He capped that 2024 season with 29 carries in an NJSIAA Non-Public B state cham- pionship victory. There's a certain kind of soreness that comes with that kind of workload. "I probably haven't been that sore since like high school, honestly," James said three days after the Michigan State game. "But just like everything else, just getting on a routine, taking care of my body, so I'm back today feeling good." The rotation between James and ju- nior Aneyas Williams, who started the first three games of the season at running back for Notre Dame, kept the number of carries split pretty even in the first half of Notre Dame's victory over Michigan State. James had one more carry (9) but four fewer rushing yards (23) than Wil- liams. Both reached the end zone once in the half. Williams, who drew an unsportsman- like conduct penalty for celebrating his 1-yard touchdown run, took a back seat to James to start the second half. That's when James and the Irish rushing attack started to take over. He took 9 carries for 46 yards and 1 reception for 5 yards on a 17-play, 77-yard drive that ended in a Notre Dame field goal. James admitted to being a little tired near the end of that drive. Then Notre Dame gave him 8 more carries to close out the game. "That's always been like my strong suit as a back. Just kind of when other people get tired, I get stronger," James said. "Get more comfortable. I've been doing this. "This is my first year getting some time to get into a rhythm, just allowing myself to see things clearly, and it just really helps me get in a rhythm." James finished the game with 121 rush- ing yards and 1 touchdown on his 26 car- ries against Michigan State. It was the most carries for a Notre Dame player