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How Notre Dame RB Audric Estimé has had a historic career

IMG_9992by:Tyler Horka•07/14/23•

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Notre Dame running back Audric Estimé. (Photo by Greg Fiume/Getty Images)

When you think of Audric Estimé, you think size. Strength. Stiff-arms. He’s a 227-pound starting tailback. Those seem hard to find in an era that is more about shiftiness than sheer power.

Estimé’s yards per carry figure through two seasons shows he might have both.

Estimé is having one of the most efficient careers for a ball carrier in Notre Dame history. His 6.01 yards per carry average is the 10th-best all-time mark for a Fighting Irish ball carrier who recorded at least 150 rushing attempts in his career. Estimé has run 163 times for 980 yards. One hundred and 56 of those carries and 920 of the yards came in 2022 alone. He also had 11 rushing touchdowns.

Several factors are in play that will determine whether Estimé becomes the 10th Notre Dame player to ever average 6.0-plus yards per carry over the course of an entire career. How many more years will he wear a Notre Dame uniform? Is 2023 his curtain call? Or will he return as a senior in 2024?

Odds are he tests the NFL waters after his junior season. That’s just the way a running back’s career arc meanders these days. One more season like last year’s, and Estimé should barely hang onto his 6.0-plus yards per carry figure.

More on Fighting Irish running back Audric Estimé

• Why Audric Estimé can be the next great Notre Dame running back

It’s not a given he’ll stay in the 6.0 yards per carry neighborhood. He’s slated to receive a serious uptick in playing time with the departure of Logan Diggs, Notre Dame’s leader in carries in 2022 with 165, to LSU. The more carries tailbacks get, the more difficult it is to churn out yards at a clip like that.

The Irish reeled in veteran Devyn Ford from the transfer portal, and sophomores Gi’Bran Payne and Jadarian Price and true freshman Jeremiyah Love are waiting in the wings for their time to shine. Notre Dame has more than enough to make up for Diggs dipping out.

But what if the Irish prefer to do most of it through the legs of Estimé? That’s certainly an option.

Estimé said he is in the best shape of his life, and that’s coming from someone who has always been a weight-room warrior. He’s lighter on his feet, but he weighs the same as he did last year. That means he shed fat and increased lean muscle mass.

If there was ever a time to feed Estimé and let the big man eat week in and week out, it’s right now.

Notre Dame doesn’t need to have a running back by committee even though the room is as talented as it is. The Irish have leaned on lead backs before. Kyren Williams had 204 carries in 2021 and 211 in 2020. Josh Adams had 206 in 2017. Williams averaged 4.9 and 5.3 yards per carry, respectively, in his two 200-plus yard campaigns. Adams averaged 6.9 in his.

Adams showed a 6.0-plus yards per carry average at such a high volume of usage is possible. He ranks third all-time among Notre Dame ball carriers with his 6.65 career average. Here is the list Estimé is chasing with his current mark of 6.01.

Best rushing yards per attempt averages in a Notre Dame career

Minimum 150 carries

Player (Years)AttemptsYardsYards per rush
1. Reggie Brooks (1989-92)1981,5087.62
2. Don Miller (1922-24)2831,9336.83
3. Josh Adams (2015-17)4813,1986.65
4. Christie Flanagan (1926-28)2851,8226.39
5. Dexter Williams (2015-18)2571,6366.37
6. George Gipp (1917-20)3692,3416.34
7. Jim Crowley (1922-24)2941,8416.26
8. George Atkinson III (2011-13)1539436.16
9. Emil Sitko (1946-49)3622,2266.15
10. Audric Estimé (2021-Present)1639806.01

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