Josh Adams is a 2-year Explosive Back for Notre Dame. Josh's 2016 season ranks in the 13th percentile nationally by opponent-adjusted EPA per play across 181 plays — a developing rate for the RB. A four-star recruit in the class of 2015, Josh has shown flashes of the talent that made him a coveted recruit.
Recruiting data from CFBD/247Sports composite. Sourced from the player's signing-class team — transfers show original school's class.
Elite per-carry efficiency — breaks big runs and creates chunk plays at a top rate while in a limited role.
Players from 2014–2024 matched on EPA efficiency, play volume, and adjusted value tier — not just one metric.
| Player | Team | Yr | Plays | WEPA/play | Line val | Total EPA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Saquon Barkley | Penn State | 2016 | 288 | 0.340 | 3.9 | 97.9 |
| Dalvin Cook | Florida State | 2016 | 292 | 0.340 | 4.3 | 99.3 |
| Travis Etienne | Clemson | 2019 | 213 | 0.470 | 4.7 | 100.1 |
| Breece Hall | Iowa State | 2020 | 301 | 0.340 | 4.5 | 102.3 |
| James Flanders | Tulsa | 2016 | 266 | 0.390 | 4.9 | 103.7 |
Comps are statistical — efficiency, volume, and value tier all factor in. Style and conference context differ.
| Wk | Opponent | Result | Opp SP+ | Car | Rush Yds | Avg | Rush TD | Rec | Rec Yds | Rec TD | EPA/play |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | @Texas | L47-50 | 10.6 | 11 | 43 | 3.9 | 0 | 3 | 46 | 1 | 0.58 |
| 2 | vsNevada | W39-10 | -13.0 | 10 | 106 | 10.6 | 0 | 1 | -1 | 0 | 0.60 |
| 3 | vsMichigan State | L28-36 | 7.4 | 12 |
Usage = share of team plays (CFBD has no true snap counts).
| Season | Team | Line value | WEPA/play | YoY Δ | Total EPA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | Notre Dame | 2.7 | 0.410 | — | 50.4 |
| 2017 | Notre Dame | 5.1 | 0.440 | +0.03 | 94.6 |
Chart shows per-game EPA (bars) and rolling 5-game average (line). Season breaks marked with dashed lines. Line value = est. points over replacement per game.
Car 17 · Rush Yds 180 · Avg 10.6 · Rush TD 0
| 29 |
| 2.4 |
| 0 |
| 4 |
| 17 |
| 0 |
| 0.06 |
| 4 | vsDuke | L35-38 | -2.8 | 14 | 60 | 4.3 | 1 | 2 | 19 | 0 | 0.10 |
| 5 | vsSyracuse | W50-33 | -2.7 | 20 | 102 | 5.1 | 0 | 2 | 52 | 0 | 0.13 |
| 6 | @NC State | L3-10 | 9.4 | 14 | 51 | 3.6 | 0 | 1 | -3 | 0 | 0.02 |
| 7 | vsStanford | L10-17 | 16.4 | 8 | 25 | 3.1 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 0 | -0.00 |
| 9 | vsMiami | W30-27 | 18.6 | 12 | 94 | 7.8 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0.03 |
| 10 | vsNavy | L27-28 | 6.8 | 12 | 73 | 6.1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0.36 |
| 11 | vsArmy | W44-6 | -9.9 | 15 | 70 | 4.7 | 1 | 1 | 7 | 0 | 0.32 |
| 12 | vsVirginia Tech | L31-34 | 15.2 | 13 | 100 | 7.7 | 2 | 1 | 22 | 0 | 0.21 |
| 13 | @USC | L27-45 | 23.6 | 17 | 180 | 10.6 | 0 | 2 | 30 | 0 | 0.56 |