Blue & Gold Illustrated: 2012 Notre Dame Football Preview
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RUNNING BACKS POSITION COACH Former Irish and NFL ball carrier Autry Denson is in his third year as the running backs coach at his alma mater. Last year, his running backs con- tributed 289 rushing attempts for 1,454 yards (5.0 yards per carry) and 10 touchdowns. In 2015, he helped the Irish rushing attack pro- duce 1,967 yards and 18 touchdowns on 299 carries (6.6 yards per attempt). Notre Dame eclipsed the 200-yard mark in six games — including a 457-yard performance against UMass, the best rushing total by Notre Dame in 23 years — and averaged 207.6 yards per contest. Denson's first coaching job came in 2010, when he served as the head man at Pope John Paul II High School in Boca Raton, Fla. He spent the next three years coaching the running backs at Bethune- Cookman. After mentoring the ball carriers at Miami (Ohio) in 2013, he accepted the same post at South Florida. However, when the Notre Dame job came open, he jumped at the chance to return to his col- legiate home despite never coaching a game at USF. As an Irish running back, Denson was a three-year starter and two-time team MVP, and still stands as the program's all-time leading rusher with 4,318 yards. He ranks second with 43 career rushing touch- downs and 5,327 all-purpose yards. He capped his career as an Associated Press All-American in 1998. The 1999 Notre Dame graduate was a seventh- round pick of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and spent time with four teams during his five-year NFL career. RETURNING PLAYERS JOSH ADAMS • RB Jr. • Warrington, Pa. Ht.: 6-2 • Wt.: 220 Career Highlights: Played in all 12 games and made nine starts in 2016 … Contributed a team-high 933 rushing yards and five touch- downs on 158 attempts (5.9 yards per carry) … Saw action in all 13 games and made three starts in 2015 … Led the Irish in yards per carry (7.1), ranked second in rushing yards (835) and rushing yards per game (68.2), and was third in carries (117) and rushing touchdowns (six) … His 835 rushing yards are the most by an Irish freshman in school history (bested previous record of 786 set by Darius Walker in 2004) … Equaled the school's freshman record with four 100-yard rushing games … Compiled a freshman school-record 168 rush- ing yards at Stanford … Set a Notre Dame record, and tied the NCAA freshman record, with a 98-yard touchdown run against Wake Forest, which was the longest play from scrimmage in the nation in 2015. Prep: Rated by 247Sports as a four-star prospect, the No. 6 senior in Pennsylvania, and the nation's No. 17 running back and No. 195 overall player … As a senior, he rushed 209 times for 1,618 yards (7.7- yard average) and 27 touchdowns … He also caught 17 passes for 267 yards (15.7 yards per catch) and four scores … One of six running backs named to the 2014 Pennsylvania Football Writers Class AAAA (the highest division) all-state team … Rushed for more than 2,000 yards and scored 32 touchdowns as a sophomore, but had his junior year cut short by a torn ACL. Personal: Born Oct. 29, 1996 … Enrolled in the College of Arts and Letters, majoring in psychology. Year G-GS Att. Yds. Avg. TD 2015 13-3 117 835 7.1 6 2016 12-9 158 933 5.9 5 Totals 25-12 275 1,768 6.4 11 TONY JONES JR. • RB So. • St. Petersburg, Fla. Ht.: 5-11 • Wt.: 224 Career Highlights: Did not play in 2016. Prep: Rivals rated him as a three- star recruit, the No. 75 player in the Sunshine State and the No. 21 running back in the country … During his senior season at Bradenton (Fla.) IMG Academy, rushed for 564 yards (6.6 yards per carry) and 11 touchdowns in nine games while adding 190 receiving yards and a score … Ran for 771 yards (11.7 yards per carry) and 12 touchdowns as a junior at IMG Academy … Racked up 1,145 yards and 12 touchdowns during his sophomore campaign at St. Petersburg (Fla.) Catholic … Played in the U.S. Army All-American Bowl. Personal: Born Nov. 24, 1997 … His father, Tony Sr., played linebacker at Illinois State from 1988-92 … Enrolled in First Year of Studies. DEON MCINTOSH • RB So. • Pompano Beach, Fla. Ht.: 5-10½ • Wt.: 190 Career Highlights: Did not play in 2016. Prep: Ranked as a three-star prospect, the No. 95 player in the Florida and the No. 18 all-purpose back nationally by Rivals … Finished as Cardinal Gibbons High's third all-time leading rusher (2,532 yards) and second all-time leading scorer (210 points on 35 touchdowns) … Carried 134 times for 681 yards (5.1 yards per rush) and seven touchdowns as a senior, and added 117 yards receiving with a score … Had 127 attempts for 834 yards (6.5 yards per carry) and 12 touch- downs as a junior, and also caught 41 passes for 386 yards and two scores ... Rushed for 1,107 yards, 8.8 yards per carry and nine touchdowns in 2013. Personal: Born July 27, 1997 … His brother RJ Mc- Intosh is a junior defensive end for the University of Miami … Enrolled in First Year of Studies. DEXTER WILLIAMS • RB Jr. • Winter Garden, Fla. Ht.: 5-11 • Wt.: 202 Career Highlights: Saw action in all 12 contests last year, and carried the ball 39 times for 200 yards (5.1 yards per rush) and three scores … Also caught four passes for 16 yards … Played in seven games in 2015, carried the ball 21 times for 81 yards (3.9 yards per rush) and one touchdown, and contributed a 20- yard kickoff return. Prep: Listed as a four-star prospect, Florida's No. 16 senior, and the nation's No. 5 running back and No. 78 overall prospect by ESPN … Despite an injury-plagued senior year, he rushed for 871 yards and 10 scores while helping West Orange to its best season in school history with an 11-1 record … Ranked by The Orlando Sentinel as the No. 8 pros- pect in Central Florida. Personal: Born Jan. 5, 1997 … Enrolled in First Year of Studies. Year G-GS Att. Yds. Avg. TD 2015 7-0 21 81 3.9 1 2016 12-0 39 200 5.1 3 Totals 19-0 60 281 4.7 4 NEWCOMER C.J. HOLMES • RB Fr. • Hamden, Conn. Ht.: 6-0 • Wt.: 206 Career Highlights: Enrolled at Notre Dame in Janu- ary 2017. Prep: Rivals rated him as a four-star talent, the No. 2 prospect in Connecticut, and the No. 5 all-pur- pose back and No. 203 overall player in the nation … Averaged 8.2 yards per attempt and compiled 1,169 yards and 13 touchdowns while leading Cheshire Academy to an 8-2 record during his senior cam- paign … Named to the 2016 All-USA Connecticut first team by USA Today … Selected to the New England Preparatory Schools Athletic Council Class A All-New England Team as a junior and senior … Chosen to participate in the 2016 Nike The Opening in Bea- verton, Ore. Personal: Born May 20, 1998 … His mother, Dawn, was a five-time All-American triple jumper at South- ern Connecticut State … His father, Craig, also ran track at Southern Connecticut State before joining the Army … Intends to major in business, with an emphasis on film and television. BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED 2017 FOOTBALL PREVIEW ✦ 55 Sophomore Deon McIntosh concluded his prep career as Fort Lauderdale (Fla.) Cardinal Gibbons' third all-time leading rusher (2,532 yards) and sec- ond all-time leading scorer (210 points). PHOTO BY BILL PANZICA