Notre Dame Football: What Folston, Prosise Bring to Irish Offense

SOUTH BEND, Ind. — A look inside Notre Dame football’s running back room reveals a top returning rusher, two converted wide receivers, two freshmen and even a former walk-on.

Still, Irish head coach Brian Kelly went so far as to call running back “another strength of our offense” last week and, more recently, reiterated his confidence in Notre Dame’s three primary ball-carriers: running backs Tarean Folston and C.J. Prosise and dual-threat quarterback Malik Zaire.

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Folston was Notre Dame’s leading rusher as a sophomore, piling up 889 yards on 175 carries (5.1 yards per attempt) and six touchdowns. Prosise, a senior, was said to be “cross training” at running back during the spring, though he admitted, at the time, the bulk of his reps were spent with the backs.

Prosise, who said it became clear he’d work at running back when he learned of Greg Bryant’s impending absence, has grabbed some first-team reps during fall practices open to the media.

“We’re just gonna keep that as a very competitive situation, keep pushing them both,” Kelly said Thursday. “There’s no depth chart there right now. You get a good practice on you and you’ve worked hard, you’re taking first-team reps. You have a subpar practice based upon the standards that we’ve set, you’re not taking first-team reps. So it’s a very competitive situation, very fluid in that sense.”

Kelly added that he expects running back to be “very competitive each and every week.”

That seems to suit Folston well. During the spring, Kelly said the rising junior would benefit from competition at the position. In 2014, Bryant only logged 54 carries, and senior Cam McDaniel averaged 3.6 yards per attempt.

“I definitely need [competition] so I don’t get complacent and just continue to work and grind, every day, day in and day out,” Folston said Thursday.

The 5’9 ½”, 214-pounder from Cocoa, Florida, said he’s improving his tempo, finishing his runs and running with a lower pad level. Now the elder statesman in a running back room with new faces, Folston said his experience has bred a better understanding of the game. Kelly shied away from Folston at times in 2014 due to the back’s pass protection. While Folston admitted he can still improve, he’s honed in on technique and will in pass-blocking.

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And, now, nearly three weeks away from the season opener against Texas, Folston and Prosise are still jostling for position.

“We’re just gonna push each other to be better every day,” Prosise said. “We don’t want to just settle and just think either one of us has a spot. We’re fighting right now. We’re definitely battling. But we’re still also teaching each other and knowing that we’re there to help look out for each other.”

When Prosise first started working out with the running backs, he’d ask about “little things” for clarity, Folston said, honing in on the proper steps or motions to take in and out of the backfield. Prosise thrived as a ball-carrier on jet sweeps for the Irish in their Music City Bowl victory over LSU. The 220-pound speedster racked up 75 yards on three carries, including a 50-yard touchdown.

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Most of his running, though, was done horizontally, parallel to the line of scrimmage. Prosise said he thinks he’s doing an “okay” job of orienting himself north and south instead of east and west. There’s still some hesitation if he doesn’t immediately see a hole, he said.

“I’ve been feeling very comfortable doing that,” Prosise said. “I had to get used to squaring my body up to the line so I can see more, but once I got used to that, it’s gotten easier.”

Kelly agrees.

“He’s definitely adjusted to that, doing quite well in his run tracks, feels very comfortable in there,” the head coach said. “We like where we are there.”

The Irish, in turn, are confident in their top running backs.

“We’re definitely two different types of running backs,” Prosise said. “I think it’s going to work out really well.”

All quotes were obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted.

Mike Monaco is the lead Notre Dame writer for Bleacher Report. Follow @MikeMonaco_ on Twitter.