Notre Dame Football: Impact of C.J. Prosise's Uncertain Status on Saturday

SOUTH BEND, Ind. — Five days after Notre Dame football running back C.J. Prosise left the 42-30 Irish win over Pittsburgh in the first quarter, the star back’s status is still uncertain for Saturday’s Senior Day matchup with Wake Forest.

In the aftermath of the victory over the Panthers, Irish head coach Brian Kelly loosely termed Prosise’s problem an upper-body issue. On Sunday, Kelly said Prosise is going through the concussion protocol. On Tuesday, Kelly said there were hurdles that needed to be cleared by Wednesday for Prosise to have a shot at playing against the Demon Deacons. And in the final marker on the weeklong timeline, Kelly said Thursday that Prosise participated in football activities that day, “looked good” and did not take any hits.

“We still haven’t made a decision,” said Kelly, fresh off the practice field.

Kelly added it’s not his decision to make.

Keith Srakocic/Associated Press

“I’m not going to rule him out,” Kelly said. “I think he would like to play if he’s capable. We’ll see where that goes. It might be a game-time decision.”

Either way, Notre Dame should be just fine with or without Prosise, who’s piled up 975 rushing yards and 11 touchdowns in eight-plus games, against Wake Forest. Yes, the Demon Deacons are tied for 40th in the country in scoring defense, but their 57th-ranked rushing defense and—brace yourselves—116th-best (or 13th-worst) scoring offense don’t present major threats to the Irish.

With Prosise sidelined for the final three quarters Saturday, true freshman running back Josh Adams exploded for 147 yards on 20 carries and a short touchdown grab.

Keith Srakocic/Associated Press

“I think he proved to everybody that he's capable against a very good defense in Pittsburgh of getting deserved carries, earned carries,” Kelly said Sunday of Adams. “He earned that opportunity in this game.”

With Prosise also nursing a bum shoulder—something Kelly said his back will have to fight through for the remainder of the season—the rest could actually be welcome for the No. 21 rusher in the country. Should Prosise miss Saturday’s game, he’d have a full two weeks to recover before the Boston College game, which comes before the regular-season finale with No. 7 Stanford.

Adams proved himself a capable runner against a solid Pittsburgh defense, and Kelly has praised the Pennsylvania product as a “smart” and “savvy” rookie who’s picked up pass protections smoothly. Fellow true freshman Dexter Williams (17 carries for 78 yards and a touchdown this season) is next in line.

“Certainly depth is always something you want to build within your football team,” Kelly said Sunday. “We think that Josh and Dexter are guys, if we're left to having just those two, they can help us win. We'll continue to work with them.”

Adams has earned nearly three times as many carries this season as Williams, who arrived at Notre Dame as the No. 11 running back and No. 94 overall prospect in the country. The freshman tallied seven attempts against both Texas and UMass and three (for six yards) against the Panthers.

Charles Rex Arbogast/Associated Press

“We love the way he runs the ball,” Kelly said Tuesday of Williams. “There is no question about his physical ability. He's got to learn more about some of the intricate parts of the game and just keep learning and practice. Practice at the same level each and every day. I think if he does that, he'll have a good week and play more.”

That Prosise didn’t practice Wednesday and did participate Thursday helps his outlook for Saturday. But if he can’t go, Notre Dame should be just fine with a flurry of freshman activity behind its veteran offensive line.

All quotes were obtained firsthand and all stats courtesy of CFBStats.com unless otherwise noted.

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