65 days until Notre Dame football: What do the numbers say about Audric Estimé?
Notre Dame running back Audric Estimé is a difficult man to bring down.
Estimé isn’t the fastest runner, but his tenacity, physicality and the way he keeps his legs churning through contact show up on tape. Rarely does the first tackler to hit him take him to the ground, and when he does, Estimé usually falls forward for a couple extra yards.
The numbers back up that tape. Out of all players with 150 carries or more last season, Estimé ranked No. 16 with 3.65 yards after contact per carry.
Using a few more numbers, courtesy of PFF, we can gain some more insights into Estimé’s game, as well as how he can help the Irish as their unquestioned No. 1 running back going forward.
He’s effective running in any direction
Estimé’s 155 carries were dispersed relatively evenly across all eight holes along the offensive line. His top-four holes to run though in terms of yards per carry were the 1-hole (between the center and left guard), 6-hole (right tackle and tight end), 3-hole (left guard and left tackle) and 8-hole (outside the tight end).
If the junior were only effective on one side, Notre Dame’s offense might become predictable. That isn’t the case with Estimé.
He’s elusive
PFF produces a stat called “elusiveness rating,” which attempts to “quantify the work a runner does independent of his blocking.” In addition to yards after contact, PFF factors tackles avoided without contact, i.e. with a juke or by running fast enough to cut off a tackling angle, into the formula.
Estimé comes in at No. 26 in elusiveness rating, out of players with 150 carries or more, with a score of 97.3. That’s slightly lower than he ranks in yards after contact per attempt, which makes sense. Fighting through contact is the most effective way Estimé produces extra yards.
For reference, though, No. 26 out of 81 rushers is still on the high end. Michigan running back Blake Corum, who was considered a Heisman Trophy candidate before getting hurt late in the season, was No. 25 with a score of 97.5.
He needs to work on his pass-blocking
Of running backs with at least 83 pass-blocking snaps, Estimé ranked No. 104 out of 135 in pass blocking efficiency. PFF says that stat measures “pressure allowed on a per-snap basis with a weighting toward sacks allowed.”
Basically, Estimé — a big back, at 5-foot-11, 227 pounds — has to be more effective as a pass-blocker. If he improves that area of his game, Notre Dame could have a bona fide three-down back on its hands.
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