There were pretty big shoes to fill in Notre Dame football’s running back room with the departure of two first-round picks in Jeremiyah Love and Jadarian Price.
With no additions through the transfer portal, the job fell to those who have earned the right to play, specifically Aneyas Williams. He’s shown in limited time that he’s capable of being an impact player at this level, but has “struggled” so far this year, rushing for 119-yards on 29 carries, averaging 4.1 yards-per-carry. That is the lowest number since he’s been in South Bend, as he has yet to find his footing.
Irish running back coach Ja’Juan Seider spoke with the media on Tuesday and gave a simple solution to Williams, “he’s trying to please everybody. Stop,” as shared by Pete Sampson
on social media. There’s not much to it, he just has to be himself.
Sampson noted that Seider is still confident in his running backs room, which means that they’ll have a bit of a longer lease to get their footing into the season before drastic changes are made. He said that freshman Jonaz Walton will have a role going forward, and while its not in a starting compacity, he’ll see the field.
It will be interesting to see how Notre Dame attacks Michigan State’s defense on Saturday. They can’t completely abandon the run game if its not working, but we could see the back in pass protection a bit more against the Spartans.
Interesting stuff from running backs coach Ja’Juan Seider on Aneyas Williams. Said he was pressing last week.
— Pete Sampson (@PeteSampson_) September 15, 2026
“He’s feeling that pressure. He’s trying to please everybody. Stop.”
Seider still confident in the RB room and Williams.
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This article originally appeared on Fighting Irish Wire: Notre Dame RB coach hopes for unit to stop ‘feeling that pressure’
