I think it's safe to say after the last two weeks of nearly 200 rushing yards per game performances against top 15 opponents that Josh Adams is officially a "Heisman Trophy" candidate. One week after torching USC for 191 yards and averaging 10 ypc to go along with 3 touchdowns "The Gazelle" again broke lose on NC State for 202 yards. NC State came into the game riding a 6-game winning streak with the 6th ranked rush defense. It didn't matter as Adams trucked them and the Fighting Irish ran for over 300 yards on the ground which included this great post game locker room speech from head coach Brian Kelly...
With another 35-14 drubbing of a ranked opponent Notre Dame sees itself open at #3 in the playoff committee poll. In large part this is thanks to Adams and his ability to break open games with quick bursts through the line while running for 60 plus yards to a score like a wild gazelle in the Safari.
For the season Adams has rushed for 1169 yards while averaging nearly 9 yards per carry. His rushing stats put him 5th in the nation but he's also sat out nearly 10 quarters this season because Notre Dame has blown out everybody not named Georgia. According to ESPN's "Heisman Watch" Adams is now 5th in the voting and finally getting the national recognition which is extremely odd when you are talking about a player from Notre Dame.
Notre Dame's remaining opponents in rushing D:
— Mike Vorel (@mikevorel) October 30, 2017
Wake: 89th
Miami: 83rd
Navy: 76th
Stanford: 96th
With games coming up against the likes of Wake Forest, Miami, Navy and Stanford who all rank below 75th in the nation in rush defense don't be surprised to see Adams shatter the ND single season rushing record (1437 yards) which came nearly 40 years ago by Vagas Ferguson. When you start talking about breaking records at a blue blood program like Notre Dame with a top 5 ranking it's fair to say Adams will get an invite at the very least to New York City for the Heisman Trophy presentation.
And for what it's worth Notre Dame has gone full on promoting Josh Adams for the Heisman with their newly released #33Trucking Hats. This hat isn't a want hat. It's a NEED hat.
