Short-yardage / goal-line · enumeration
Who gets the tough yard
1/16Inside-5 share
1 of the team's 16 inside-the-5 carries (6.2%).
Hunter Hopperton
Last gameL 10–31at Sacramento State · Oct 30
Nextat Bowling GreenTue Nov 10 · 7 pm ET
South Carolina · L 0-57
No carries.
Wofford · W 36-15 · FCS
No carries.
Western Michigan · L 7-38
No carries.
Sacramento State · L 10-31
No carries.
Hopperton has carries in 5 of Kent State’s 9 games: none in the other 4.
Dashed line: 100 yards.
This week
- RecordKent State is 3-6.
- Next gameat Bowling Green · Tue Nov 10 Top rushers have averaged 120 yards against Bowling Green. Hopperton averages 1.
Hunter Hopperton
Transferred to Kent State from Rhode Island. A game that shows it: 7 receiving yards and 2 receptions against Akron — Week 8, 2026.
8 rushing yards · 0 rushing TD · 7 carries
Style of play
Style of play
In the game threads
at Sacramento State, Oct 30Hopperton is f------ huge, I'm not surprised DeShields fumbled running into him I guess lolWashington fan, r/CFB game threadWhere to follow
The latest game
Against Sacramento State on Oct. 30: 0 carries for 0 yards. In the 8 games drawn here: 7 carries for 8 yards.
First quarterSecond quarterThird quarterFourth quarter
- L 10-31 at Sacramento State0 carries, 0 yds
- W 35-20 vs Akron1 carry, 2 yds
- L 2-29 at South Florida1 carry, 1 yds
- L 10-13 vs Ohio1 carry, 1 yds
- W 26-13 vs Ball State1 carry, 2 yds
- L 3-59 at Ohio State3 carries, 2 yds
- W 36-15 vs Wofford0 carries, 0 yds
- L 0-57 at South Carolina0 carries, 0 yds
a carry, by its yardsa loss, below the linea catcha touchdown
Each game is split into its four quarters, so the columns line up from game to game; inside a quarter, plays keep their order. Third and fourth downs are marked under the line, bold when he moved the chains.
Game log
Game log · Week-by-week
2026 season · 8 games
Swipe the table sideways for more columns.
| Wk | Opp | CAR | YDS | AVG | TD | LONG | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | L 0-57@ South Carolina | — | — | — | — | — | |
| Wk 2 | W 36-15vs Wofford | — | — | — | — | — | |
| Wk 3 | L 3-59@ No. 6 Ohio State | 3 | 2 | 0.7 | 0 | 2 | Season-high 2 yds |
| Wk 4 | W 26-13vs Ball State | 1 | 2 | 2.0 | 0 | 2 | |
| Wk 5 | L 10-13vs Ohio | 1 | 1 | 1.0 | 0 | 1 | |
| Wk 7 | L 2-29@ South Florida | 1 | 1 | 1.0 | 0 | 1 | |
| Wk 8 | W 35-20vs Akron | 1 | 2 | 2.0 | 0 | 2 | |
| Wk 9 | L 10-31@ Sacramento State | — | — | — | — | — | |
| Total | 7 | 8 | 1.1 | 0 | 2 |
Signature game
Week 8 · 2026
W 35-20
vs Akron
2 rec · 7 yds · 1 TD · 2 rush yds (1 car)
With D. DeShields — 294 yds · 4 TD · 0 INT · QBR 76.6 · 28 rush yds (8 car) · 1 TD · W. Harris — 9 rec · 156 yds · 3 TD
Signature plays
The plays that mattered most
- Week 3 · Ohio State · 4th and 1 · Q1 · EPA −4.28H.Hopperton rush middle for 0 yards to the KentSt46 (K.Jackson Jr.; R.Pettijohn), TURNOVER ON DOWNS
- Week 8 · Akron · 2nd and 2 · Q3 · EPA +2.07DeShields to Hopperton: a 2-yard touchdown pass.
- Week 5 · Ohio · 4th and 1 · Q3 · EPA +1.60H.Hopperton rush middle for 1 yard gain to the Ohio02 (N.Dukes)
- Week 5 · Ohio · 2nd and 8 · Q3 · EPA +1.58DeShields to Hopperton: an 11-yard pass.
- Week 1 · South Carolina · 3rd and 3 · Q1 · EPA +1.42DeShields to Hopperton: a 5-yard pass.
- Week 9 · Sacramento State · 1st and 10 · Q4 · EPA +1.15DeShields to Hopperton: a 12-yard pass.
4 more plays
- Week 3 · Ohio State · 3rd and 1 · Q1 · EPA −1.07H.Hopperton rush middle for 0 yards to the KentSt46 (W.Smith Jr.; J.Moore)
- Week 4 · Ball State · 3rd and 2 · Q1 · EPA +1.02H.Hopperton rush middle for 2 yards gain (C.Lewis; K.Chamble)
- Week 3 · Ohio State · 3rd and 2 · Q3 · EPA +0.86H.Hopperton rush middle for 2 yards gain to the KentSt30 (J.Thomas)
- Week 8 · Akron · 4th and 1 · Q1 · EPA +0.80H.Hopperton rush middle for 2 yards gain to the Akron19 (J.Jones)
Where he ranks
Opponents faced, by strength
Ratings of the games shown run from -29 to +29 points against an average team (SP+ rating of each opponent).
2026 snapshot
Last game (Wk 9): 2 catches.
Season context: team record and system
2 seasons under Mark Carney — 8-13 over that span.
2025Kent State5-7HC: Mark Carney · Run-leaning, slow tempo
2026Kent State3-6HC: Mark Carney · Balanced
Our ratings
Splits
Home and road splits, scheme and staff
Splits · Per-game
2026 season · 8 games
Home vs Road
| YDS/g | YPC | TD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Home4g | 1.2 | 1.7 | 0.0 |
| Road4g | 0.8 | 0.8 | 0.0 |
First half vs Second half
| YDS/g | YPC | TD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Weeks 1-76g | 1.0 | 1.2 | 0.0 |
| Weeks 8+2g | 1.0 | 2.0 | 0.0 |
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Mark Carney
Pass share
48.2%
271 pass / 291 run
Plays / game
62.4
9 games
Team sack rate
4.8%
310 dropbacks · PBP
Scheme: Balanced.
Awards
Player standing · 2026
15 catches and 7 carries in 8 games
Fewer touches a game than most FBS running backs who play every week.
Roster2-deepStarterRecognizedEliteApex
Starter
The No. 2,723 recruit in the country is carrying the ball in the Mid-American as a redshirt senior.
Three seasons at Kent State
2026 is in progress.
- 2026 Kent State CarneyYear 3 · 8 games
- 2025 Kent State CarneyYear 2 · 4 games
- 2024 Kent State BurnsYear 1 · on the roster, no stat line
- Dec 2023 Entered the transfer portalRhode Island to Kent State
- High school StreetsboroStreetsboro, OH · Class of 2022Two-star, No. 2,723 in the 2022 class. Signed with Rhode Island.
Moves
- Transferred from Rhode Island to Kent State, Dec 1, 2023.
2022
- Signed with Rhode IslandTwo-star, out of Streetsboro
2024
- Transferred to Kent Statefrom Rhode Island
Coaching lineage · 2024–2026
2 coaches2024
Kenni Burns
Kent State
Coaching transition mid-career: Kenni Burns → Mark Carney. Worth noting in scheme + development context.