Game log · Week-by-week
2026 season · 3 games
| Wk | Opp | CAR | YDS | AVG | TD | LONG | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | L 10-15vs North Carolina | 25 | 142 | 5.7 | 0 | 48 | Season-high 142 yds |
| Wk 2 | W 63-7vs Grambling | 9 | 79 | 8.8 | 0 | 32 | |
| Wk 3 | W 31-7vs Arkansas State | 24 | 86 | 3.6 | 1 | 11 | |
| Total | 58 | 307 | 6.0 | 1 | 48 |
#26
Jeremy Payne
Junior running back for TCU. 2026: 3 games with a box-score line.
5′10″ · 180 lb · Missouri City, TX · Hightower High School
CFB Index 62 · #61 of 326 RBsHigh confidence
CFB Index
A single number blending on-field production (an EPA-based value lane) with box-score output for this player's position.
0-100, scaled within each position's own cohort — not directly comparable across positions.
The numbers
307
rushing yards · 2026 · through week 3
3 games into 2026 so far -- Backed by 26 car · 174 yds · 2 TD -- top 1% rushing yards game. -- Best game: 142 rush yds, 27 rec yds, vs North Carolina
Swing playSwung TCU from 47% to 69% to win.TCU at Kansas State · 41-28
His career numbers, season by seasonThe story
Junior running back for TCU. 2026: 3 games with a box-score line.
- Signed as a 4-star recruit to TCU in 2024.
How he plays
Does a little of everything without one standout trait.
Yards / carry: 48th percentile.
The full scouting readAura™ · Him Watch
Underrated
-43aura tax
Fans rank this player in the 28th percentile of RBs; the tape says
72nd pctl our rushing-value metric (wEPA) RBs · 140 qualified, n=21
— the tape outruns the hype.Aura — fan perception28th pctl
Production — on-field72nd pctl
n=21 mentions · cohort: RBs · 140 qualified · perception = conversation volume, production = our rushing-value metric (wEPA)
Buzz vs Tape
Attention percentile: 29th · Production percentile: 72nd
His production sits in the 72nd percentile among qualified RBs this season, well ahead of 29th-percentile attention — a gap of 43 points between tape and volume.
29thattention percentile · vs RBs
72ndproduction percentile · vs RBs
Jeremy Payne
Does a little of everything without one standout trait. He has spent three seasons in the TCU backfield. 2025 brought the first one: Big 12 Offensive Player of the Week. The receipt: 142 rush yds, 27 rec yds against North Carolina — Week 1, 2026.
307 RUSH YDS · 1 RUSH TD · 58 CARRIES
Low coverage — composed from the verified record.
- season totals
- positional archetype classification
- seasons on the roster
- recognition record
- game log
His career
He arrived as a blue-chip recruit and played like one.
202411 games
- Signed with TCU4-star out of Fort Bend Hightower
Career arc
HS
Recruit
★★★★
CFB
College
TCU
NFL
NFL Draft
—
Badges
- Program Benchmark
Coaching lineage · 2024–2026
1 coach2024–2026
TCU
Played his entire career under Sonny Dykes.
Career stats
Game log
Game by game
Jeremy Payne's 2026 production
Point color shows the opponent's defensive strength that week (red = weaker defense, blue = stronger) — dashed line is this player's own season average.
Signature game
SIGNATURE GAME · Week 2 · 2026
W 63–7
vs Grambling
Signature plays
Signature plays · top plays by |EPA|
The plays that mattered most
- Week 1 · North Carolina · 4&1 · Q3 · EPA -4.25(02:55) No Huddle #26 J.Payne rush middle for 1 yard loss to the UNC06 (#0 I.Johnson; #90 X.Lewis), TURNOVER ON DOWNS
- Week 1 · North Carolina · 1&10 · Q1 · EPA +2.66(08:54) No Huddle-Shotgun #26 J.Payne rush right for 48 yards gain to the UNC17 (#18 J.Patterson), out of bounds, 1ST DOWN
- Week 1 · North Carolina · 2&10 · Q3 · EPA +1.93(14:27) No Huddle-Shotgun #1 J.Craig pass complete short left to #26 J.Payne caught at TCU25, for 14 yards to the TCU39 (#15 D.McDonald), out of bounds, 1ST DOWN
- Week 1 · North Carolina · 2&7 · Q2 · EPA +1.68(08:25) No Huddle-Shotgun #26 J.Payne rush left for 11 yards gain to the TCU44 (#8 J.Agumadu), out of bounds, 1ST DOWN
- Week 1 · North Carolina · 3&2 · Q3 · EPA +1.64(12:42) No Huddle-Shotgun #26 J.Payne rush left for 7 yards gain to the UNC46 (#1 G.Smith III; #7 P.Waters), 1ST DOWN, PENALTY TCU UNS: Unsportsmanlike Conduct (#26 J.Payne) 15 yards from UNC46 to TCU39
- Week 3 · Arkansas State · 1&3 · Q1 · EPA +1.46(08:41) No Huddle-Shotgun #26 J.Payne rush middle for 3 yards gain to the ASU00 TOUCHDOWN, clock 08:36 #99 N.McCashland kick attempt good (H: #97 E.Black, LS: #57 W.Terry)
- Week 1 · North Carolina · 2&5 · Q2 · EPA -1.35(02:31) No Huddle-Shotgun #26 J.Payne rush middle for 4 yards loss to the TCU31 (#90 X.Lewis)
- Week 3 · Arkansas State · 1&10 · Q4 · EPA -1.23(09:45) No Huddle-Shotgun #26 J.Payne rush left for 1 yard loss to the ASU46 (#23 T.Stevens)
- Week 3 · Arkansas State · 3&3 · Q2 · EPA -1.12(09:20) No Huddle-Shotgun #26 J.Payne rush left for 0 yards to the ASU40 (#23 T.Stevens)
- Week 2 · Grambling · 2&6 · Q3 · EPA +1.10(13:16) Shotgun #26 J.Payne rush left for 7 yards gain to the TCU38 (#23 J.Guillard; #4 L.Foster), 1ST DOWN
2026 snapshot
Since week 2: +86 rushing yards, +1 rushing TD, +2 catches.
Season context · Team result + system
3 seasons under Sonny Dykes — 20-9 over that span.
2024TCU9-4HC: Sonny Dykes · Pass-leaning
2025TCU9-4HC: Sonny Dykes · Balanced
2026TCU2-1HC: Sonny Dykes · Run-leaning
Where this profile ranks vs the RB cohort
Box-score + play-by-play EPA percentiles
High confidence
Elite: receptions (83rd percentile). Strength: carries (81st percentile). Concern: explosive rate (6th percentile).
Real play-by-play efficiency
Box-score rates (8)
Season trend
Last seasonThis season
EPA / carry
50th → 25th percentile
Success rate
67th → 32nd percentile
Explosive rate
31st → 6th percentile
Yards / carry
48th → 48th percentile
TD rate
31st → 14th percentile
Percentiles versus same-position peers with enough snaps this season. Most bars are box-score rates; EPA / success-rate bars are computed from real play-by-play (offense only — no defensive EPA model exists yet).
Rushing profile
Rush profile · Shape, efficiency, and ball security
How he gets his yards, and how often it works
57 of 58 carries matched to play-by-play
Success rate
40%55 carriesFumble rate
1.7%1 of 58 carries · 1 lostStuffed
0 or fewer yds14%of carries
8 carries
Grind
1–3 yds35%of carries
20 carries
Chunk
4–9 yds37%of carries
21 carries
Explosive
10+ yds14%of carries
8 carries
3 of 4 (75%) converted on 3rd/4th & short (≤2 to go)
5.3 yds/carry on 58 carries · 14% explosive (10+ yds) · 40% success rate.
Splits & context
Splits · Per-game
2026 season · 3 games
Home vs Road
| YDS/g | YPC | TD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Home3g | 102 | 6.0 | 0.3 |
First half vs Second half
| YDS/g | YPC | TD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Weeks 1-73g | 102 | 6.0 | 0.3 |
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Sonny Dykes
Pass share
45.1%
93 pass / 113 run
Plays / game
68.7
3 games
Team sack rate
5.0%
100 dropbacks · PBP
Scheme: Run-leaning.
Awards
Player standing · 2026
Backup
On the two-deep and pushing for snaps.
Recognition
Roster2-deepStarterRecognizedEliteApex
2026 outlook
In the mix for All-Big 12
Based on 2025: #7 of 35 Big 12 RBs
How the All-Big 12 estimate is computed
35% estimated, 95% confidence interval 31–38%. Base rate measured from players who finished at a comparable rank in their conference and came back the next season. It is an estimate from a small sample, not a forecast of this player.
How he plays
Play style
Plays within the scheme — consistent production without a dominant dimension.
CFB Index positional classification
DNA match
Player DNA
Balanced Back
Plays within the scheme — consistent production without a dominant dimension.
RB
His 2026 production profile sits closest to Dalyn Dawkins’s 2015 season.
Matches Dalyn on
Total rush EPA (college ability)
Rush TD rate
Yards / carry
Through 3 college seasons, his career arc tracks closest to Josiah Johnson’s path through South Dakota State.
Josiah Johnson
96%match
#2
Charles Pierre Jr.
94%
#3
Cooper Wallace
93%
#4
Luke Yoder
92%
Matches Josiah on
Yards per carry
As a junior, his production profile tracks closest to Ja'Vin Simpkins's junior season at Coastal Carolina (2025).
77%match
Matches Ja'Vin on
Total rush EPA (college ability)
Yards / reception
EPA / carry (adj)
Differs from Ja'Vin on
Weight (lower)
Player DNA
Players who play like Jeremy Payne
Background
CAREER HONORS » 2026 Earl Campbell Tyler Rose Award Watch List AT TCU 2025 | SOPHOMORE (11/4) Played in 11 games and started in four at running back, including the final three of the season … totaled 623 yards on the ground with five scores … ripped off six explosive runs (15+ yards) during the…
The backfield · TCU
- #26Jeremy Payne623 rushing yards · 2025
- #2Jon Denman178 rushing yards · 2025
- #29Joseph Hagman1 rushing yard · 2025
- #24Joe Pitchford2 games · 2026
- #27Landon Walker2 games · 2026
3 more on the roster · TCU team page
Stats from CFBD · ESPN · fan discourse. Every figure computed from source tables — not invented. Methodology