Short-yardage / goal-line · enumeration
Who gets the tough yard
8/163rd/4th & short
6/15Inside-5 share
8 of 16 on 3rd/4th-and-2-or-less (50.0%). 6 of the team's 15 inside-the-5 carries (40.0%).
Lew Nichols
Lew Nichols: RB · Central Michigan · #7.
Similar players
Closest statistical matches, adjusted for opponent strength.
Lew Nichols
Just keeps getting the ball, series after series. Fourth year in the same backfield at Central Michigan. On tape: 166 rushing yards and 17 receiving yards against Bucknell, Week 3, 2022.
Style of play
Style of play
Play style
Built to take 20+ carries per game. Volume is the value.
Fans
No outlet on our list has written about this player by name this season.
Central Michigan in the news
Where to follow
Career stats
Swipe the table sideways for more columns.
| Season | Team | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | Central Michigan | 177 | 601 | 3.4 | 6 | 31 |
| 2021 | Central Michigan | 341 | 1,848 | 5.4 | 16 | 66 |
| 2020 | Central Michigan | 78 | 508 | 6.5 | 4 | 68 |
| 2019 | Central Michigan | 19 | 89 | 4.7 | 0 | 15 |
| Career | 615 | 3,046 | 5.0 | 26 | 68 |
| Season | Team | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | Central Michigan | 21 | 128 | 6.1 | 0 | 21 |
| 2021 | Central Michigan | 40 | 338 | 8.4 | 2 | 36 |
| 2020 | Central Michigan | 10 | 109 | 10.9 | 1 | 58 |
| 2019 | Central Michigan | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| Career | 71 | 575 | 8.1 | 3 | 58 |
Game log
Game log · Week-by-week
2022 season · 9 games
Swipe the table sideways for more columns.
| Wk | Opp | CAR | YDS | AVG | TD | LONG | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | L 44-58@ No. 12 Oklahoma State | 26 | 72 | 2.8 | 2 | 15 | |
| Wk 2 | L 24-38vs South Alabama | 15 | 20 | 1.3 | 1 | 8 | |
| Wk 3 | W 41-0vs Bucknell | 30 | 166 | 5.5 | 2 | 31 | Season-high 166 yds |
| Wk 4 | L 14-33@ No. 14 Penn State | 13 | 67 | 5.2 | 0 | 18 | |
| Wk 5 | L 17-38@ Toledo | 18 | 32 | 1.8 | 0 | 6 | |
| Wk 6 | L 16-17vs Ball State | 31 | 97 | 3.1 | 1 | 17 | |
| Wk 10 | W 35-22@ Northern Illinois | 28 | 92 | 3.3 | 0 | 11 | |
| Wk 12 | L 10-12vs Western Michigan | 10 | 35 | 3.5 | 0 | 13 | |
| Wk 13 | L 19-38@ Eastern Michigan | 6 | 20 | 3.3 | 0 | 6 | |
| Total | 177 | 601 | 3.4 | 6 | 31 |
Signature game
Week 3 · 2022
W 41-0
vs Bucknell
166 rush yds (30 car) · 2 TD · 1 rec · 17 yds
Dominant 41-point win at home against Bucknell.
With J. Bauer — 47 rush yds (6 car) · 2 TD · 44 yds · 0 TD · 0 INT · QBR 99.3 · D. Richardson — 198 yds · 2 TD · 1 INT · QBR 26.1
Signature plays
The plays that mattered most
- Week 6 · Ball State · 4th and 1 · Q1 · EPA −3.54Lew Nichols III run for no gain to the BalSt 22
- Week 6 · Ball State · 4th and 3 · Q1 · EPA +2.71Lew Nichols III run for 6 yds to the BalSt 46 for a
- Week 1 · Oklahoma State · 4th and 2 · Q4 · EPA +2.61Lew Nichols III run for 10 yds to the CMich 46 for a
- Week 1 · Oklahoma State · 1st and 10 · Q4 · EPA +2.56Lew Nichols III run for 15 yds for a TD, (Daniel Richardson pass to Carlos Carriere for Two-Point Conversion)
- Week 3 · Bucknell · 1st and 10 · Q3 · EPA +2.56Lew Nichols III run for 15 yds for a TD, (Marshall Meeder KICK)
- Week 3 · Bucknell · 2nd and 10 · Q1 · EPA +2.35Lew Nichols III run for 14 yds to the Buckn 47 for a
4 more plays
- Week 6 · Ball State · 2nd and 1 · Q1 · EPA +1.90Lew Nichols III run for 1 yd for a TD, (Josh Rolston KICK)
- Week 2 · South Alabama · 1st and 10 · Q1 · EPA +1.89Daniel Richardson pass complete to Lew Nichols III for 21 yds to the CMich 46 for a
- Week 2 · South Alabama · 1st and 5 · Q1 · EPA +1.88Lew Nichols III run for 5 yds for a TD, (Marshall Meeder KICK)
- Week 3 · Bucknell · 2nd and 10 · Q1 · EPA +1.85Daniel Richardson pass complete to Lew Nichols III for 17 yds to the Buckn 30 for a
Rushing profile
Rush profile · Shape, efficiency, and ball security
How he gets his yards, and how often it works
163 of 177 carries matched to play-by-play
Success rate
37%163 carriesFumble rate
1.1%2 of 177 carries · 2 lostStuffed
0 or fewer yds17%of carries
28 carries
Grind
1–3 yds44%of carries
72 carries
Chunk
4–9 yds30%of carries
49 carries
Explosive
10+ yds9%of carries
14 carries
8 of 16 (50%) converted on 3rd/4th & short (≤2 to go) · 4 of 6 (67%) scored from inside the 5-yard line
3.4 yds/carry on 177 carries · 9% explosive (10+ yds) · 37% success rate.
Situational
Situational · Carry shape (PBP, full season)
Yardage DNA
17%
Stuffed (≤0)
44%
Grind (1–3)
30%
Chunk (4–9)
9%
Explosive (10+)
Teams and coaches
4 seasons under Jim McElwain — 24-21 over that span.
2019Central Michigan8-6HC: Jim McElwain · Balanced
2020Central Michigan3-3HC: Jim McElwain · Run-leaning
2021Central Michigan9-4HC: Jim McElwain · Run-leaning, fast tempo
2022Central Michigan4-8HC: Jim McElwain · Run-leaning
Our ratings
Splits
Home and road splits, scheme and staff
Splits · Per-game
2022 season · 9 games
Home vs Road
| YDS/g | YPC | TD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Home4g | 79.5 | 3.4 | 1.0 |
| Road5g | 56.6 | 3.3 | 0.4 |
First half vs Second half
| YDS/g | YPC | TD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Weeks 1-76g | 75.7 | 3.3 | 1.0 |
| Weeks 8+3g | 49.0 | 3.4 | 0.0 |
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Jim McElwain
Pass share
46.9%
388 pass / 440 run
Plays / game
69.0
12 games
Team sack rate
7.0%
429 dropbacks · PBP
Scheme: Run-leaning.
Awards
Player standing · 2022
177 carries and 21 catches in 9 games
More touches a game than nearly every FBS running back who plays every week.
Recognition
Roster2-deepStarterRecognizedEliteApex
Production · CFB Zeitgeist Score
29 · #308 of 317 RBs · 2022
Four seasons at Central Michigan, drafted
- 2023 Drafted in round 7, No. 235 by the Green Bay
- 2022 Central Michigan McElwainYear 4 · 9 games
- 2021 Central Michigan McElwainYear 3 · 12 games
- 2020 Central Michigan McElwainYear 2 · 6 games
- 2019 Central Michigan McElwainYear 1 · 4 games
How it ended
Four seasons at Central Michigan, 3,046 rushing yards — drafted at #235 overall by the Green Bay Packers.
A stat line in 31 games over four seasons.
2023
- Drafted by Green Bay Packersround 7, pick 235
Coaching lineage · 2019–2022
1 coach2019–2022
Central Michigan
Played every college season under Jim McElwain.
Next stop · NFL
Green Bay PackersEntering 4th NFL season
#235Rd 7 · Pick 18
Green Bay PackersEntering 4th NFL season