Short-yardage / goal-line · enumeration
Who gets the tough yard
3/24Inside-5 share
3 of the team's 24 inside-the-5 carries (12.5%).
Rushel Shell
Last confirmed: West Virginia, 2016. No 2026 box-score games on record.
5′10″ · Hopewell, PA
Rushel Shell: RB · West Virginia · #4.
Players he’s like
Closest statistical matches, adjusted for opponent strength.
Rushel Shell
Does a little of everything without one standout trait. This is his third year in the same backfield at West Virginia. A game that shows it: 117 rushing yards and 35 receiving yards against TCU — Week 8, 2016.
How he plays
How he plays
Play style
Plays within the scheme — consistent production without a dominant dimension.
News and fans
No outlet on our list has written about him by name this season.
West Virginia in the news
Where to follow him
Career stats
Swipe the table sideways for more columns.
| Season | Team | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | West Virginia | 113 | 514 | 4.5 | 5 |
| 2015 | West Virginia | 161 | 708 | 4.4 | 8 |
| 2014 | West Virginia | 176 | 788 | 4.5 | 7 |
| Career | 450 | 2,010 | 4.5 | 20 |
| Season | Team | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | West Virginia | 12 | 100 | 8.3 | 0 |
| 2015 | West Virginia | 16 | 101 | 6.3 | 0 |
| 2014 | West Virginia | 21 | 140 | 6.7 | 0 |
| Career | 49 | 341 | 7.0 | 0 |
Game log
Game log · Week-by-week
2016 season · 10 games
Swipe the table sideways for more columns.
| Wk | Opp | CAR | YDS | AVG | TD | LONG | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | W 26-11vs Missouri | 16 | 90 | 5.6 | 1 | 23 | |
| Wk 2 | W 38-21vs Youngstown State | 16 | 84 | 5.3 | 0 | 21 | |
| Wk 4 | W 35-32vs BYU | 11 | 35 | 3.2 | 2 | 10 | |
| Wk 5 | W 17-16vs Kansas State | 8 | 35 | 4.4 | 0 | 12 | |
| Wk 7 | W 48-17@ Texas Tech | 21 | 104 | 5.0 | 2 | 14 | |
| Wk 8 | W 34-10vs TCU | 24 | 117 | 4.9 | 0 | 20 | Season-high 117 yds |
| Wk 9 | L 20-37@ Oklahoma State | 7 | 38 | 5.4 | 0 | 15 | |
| Wk 11 | W 24-20@ Texas | 1 | 2 | 2.0 | 0 | 2 | |
| Wk 14 | W 24-21vs Baylor | 3 | 9 | 3.0 | 0 | 5 | |
 Bowl | L 14-31@ Miami | 6 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 2 | |
| Total | 113 | 514 | 4.5 | 5 | 23 |
Signature game
Week 7 · 2016
W 48-17
at Texas Tech
Signature plays
The plays that mattered most
- Week 5 · Kansas State · 2nd and 3 · Q3 · EPA −4.79Rushel Shell run for 1 yd to the KanSt 2 Rushel Shell fumbled, forced by Reggie Walker, recovered by KanSt Kendall Adams
- Week 7 · Texas Tech · 4th and 3 · Q4 · EPA +2.92Rushel Shell 3 Yd Run
- Week 1 · Missouri · 1st and 10 · Q1 · EPA +2.66Rushel Shell run for 23 yds for a TD, (Mike Molina KICK)
- Week 7 · Texas Tech · 1st and 10 · Q4 · EPA +2.55Rushel Shell 14 Yd Run
- Week 9 · Oklahoma State · 3rd and 7 · Q2 · EPA +2.36Rushel Shell run for 7 yds to the 50 yard line for a
- Week 4 · BYU · 1st and 6 · Q1 · EPA +2.05Rushel Shell run for 6 yds for a TD, (Mike Molina KICK)
4 more plays
- Week 9 · Oklahoma State · 1st and 10 · Q2 · EPA +1.89Rushel Shell run for 6 yds to the WVirg 31, OKLAHOMA ST Penalty, Unsportsmanlike Conduct (15 Yards) to the WVirg 46 for a
- Week 1 · Missouri · 1st and 10 · Q2 · EPA −1.87Rushel Shell run for a loss of 4 yards to the WVirg 38
- Week 4 · BYU · 3rd and 7 · Q2 · EPA +1.86Skyler Howard pass complete to Rushel Shell for 13 yds to the BYU 2 for a
- Week 1 · Missouri · 1st and 10 · Q3 · EPA +1.85Rushel Shell run for 20 yds to the 50 yard line for a
Teams and coaches
3 seasons under Dana Holgorsen — 25-14 over that span.
2014West Virginia7-6HC: Dana Holgorsen · Balanced, fast tempo
2015West Virginia8-5HC: Dana Holgorsen · Run-leaning, fast tempo
2016West Virginia10-3HC: Dana Holgorsen · Run-leaning
Our ratings
Splits
Home and road splits, scheme and staff
Splits · Per-game
2016 season · 10 games
Home vs Road
| YDS/g | YPC | TD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Home5g | 67.0 | 4.6 | 0.2 |
| Road3g | 48.0 | 4.1 | 0.7 |
First half vs Second half
| YDS/g | YPC | TD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Weeks 1-76g | 58.0 | 3.9 | 0.8 |
| Weeks 8+4g | 41.5 | 3.8 | 0.0 |
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Dana Holgorsen
Pass share
42.0%
409 pass / 564 run
Plays / game
74.8
13 games
Team sack rate
5.6%
443 dropbacks · PBP
Scheme: Run-leaning.
Awards
Player standing · 2016
Starter
113 carries and 12 catches in 10 games, about as many touches a game as a typical FBS running back who plays every week.
Roster2-deepStarterRecognizedEliteApex
Five seasons, two schools
- 2016 West Virginia HolgorsenYear 5 · 10 games
- 2015 West Virginia HolgorsenYear 4 · 13 games
- 2014 West Virginia HolgorsenYear 3 · 12 games
- 2013 West Virginia HolgorsenYear 2 · on the roster, no stat line
- 2012 Pittsburgh ChrystYear 1 · on the roster, no stat line
- Before collegeSigned with Pittsburgh in 2012 as a 5-star recruit, No. 32 in the country.
His moves
- Signed with Pittsburgh in the 2012 class, a 5-star recruit.
How it ended
Three seasons at West Virginia, 2,010 rushing yards — his college career is complete.
His career
He has a stat line in 35 games over 3 seasons.
2012
- Signed with Pittsburgh5-star out of Hopewell
Coaching lineage · 2012–2016
2 coaches2012
Pittsburgh
Played for 2 head coaches at 2 schools: Paul Chryst and Dana Holgorsen.