Short-yardage / goal-line · enumeration
Who gets the tough yard
2/25Inside-5 share
2 of the team's 25 inside-the-5 carries (8.0%).
Tony Pollard
Last confirmed: Memphis, 2018. No 2026 box-score games on record.
6′0″ · 208 lb · Memphis, TN · Melrose
Tony Pollard: RB · Memphis · #1.
Players he’s like
Closest statistical matches, adjusted for opponent strength.
Tony Pollard
Wins in space out of the backfield. Third year in the Memphis backfield. A game that shows it: 113 rushing yards and 1 rushing TD against Wake Forest — Bowl, 2018.
How he plays
How he plays
Play style
Deployed as a receiver as much as a runner. Value is in space, not between the tackles.
News and fans
No outlet on our list has written about him by name this season.
Memphis in the news
Where to follow him
Career stats
Swipe the table sideways for more columns.
Game log
Game log · Week-by-week
2018 season · 14 games
Swipe the table sideways for more columns.
| Wk | Opp | CAR | YDS | AVG | TD | LONG | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | W 66-14vs Mercer | 1 | 5 | 5.0 | 0 | 5 | |
| Wk 2 | L 21-22@ Navy | 1 | 6 | 6.0 | 0 | 6 | |
| Wk 3 | W 59-22vs Georgia State | 4 | 22 | 5.5 | 0 | 9 | |
| Wk 4 | W 52-35vs South Alabama | 3 | 30 | 10.0 | 1 | 16 | |
| Wk 5 | L 24-40@ Tulane | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Wk 6 | W 55-14vs UConn | 3 | 20 | 6.7 | 0 | 12 | |
| Wk 7 | L 30-31vs No. 10 UCF | 5 | 29 | 5.8 | 1 | 19 | |
| Wk 8 | L 33-65@ Missouri | 8 | 75 | 9.4 | 0 | 21 | |
| Wk 10 | W 59-41@ East Carolina | 9 | 86 | 9.6 | 2 | 41 | |
| Wk 11 | W 47-21vs Tulsa | 6 | 13 | 2.2 | 0 | 5 | |
| Wk 12 | W 28-18@ SMU | 3 | 26 | 8.7 | 0 | 21 | |
| Wk 13 | W 52-31vs Houston | 11 | 83 | 7.5 | 1 | 24 | |
| Wk 14 | L 41-56@ No. 7 UCF | 6 | 45 | 7.5 | 0 | 21 | |
 Bowl | L 34-37@ Wake Forest | 18 | 113 | 6.3 | 1 | 41 | |
| Total | 79 | 553 | 7.0 | 6 | 41 |
Signature game
Week 13 · 2018
W 52-31
vs Houston
8 rec · 116 yds · 83 rush yds (11 car) · 1 TD
Dominant 21-point win at home against Houston.
With A. Williams — 47.2 yards per punt · 5 punts · 1 inside the 20 · D. Henderson — 178 rush yds (24 car) · 2 TD
Signature plays
The plays that mattered most
- Week 1 · Wake Forest · 2nd and 2 · Q1 · EPA +2.95Tony Pollard run for 41 yds for a TD (Riley Patterson KICK)
- Week 13 · Houston · 1st and 10 · Q1 · EPA +2.91Brady White pass complete to Tony Pollard for 44 yds to the Houst 25 for a
- Week 10 · East Carolina · 4th and 1 · Q4 · EPA +2.79Tony Pollard run for 1 yd for a TD (Riley Patterson KICK)
- Week 13 · Houston · 3rd and 1 · Q4 · EPA +2.78Tony Pollard run for 24 yds to the Houst 47 for a
- Week 6 · UConn · 3rd and 19 · Q3 · EPA +2.61Brady White pass complete to Tony Pollard for 18 yds to the UConn 23
- Week 7 · UCF · 1st and 10 · Q2 · EPA +2.60Tony Pollard 19 Yd Run
4 more plays
- Week 4 · South Alabama · 1st and 10 · Q4 · EPA +2.57Tony Pollard run for 16 yds for a TD (Riley Patterson KICK)
- Week 3 · Georgia State · 1st and 10 · Q1 · EPA +2.54Brady White pass complete to Tony Pollard for 13 yds for a TD, (Riley Patterson KICK)
- Week 6 · UConn · 1st and 10 · Q1 · EPA −2.54Brady White pass complete to Tony Pollard for 5 yds to the Memph 48 MEMPHIS Penalty, personal foul (Roger Joseph) to the Memph 33
- Week 10 · East Carolina · 2nd and 6 · Q2 · EPA +2.53Tony Pollard run for 6 yds for a TD (Riley Patterson KICK)
Rushing profile
Rush profile · Shape, efficiency, and ball security
How he gets his yards, and how often it works
79 of 79 carries matched to play-by-play
Success rate
56%61 carriesStuffed
0 or fewer yds13%of carries
10 carries
Grind
1–3 yds24%of carries
19 carries
Chunk
4–9 yds43%of carries
34 carries
Explosive
10+ yds20%of carries
16 carries
3 of 3 (100%) converted on 3rd/4th & short (≤2 to go)
7.0 yds/carry on 79 carries · 20% explosive (10+ yds) · 56% success rate.
Teams and coaches
3 seasons under Mike Norvell — 26-14 over that span.
2016Memphis8-5HC: Mike Norvell · Balanced
2017Memphis10-3HC: Mike Norvell · Balanced
2018Memphis8-6HC: Mike Norvell · Run-leaning
Our ratings
Splits
Home and road splits, scheme and staff
Splits · Per-game
2018 season · 14 games
Home vs Road
| YDS/g | YPC | TD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Home7g | 28.9 | 6.1 | 0.4 |
| Road6g | 39.7 | 6.9 | 0.3 |
First half vs Second half
| YDS/g | YPC | TD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Weeks 1-78g | 28.1 | 5.7 | 0.4 |
| Weeks 8+6g | 54.7 | 7.5 | 0.5 |
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Mike Norvell
Pass share
40.6%
413 pass / 604 run
Plays / game
72.6
14 games
Team sack rate
5.5%
455 dropbacks · PBP
Scheme: Run-leaning.
Awards
Player standing · 2018
79 carries and 38 catches in 14 games
About as many touches a game as a typical FBS running back who plays every week.
Roster2-deepStarterRecognizedEliteApex
Four seasons at Memphis, drafted
- 2019 Drafted in round 4, No. 128 by the Dallas
- 2018 Memphis NorvellYear 4 · 14 games
- 2017 Memphis NorvellYear 3 · 13 games
- 2016 Memphis NorvellYear 2 · 13 games
- 2015 Memphis FuenteYear 1 · on the roster, no stat line
- Before collegeSigned with Memphis in 2015 as a 3-star recruit, No. 1,799 in the country.
His moves
- Signed with Memphis in the 2015 class, a 3-star recruit.
How it ended
Three seasons at Memphis, 942 rushing yards — drafted at #128 overall by the Dallas Cowboys.
His career
He has a stat line in 40 games over 3 seasons.
2015
- Signed with Memphis3-star out of Melrose
2019
- Drafted by Dallas Cowboysround 4, pick 128
Coaching lineage · 2015–2018
2 coaches2015
Memphis
Coaching transition mid-career: Justin Fuente → Mike Norvell. Worth noting in scheme + development context.
Where he ended up · NFL
Dallas CowboysEntering 8th NFL season
#128Rd 4 · Pick 26
Dallas CowboysEntering 8th NFL season