Game log · Week-by-week
2026 season · 2 games
| Wk | Opp | CAR | YDS | AVG | TD | LONG | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | W 31-3vs Houston Christian | 16 | 104 | 6.5 | 0 | 31 | Season-high 104 yds |
| Wk 2 | L 0-52@ Notre Dame | 7 | 24 | 3.4 | 0 | 7 | |
| Total | 23 | 128 | 5.0 | 0 | 31 |
#26
Tyvonn Byars
Sophomore running back for Rice. 2026: 2 games with a box-score line.
5′10″ · 217 lb · Montgomery, TX · Lake Creek
Returning to Rice for 2026
The numbers
128
rushing yards · 2026
5.6 per carry
2 games into 2026 so far -- Best game: 104 rush yds, vs Houston Christian
His career numbers, season by seasonThe story
2 running back for Rice. 2026: 2 games with a box-score line.
- Signed as a 3-star recruit to Rice in 2025.
Tyvonn Byars
Second year in the Rice backfield, same address the whole way. The receipt on tape: 104 rush yds against Houston Christian, Week 1, 2026.
128 RUSH YDS · 0 RUSH TD · 23 CARRIES
Low coverage — composed from the verified record.
- season totals
- seasons on the roster
- game log
His career
20258 games
- Signed with Rice3-star out of Lake Creek
Career arc
HS
Recruit
★★★
CFB
College
Rice
NFL
NFL Draft
—
2026 snapshot
Season context · Team result + system
2 seasons under Scott Abell — 6-9 over that span.
2025Rice5-8HC: Scott Abell · Run-heavy
2026Rice1-1HC: Scott Abell · Run-heavy, slow tempo
Where this profile ranks vs the RB cohort
Box-score percentiles
Elite: yards / carry (80th percentile). Concern: rush yards (0th percentile).
Box-score rates (5)
Percentiles versus same-position peers with enough snaps this season, based on box-score rates.
Splits & context
Splits
Per-game splits
Through 2 games: 64.0 YDS/g, 5.0 YPC, 0.0 TD/g — splits start at 3 games.
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Scott Abell
Scheme reads (pass share, tempo, sack rate) need at least 3 team games — 2 games in so far.
Awards
Player standing · 2026
Backup
On the two-deep and pushing for snaps.
Roster2-deepStarterRecognizedEliteApex
Career stats
Signature game
SIGNATURE GAME · Week 1 · 2026
W 31–3
104 rush yds (16 car)
Dominant 28-point win at home against Houston Christian.
With Q. Jackson — 61 rush yds (10 car) · 2 TD · C. Durkin — 54 AVG · 54 LONG · 1 NO
Signature plays
Signature plays · top plays by |EPA|
The plays that mattered most
- Week 1 · Houston Christian · 1&10 · Q2 · EPA +2.62(08:09) No Huddle-Shotgun #26 T.Byars rush middle for 31 yards gain to the HCU49 (#3 D.Bean; #8 J.Bejarano), 1ST DOWN
- Week 1 · Houston Christian · 3&3 · Q1 · EPA +1.99(13:34) Shotgun #26 T.Byars rush middle for 10 yards gain to the Rice44 (#3 D.Bean; #17 J.King), 1ST DOWN
- Week 1 · Houston Christian · 3&3 · Q3 · EPA +1.59(02:55) No Huddle-Shotgun #26 T.Byars rush middle for 4 yards gain to the HCU49 (#36 H.Tita; #92 T.Akintade), 1ST DOWN
- Week 1 · Houston Christian · 3&9 · Q4 · EPA +1.20(14:22) No Huddle-Shotgun #26 T.Byars rush middle for 13 yards gain to the HCU13 (#16 B.Bradshaw), 1ST DOWN
- Week 2 · Notre Dame · 1&10 · Q2 · EPA -0.93(04:23) Shotgun #26 T.Byars rush middle for 0 yards to the Rice32 (#7 F.Brewu)
- Week 1 · Houston Christian · 3&1 · Q2 · EPA +0.86(06:25) Shotgun #26 T.Byars rush middle for 6 yards gain to the HCU34 (#14 M.Henderson; #6 G.Catanzano), 1ST DOWN
- Week 1 · Houston Christian · 2&2 · Q2 · EPA -0.85(06:49) Shotgun #26 T.Byars rush middle for 1 yard gain to the HCU40 (#99 M.Mickles)
- Week 2 · Notre Dame · 2&8 · Q2 · EPA -0.72(10:26) Shotgun #26 T.Byars rush middle for 1 yard gain to the Rice41 (#44 R.Dunham)
- Week 1 · Houston Christian · 1&10 · Q1 · EPA -0.49(14:54) No Huddle-Shotgun #26 T.Byars rush middle for 2 yards gain to the Rice29 (#99 M.Mickles; #4 T.Zappe)
- Week 2 · Notre Dame · 1&15 · Q2 · EPA +0.48(11:04) Shotgun #26 T.Byars rush left for 7 yards gain to the Rice40 (#4 J.Ausberry; #34 D.Bowen), out of bounds
Game log
How he plays
2026 Outlook
Rice
2026 Depth chart
Projected starter
Running back · Rice
Returning around him
- 39% of 2024 offensive production back (Moderate turnover)
- Transfer portal: -2 net (20 in / 22 out)
2026 Award watch
No preseason watch lists yet (most drop June 15 – July 15)
Rice · Last season: 5-8 · Talent rank #100 · 2026 recruiting class #104
Background
Honors American Conference All-Academic 2026 Pronunciation Guide 2025 Saw action in eight games and ran for 193 yards on 34 carries and added one reception for 43 yards to finish with 236 all-purpose yards… Had three plays of better than 25 yards in his 35 touches, with runs of 32 (UTSA) and 26 (...
The backfield · Rice
- #10Quinton Jackson889 rushing yards · 2025
- #28DAndre Hardeman Jr.302 rushing yards · 2025
- #26Tyvonn Byars193 rushing yards · 2025
- #30Carson Morgan18 rushing yards · 2025
- #27Dionne Simsno box-score line yet
1 more on the roster · Rice team page
Stats from CFBD · ESPN · fan discourse. Every figure computed from source tables — not invented. Methodology