Notre Dame: C.J. Prosise and Will Fuller by the numbers

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Notre Dame’s offense lost its starting quarterback, running back and tight end in the season’s first two weeks but hasn’t been slowed. Running back C.J. Prosise and wide receiver Will Fuller have a lot to do with that.

Each player’s numbers have been varying levels of outstanding. A look at where some of those numbers rank among FBS players, first for Fuller:

Receptions: 18 (26th-tie)
Yards: 397 (5th)
Yards/reception: 22.06 (19th)
Yards/game: 132.3 (7th)
Touchdowns: 5 (1st-tie)
Receptions of 30+ yards: 6 (1st-tie)

Fuller totaled 142, 124 and 131 yards in his first three games, becoming the first Notre Dame player to start a season with three 100-plus-yard receiving games since since Thom Gatewood in 1970.

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Since the start of the 2014 season, Fuller has seven games with 100 or more receiving yards. The last Notre Dame player with 100-plus yards in a game was DaVaris Daniels (Nov. 23, 2013). For comparison, Michael Floyd had 17 100-plus-yard games, Golden Tate had 15 and Jeff Samardzija had nine in their respective careers.

And Fuller’s 20 touchdowns since the start of the 2014 season are the most of any FBS receiver. Behind him: Colorado State’s Rashad Higgins (19), Western Michigan’s Corey Davis (18), Texas A&M’s Josh Reynolds (16) and Baylor’s Corey Coleman (16).

“The kid is a good player,” Georgia Tech coach Paul Johnson said. “He makes plays.”

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As for Prosise, here’s where he ranks nationally:

Yards: 451 (5th)
Yards/game: 150.33 (6th)
Yards/carry, minimum 30 carries: 7.64 (9th)
Touchdowns: 4 (22nd-tie)
Rushes of 10+ yards: 14 (4th-tie)

Prosise’s 198 yards against Georgia Tech were the most by a Notre Dame player since Julius Jones had three 200-plus-yard rushing games in 2003. He scored three touchdowns against the Yellow Jackets; the last Notre Dame running back with that many was Jonas Gray in 2011.

And only three Notre Dame players have rushed for 300 or more yards in the first three games of a season since 2000: Darius Walker (320 in 2005), Armando Allen (326 in 2009) and Prosise (451 in 2015.

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Of course, Notre Dame’s stout offensive line deserves a mention when it comes to Prosise’s success, but he’s exceeded expectations for him when coaches moved him to running back during spring practice.

“When it comes to C.J. almost by himself the amount of yards that Georgia Tech, triple option team, has all together, it's unreal,” quarterback DeShone Kizer said (Yellow Jackets players rushed for 216 yards, only 18 more than Prosise). “He's a baller. He's fast. He's strong. He does everything that we need.”

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