Game log · Week-by-week
2026 season · 3 games
| Wk | Opp | CAR | YDS | AVG | TD | LONG | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | L 10-43@ Youngstown State | 5 | -4 | -0.8 | 0 | 2 | |
| Wk 1 | L 14-51@ New Mexico State | 7 | 10 | 1.4 | 1 | 6 | |
| Wk 2 | L 7-70@ New Mexico | 6 | 16 | 2.7 | 0 | 12 | Season-high 16 yds |
| Total | 18 | 22 | 1.1 | 1 | 12 |
#21
Byron Cardwell
Senior running back for San Diego State. 2026: 3 games with a box-score line.
6′0″ · 215 lb · San Diego, CA
CFB Index 42 · #201 of 326 RBsHigh confidenceReturning to San Diego State for 2026
CFB Index
A single number blending on-field production (an EPA-based value lane) with box-score output for this player's position.
0-100, scaled within each position's own cohort — not directly comparable across positions.
The numbers
22
rushing yards · 2026
1 TD · 1.2 per carry · 2 catches
3 games into 2026 so far -- Best game: 10 rush yds, 1 TD, at New Mexico State
The play that turned itSwung San Diego State from 28% to 66% to win.Wyoming at San Diego State · 24-7
His career numbers, season by seasonThe story
4 running back for San Diego State. 2026: 3 games with a box-score line.
- Signed as a 4-star recruit to Oregon in 2021.
- Transferred from Oregon to California in 2023.
Byron Cardwell
Does a little of everything without one standout trait. Byron Cardwell has played for four head coaches across five seasons and three programs. The receipt: 16 rush yds against New Mexico — Week 2, 2026.
22 RUSH YDS · 1 RUSH TD · 18 CARRIES
Low coverage — composed from the verified record.
- season totals
- positional archetype classification
- head-coach lineage
- game log
His career
He was on the field for 5 seasons. That is rarer than it sounds.
202111 games
- Signed with Oregon4-star out of Morse
2023
- Entered the portal
Career arc
HS
Recruit
★★★★
CFB
College
3 teams
NFL
NFL Draft
—
Coaching lineage · 2021–2026
2 coaches2021–2022
San Diego State
Coaching transition mid-career: Brady Hoke → Sean Lewis. Worth noting in scheme + development context.
2026 snapshot
Season context · Team result + system
2021Oregon10-4HC: Bryan McClendon · Run-leaning
2022Oregon10-3HC: Dan Lanning · Run-leaning
2024California6-7HC: Justin Wilcox · Balanced
2025San Diego State9-4HC: Sean Lewis · Run-heavy
2026Mercyhurst1-1HC: Sean Lewis · Run-heavy
Where this profile ranks vs the RB cohort
Box-score percentiles
High confidence
Concern: rush yards (0th percentile).
Box-score rates (7)
Percentiles versus same-position peers with enough snaps this season, based on box-score rates.
Splits & context
Splits · Per-game
2026 season · 3 games
Home vs Road
| YDS/g | YPC | TD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Road3g | 7.3 | 1.1 | 0.3 |
First half vs Second half
| YDS/g | YPC | TD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Weeks 1-73g | 7.3 | 1.1 | 0.3 |
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Sean Lewis
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.
Recognition
Roster2-deepStarterRecognizedEliteApex
2026 outlook
Outside shot for All-Pac-12
Based on 2025: #21 of 34 Mountain West RBs — his program moves to the Pac-12 for 2026
How the All-Pac-12 estimate is computed
15% estimated, 95% confidence interval 13–17%. Base rate measured from players who finished at a comparable rank in their conference and came back the next season. It is an estimate from a small sample, not a forecast of this player. The base rate was measured on players who stayed in the same conference; this estimate is not adjusted for the move to the Pac-12.
Career stats
| Season | Team | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | San Diego State | 18 | 22 | 1.2 | 1 | -- |
| 2025 | San Diego State | 48 | 267 | 5.6 | 1 | -- |
| 2024 | California | 24 | 75 | 3.1 | 0 | -- |
| 2022 | Oregon | 11 | 76 | 6.9 | 1 | -- |
| 2021 | Oregon | 61 | 417 | 6.8 | 3 | -- |
| Career | 162 | 857 | 5.3 | 6 | -- |
| Season | Team | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | San Diego State | 2 | 17 | 8.5 | 0 | -- |
| 2025 | San Diego State | 5 | 108 | 21.6 | 1 | -- |
| 2024 | California | 2 | 31 | 15.5 | 0 | -- |
| 2022 | Oregon | 4 | 34 | 8.5 | 1 | -- |
| 2021 | Oregon | 4 | 3 | 0.8 | 0 | -- |
| Career | 17 | 193 | 11.4 | 2 | -- |
Signature plays
Signature plays · top plays by |EPA|
The plays that mattered most
- Week 1 · New Mexico State · 2&10 · Q2 · EPA -1.23(03:02) No Huddle-Shotgun #21 B.Cardwell Jr. rush middle for 1 yard loss to the NMSU40 (#13 K.Roberts-Day)
- Week 1 · New Mexico State · 1&2 · Q1 · EPA +1.21(08:03) No Huddle-Shotgun #21 B.Cardwell Jr. rush left for 2 yards gain to the NMSU00 TOUCHDOWN, clock 08:03 #47 R.Marcantonio kick attempt good (H: #90 G.McGuire, LS: #44 A.Lin)
- Week 2 · New Mexico · 3&6 · Q2 · EPA +1.06(05:36) No Huddle-Shotgun #21 B.Cardwell Jr. rush left for 9 yards gain to the MER25 (#3 C.McBean), 1ST DOWN
- Week 2 · New Mexico · 1&10 · Q2 · EPA +1.03(14:12) Shotgun #21 B.Cardwell Jr. rush left for 12 yards gain to the MER37 (#5 T.Omeire; #7 T.Combs), 1ST DOWN
- Week 2 · New Mexico · 1&10 · Q2 · EPA -0.96(00:48) Shotgun #21 B.Cardwell Jr. rush right for 3 yards loss to the MER22 (#1 J.Torres; #38 J.Flaker)
- Week 1 · New Mexico State · 1&10 · Q2 · EPA -0.89(07:59) No Huddle-Shotgun #21 B.Cardwell Jr. rush left for 2 yards loss to the MERCY23 (#10 C.Barron; #2 J.Gillespie)
- Week 1 · New Mexico State · 1&10 · Q2 · EPA -0.68(06:57) No Huddle-Shotgun #21 B.Cardwell Jr. rush middle for 2 yards gain to the MERCY42 (#2 J.Gillespie; #98 J.Gwan)
- Week 2 · New Mexico · 2&10 · Q3 · EPA -0.49(10:39) No Huddle-Shotgun #21 B.Cardwell Jr. rush left for 4 yards loss to the MER21 (#32 T.Rocker)
- Week 1 · New Mexico State · 1&10 · Q2 · EPA -0.39(00:37) No Huddle-Shotgun #21 B.Cardwell Jr. rush middle for 3 yards gain to the MERCY36 (#99 R.Baller)
- Week 2 · New Mexico · 1&10 · Q2 · EPA -0.32(06:56) Shotgun #21 B.Cardwell Jr. rush middle for 1 yard gain to the MER13 (#18 C.Martineau)
Game log
Game by game
Byron Cardwell's 2026 production
Point color shows the opponent's defensive strength that week (red = weaker defense, blue = stronger) — dashed line is this player's own season average.
How he plays
Play style
Plays within the scheme — consistent production without a dominant dimension.
CFB Index positional classification
2026 Outlook
San Diego State
2026 Depth chart
Returning starter
Running back · San Diego State
Returning around him
- 99% of 2024 offensive production back (Strong continuity)
- 1 San Diego State player drafted to NFL
- Transfer portal: +0 net (26 in / 26 out)
2026 Award watch
No preseason watch lists yet (most drop June 15 – July 15)
San Diego State · Last season: 9-4 · Talent rank #89 · 2026 recruiting class #83
DNA match
Player DNA
Balanced Back
Plays within the scheme — consistent production without a dominant dimension.
RB
His 2025 production profile sits closest to Ari Broussard’s 2021 season.
Matches Ari on
Rush TD rate
Weight
EPA / carry (adj)
Through 5 college seasons, his career arc tracks closest to Elijah Tau-Tolliver’s path through Michigan State.
90%match
Matches Elijah on
Yards per carry
Weight
Height
As a senior, his production profile tracks closest to Pat Garwo III's senior season at Boston College (2023).
70%match
Matches Pat on
EPA / carry (adj)
Weight
Receiving share
Differs from Pat on
Height (higher)
Player DNA
Players who play like Byron Cardwell
The backfield · San Diego State
- #7Lucky Sutton1,292 rushing yards · 2025
- #20Christian Washington560 rushing yards · 2025
- #21Byron Cardwell267 rushing yards · 2025
- #21Javion Kinnard56 rushing yards · 2025
- #29Jordin Thomas2 games · 2026
1 more on the roster · San Diego State team page
Stats from CFBD · ESPN · fan discourse. Every figure computed from source tables — not invented. Methodology