Game log · Week-by-week
2026 season · 2 games
| Wk | Opp | CAR | YDS | AVG | TD | LONG | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | L 24-42@ Memphis | 3 | 15 | 5.0 | 0 | 9 | |
| Wk 2 | W 52-7vs West Georgia | 8 | 55 | 6.9 | 0 | 10 | Season-high 55 yds |
| Total | 11 | 70 | 6.0 | 0 | 10 |
#22
Ezell Jolly
Senior running back for Arkansas State. 2026: 2 games with a box-score line.
6′0″ · 194 lb · Houston, TX
Returning to Arkansas State for 2026
The numbers
70
rushing yards · 2026
6.4 per carry · 3 catches
2 games into 2026 so far -- Best game: 55 rush yds, 6 rec yds, vs West Georgia
Swing playSwung UTEP from 22% to 43% to win.Middle Tennessee at UTEP · 20-13
His career numbers, season by seasonThe story
4 running back for Arkansas State. 2026: 2 games with a box-score line.
- Signed as a 3-star recruit to UTEP in 2023.
Ezell Jolly
Does a little of everything without one standout trait. Across three seasons and two programs, three head coaches: Dana Dimel, Scotty Walden and Butch Jones. The receipt: 55 rush yds, 6 rec yds against West Georgia — Week 2, 2026.
70 RUSH YDS · 0 RUSH TD · 11 CARRIES
Low coverage — composed from the verified record.
- season totals
- positional archetype classification
- head-coach lineage
- game log
His career
20234 games
- Signed with UTEP3-star out of Fort Bend Ridge Point
2025
- Entered the portal
Career arc
HS
Recruit
★★★
CFB
College
2 teams
NFL
NFL Draft
—
Coaching lineage · 2023–2026
1 coach2023–2024
Arkansas State
2026
Arkansas State
Played his entire career under Butch Jones.
2026 snapshot
Season context · Team result + system
2023UTEP3-9HC: Dana Dimel · Run-leaning
2024UTEP3-9HC: Scotty Walden · Run-leaning
2026Arkansas State1-1HC: Butch Jones · Run-leaning, slow tempo
Where this profile ranks vs the RB cohort
Box-score percentiles
Elite: yards / carry (93rd percentile). 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 splits
Through 2 games: 35.0 YDS/g, 6.0 YPC, 0.0 TD/g — splits start at 3 games.
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Butch Jones
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
| Season | Team | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | Arkansas State | 11 | 70 | 6.4 | 0 | -- |
| 2024 | UTEP | 64 | 248 | 3.9 | 1 | -- |
| 2023 | UTEP | 15 | 53 | 3.5 | 0 | -- |
| Career | 90 | 371 | 4.1 | 1 | -- |
| Season | Team | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | Arkansas State | 3 | 5 | 1.7 | 0 | -- |
| 2024 | UTEP | 5 | 31 | 6.2 | 0 | -- |
| 2023 | UTEP | 5 | 32 | 6.4 | 0 | -- |
| Career | 13 | 68 | 5.2 | 0 | -- |
Signature game
SIGNATURE GAME · Week 2 · 2026
W 52–7
vs West Georgia
Signature plays
Signature plays · top plays by |EPA|
The plays that mattered most
- Week 2 · West Georgia · 1&10 · Q1 · EPA -1.38(00:03) Shotgun #9 T.Owens pass complete short left to #22 E.Jolly caught at ASU41, for 1 yard loss to the ASU45 (#10 I.Nyenabo)
- Week 1 · Memphis · 1&10 · Q1 · EPA +1.26(08:28) Shotgun #22 E.Jolly rush middle for 9 yards gain to the MEM47 (#0 I.Foster)
- Week 1 · Memphis · 3&15 · Q1 · EPA -1.20(02:31) Shotgun #9 T.Owens pass complete short left to #22 E.Jolly caught at MEM34, for 1 yard loss to the MEM30 (#0 I.Foster)
- Week 2 · West Georgia · 2&5 · Q4 · EPA +0.96(14:22) Shotgun #22 E.Jolly rush left for 7 yards gain to the UWG48 (#15 D.Epps), 1ST DOWN
- Week 2 · West Georgia · 1&10 · Q3 · EPA +0.94(00:37) No Huddle-Shotgun #22 E.Jolly rush right for 10 yards gain to the ASU40 (#10 I.Nyenabo), 1ST DOWN
- Week 2 · West Georgia · 2&10 · Q2 · EPA +0.82(08:03) Shotgun #22 E.Jolly rush right for 9 yards gain to the UWG30 (#9 J.Chambliss)
- Week 2 · West Georgia · 1&10 · Q2 · EPA +0.68(10:10) No Huddle-Shotgun #9 T.Owens pass complete short right to #22 E.Jolly caught at ASU41, for 7 yards to the ASU50 (#14 A.Ruffin)
- Week 2 · West Georgia · 1&10 · Q4 · EPA +0.63(11:06) Shotgun #22 E.Jolly rush right for 9 yards gain to the UWG12 (#39 L.Naquin; #0 M.Lewis)
- Week 2 · West Georgia · 1&10 · Q4 · EPA -0.36(13:44) Shotgun #22 E.Jolly rush middle for 3 yards gain to the UWG45 (#2 D.Gibson)
- Week 1 · Memphis · 2&1 · Q1 · EPA -0.36(07:49) Shotgun #22 E.Jolly rush middle for 2 yards gain to the MEM45 (#56 K.Miles), 1ST DOWN
Game log
How he plays
Play style
Plays within the scheme — consistent production without a dominant dimension.
CFB Index positional classification
2026 Outlook
Arkansas State
2026 Depth chart
Projected starter
Running back · Arkansas State
Returning around him
- 30% of 2024 offensive production back (Moderate turnover)
- Transfer portal: -12 net (25 in / 37 out)
2026 Award watch
No preseason watch lists yet (most drop June 15 – July 15)
Arkansas State · Last season: 7-6 · Talent rank #91 · 2026 recruiting class #85
DNA match
Player DNA
Balanced Back
Plays within the scheme — consistent production without a dominant dimension.
RB
His 2024 production profile sits closest to Anthony Williams Jr.’s 2021 season.
67%match
Matches Anthony on
Total rush EPA (college ability)
Yards / carry
Differs from Anthony on
Yards / reception (lower)
Receiving share (lower)
Weight (lower)
Through 3 college seasons, his career arc tracks closest to Darius Wilson’s path through William & Mary.
Matches Darius on
Yards per carry
As a sophomore, his production profile tracks closest to Duke Watson's sophomore season at Louisville (2025).
Matches Duke on
Weight
Height
Receiving share
Differs from Duke on
Class year (lower)
Yards / reception (lower)
Player DNA
Players who play like Ezell Jolly
The backfield · Arkansas State
- #4Devin Spencer559 rushing yards · 2025
- #5Kenyon Clay523 rushing yards · 2025
- #20Timothy Carter2 games · 2026
- #24Nasir Allen1 game · 2025
- #22Ezell Jolly2 games · 2026
5 more on the roster · Arkansas State team page
Stats from CFBD · ESPN · fan discourse. Every figure computed from source tables — not invented. Methodology