Samford · W 33-14 · FCS
10 carries, 37 yards
South Florida · L 10-30
3 carries, 9 yards
The other 7 games average 23 yards. This one was 14 below.
Dashed line: 100 yards.
Ja'Vin Simpkins
Played for three head coaches across four seasons and two programs. A game that shows it: 37 rushing yards against Samford — Week 5, 2026.
168 rushing yards · 1 rushing TD · 39 carries
Play style
Does a little of everything without one standout trait.
Closest statistical matches, adjusted for opponent strength.
No outlet on our list has written about this player by name this season.
Against South Florida on Oct. 31: 3 carries for 9 yards. In the 8 games drawn here: 39 carries for 168 yards.
Each game is split into its four quarters, so the columns line up from game to game; inside a quarter, plays keep their order. Third and fourth downs are marked under the line, bold when he moved the chains.
Swipe the table sideways for more columns.
| Season | Team | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | UAB | 39 | 168 | 4.3 | 1 | 22 |
| 2025 | Coastal Carolina | 125 | 590 | 4.7 | 2 | 46 |
| 2024 | Coastal Carolina | 14 | 93 | 6.6 | 0 | 24 |
| 2023 | Coastal Carolina | 21 | 129 | 6.1 | 1 | 22 |
| Career | 199 | 980 | 4.9 | 4 | 46 |
| Season | Team | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | UAB | 3 | 11 | 3.7 | 0 | 8 |
| 2025 | Coastal Carolina | 17 | 74 | 4.4 | 0 | 21 |
| 2024 | Coastal Carolina | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| 2023 | Coastal Carolina | 1 | 3 | 3.0 | 0 | 3 |
| Career | 21 | 88 | 4.2 | 0 | 21 |
Last game (Wk 9): 9 rushing yards, 1 catch.
Game log · Week-by-week
2026 season · 8 games
Swipe the table sideways for more columns.
| Wk | Opp | CAR | YDS | AVG | TD | LONG | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | L 23-42@ Illinois | 8 | 17 | 2.1 | 0 | 5 | |
| Wk 2 | W 26-20vs UL Monroe | 2 | 13 | 6.5 | 0 | 7 | |
| Wk 3 | L 14-21@ Louisiana | 2 | 10 | 5.0 | 0 | 7 | |
| Wk 4 | W 24-20vs Navy | 5 | 31 | 6.2 | 0 | 11 | |
| Wk 5 | W 33-14vs Samford | 10 | 37 | 3.7 | 0 | 8 | Season-high 37 yds |
| Wk 6 | L 13-38@ Memphis | 5 | 20 | 4.0 | 1 | 11 | |
| Wk 7 | W 30-17vs East Carolina | 4 | 31 | 7.8 | 0 | 22 | |
| Wk 9 | L 10-30@ South Florida | 3 | 9 | 3.0 | 0 | 8 | |
| Total | 39 | 168 | 4.3 | 1 | 22 |
Week 6 · 2026
L 13-38
at Memphis
The plays that mattered most
Ratings of the games shown run from -24 to +7 points against an average team (SP+ rating of each opponent).
Splits · Per-game
2026 season · 8 games
Home vs Road
| YDS/g | YPC | TD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Home4g | 28.0 | 6.0 | 0.0 |
| Road4g | 14.0 | 3.5 | 0.2 |
First half vs Second half
| YDS/g | YPC | TD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Weeks 1-77g | 22.7 | 5.0 | 0.1 |
| Weeks 8+1g | 9.0 | 3.0 | 0.0 |
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Alex Mortensen
Pass share
37.8%
199 pass / 327 run
Plays / game
65.8
8 games
Team sack rate
10.7%
234 dropbacks · PBP
Scheme: Run-heavy.
Player standing · 2026
Fewer touches a game than most FBS running backs who play every week.
Recognition
Production · CFB Zeitgeist Score
Three-star recruit. Now #303 at the position.
2026 is in progress.
A stat line in 34 games over four seasons.
Coaching lineage · 2023–2026
2 coachesPlayed for 2 head coaches at 2 schools: Tim Beck and Alex Mortensen.
Next stop · Transfer
Transferred to UAB
