Game log · Week-by-week
2024 season · 1 game
| Wk | Opp | CAR | YDS | AVG | TD | LONG | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 11 | W 52-3vs Florida State | 1 | 2 | 2.0 | 0 | 2 | Season-high 2 yds |
| Total | 1 | 2 | 2.0 | 0 | 2 |
#26
Jake Tafelski
Senior running back for Notre Dame. 2024: 2 rushing yards, 1 catch.
6′0″ · 203 lb · Dearborn, MI
Returning to Notre Dame for 2026
The story
4 running back for Notre Dame. 2024: 2 rushing yards, 1 catch.
The record fills in as he plays.
His career, year by yearJake Tafelski
Across four seasons and two programs, two head coaches: Jim McElwain and Marcus Freeman. The receipt on tape: 14 rec yds, 2 rush yds against Florida State, Week 11, 2024.
Low coverage — composed from the verified record.
- head-coach lineage
- game log
Career arc
HS
Recruit
—
CFB
College
2 teams
NFL
NFL Draft
—
Coaching lineage · 2021–2024
2 coaches2021
Notre Dame
Coaching transition mid-career: Brian Kelly → Marcus Freeman. Worth noting in scheme + development context.
2024 snapshot
Season context · Team result + system
2021Central Michigan9-4HC: Jim McElwain · Run-leaning, fast tempo
2022Central Michigan4-8HC: Jim McElwain · Run-leaning
2023Central Michigan5-7HC: Jim McElwain · Run-leaning
2024Notre Dame14-2HC: Marcus Freeman · Run-leaning
Where this profile ranks vs the RB cohort
Box-score percentiles
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 1 game: 2.0 YDS/g, 2.0 YPC, 0.0 TD/g — splits start at 3 games.
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Marcus Freeman
Scheme reads (pass share, tempo, sack rate) need at least 3 team games — 2 games in so far.
Awards
Player standing · 2024
Backup
On the two-deep and pushing for snaps.
Roster2-deepStarterRecognizedEliteApex
Career stats
| Season | Team | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | Notre Dame | 1 | 2 | 2.0 | 0 | -- |
| 2023 | Central Michigan | 3 | 12 | 4.0 | 0 | -- |
| 2022 | Central Michigan | 3 | 4 | 1.3 | 1 | -- |
| 2021 | Central Michigan | 1 | 5 | 5.0 | 0 | -- |
| Career | 8 | 23 | 2.9 | 1 | -- |
| Season | Team | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | Notre Dame | 1 | 14 | 14.0 | 0 | -- |
| 2023 | Central Michigan | 1 | -- | 0.0 | 0 | -- |
| 2022 | Central Michigan | 4 | 37 | 9.2 | 0 | -- |
| 2021 | Central Michigan | 1 | 5 | 5.0 | 0 | -- |
| Career | 7 | 56 | 8.0 | 0 | -- |
Game log
How he plays
2026 Outlook
Notre Dame
2026 Depth chart
Projected starter
Running back · Notre Dame
Returning around him
- 51% of 2024 offensive production back (Solid continuity)
- 6 Notre Dame players drafted to NFL
- Transfer portal: -9 net (7 in / 16 out)
2026 Award watch
No preseason watch lists yet (most drop June 15 – July 15)
Notre Dame · Last season: 10-2 (AP #9) · Talent rank #6 · 2026 recruiting class #5
Stats from CFBD · ESPN · fan discourse. Every figure computed from source tables — not invented. Methodology