Short-yardage / goal-line · enumeration
Who gets the tough yard
2/40Inside-5 share
2 of the team's 40 inside-the-5 carries (5.0%).
John Lee Eldridge III
John Lee Eldridge III: RB · Air Force · #24.
Similar players
Closest statistical matches, adjusted for opponent strength.
John Lee Eldridge III
Hits the crease and outruns the angle. Third year in the Air Force backfield. The first one came in 2023: All-Mountain West. One game to point at: 102 rushing yards and 2 rushing TD against San José State — Week 4, 2023.
Style of play
Style of play
Play style
Cuts upfield fast. Designed to find the crease, not run through the line.
Fans
No outlet on our list has written about this player by name this season.
Air Force in the news
- Air Force names new QB
Colorado Springs Gazette Oct 26 - Serviceman dies in rappelling accident
Where to follow
Career stats
Swipe the table sideways for more columns.
Game log
Game log · Week-by-week
2023 season · 13 games
Swipe the table sideways for more columns.
| Wk | Opp | CAR | YDS | AVG | TD | LONG | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | W 42-7vs Robert Morris | 4 | 72 | 18.0 | 0 | 65 | |
| Wk 2 | W 13-3vs Sam Houston | 6 | 22 | 3.7 | 0 | 11 | |
| Wk 3 | W 39-21vs Utah State | 7 | 58 | 8.3 | 1 | 13 | |
| Wk 4 | W 45-20@ San José State | 10 | 102 | 10.2 | 2 | 34 | Season-high 102 yds |
| Wk 5 | W 49-10vs San Diego State | 4 | 24 | 6.0 | 0 | 14 | |
| Wk 7 | W 34-27vs Wyoming | 3 | 65 | 21.7 | 1 | 58 | |
| Wk 8 | W 17-6@ Navy | 4 | 8 | 2.0 | 0 | 3 | |
| Wk 9 | W 30-13@ Colorado State | 11 | 57 | 5.2 | 1 | 12 | |
| Wk 10 | L 3-23vs Army | 6 | 40 | 6.7 | 0 | 12 | |
| Wk 11 | L 13-27@ Hawai'i | 6 | 19 | 3.2 | 0 | 7 | |
| Wk 12 | L 27-31vs UNLV | 10 | 48 | 4.8 | 1 | 55 | |
| Wk 13 | L 19-27@ Boise State | 5 | 6 | 1.2 | 0 | 3 | |
 Bowl | W 31-21vs No. 24 James Madison | 8 | 78 | 9.8 | 0 | 51 | |
| Total | 84 | 599 | 7.1 | 6 | 65 |
Signature game
Week 4 · 2023
W 45-20
102 rush yds (10 car) · 2 TD
Dominant 25-point win on the road against San José State.
With E. Michel — 148 rush yds (33 car) · 3 TD · Z. Larrier — 39 rush yds (11 car) · 28 yds · 0 TD · 0 INT · QBR 53.5
Signature plays
The plays that mattered most
- Week 12 · UNLV · 2nd and 7 · Q1 · EPA +4.99John Lee Eldridge III 55 Yd Run
- Week 1 · Robert Morris · 2nd and 8 · Q3 · EPA +4.84John Lee Eldridge III run for 65 yds to the RMU 8 for a Robert Morris Penalty, Personal Foul (Shakespeare Louis) to the RMU 4 for a
- Week 4 · San José State · 4th and 4 · Q4 · EPA +4.78John Lee Eldridge III run for 34 yds for a TD (Reagan Tubbs KICK)
- Week 1 · James Madison · 3rd and 4 · Q2 · EPA +3.88John Lee Eldridge III run for 51 yds to the JMU 5 for a
- Week 9 · Colorado State · 3rd and 9 · Q2 · EPA +3.03John Lee Eldridge III run for 10 yds for a TD (Matthew Dapore PAT MISSED)
- Week 3 · Utah State · 3rd and 3 · Q2 · EPA +2.77John Lee Eldridge III run for 13 yds for a TD (Matthew Dapore KICK)
4 more plays
- Week 4 · San José State · 3rd and 4 · Q3 · EPA +2.71John Lee Eldridge III run for 5 yds for a TD (Reagan Tubbs KICK)
- Week 2 · Sam Houston · 3rd and 9 · Q3 · EPA +2.32Zac Larrier pass complete to John Lee Eldridge III for 14 yds to the AFA 40 for a
- Week 5 · San Diego State · 2nd and 10 · Q3 · EPA +2.29John Lee Eldridge III run for 14 yds to the AFA 47 for a
- Week 1 · James Madison · 2nd and 13 · Q3 · EPA +2.18John Lee Eldridge III run for 17 yds to the AFA 39 for a
Rushing profile
Rush profile · Shape, efficiency, and ball security
How he gets his yards, and how often it works
79 of 84 carries matched to play-by-play
Success rate
48%71 carriesFumble rate
2.4%2 of 84 carriesStuffed
0 or fewer yds14%of carries
11 carries
Grind
1–3 yds30%of carries
24 carries
Chunk
4–9 yds33%of carries
26 carries
Explosive
10+ yds23%of carries
18 carries
1 of 3 (33%) converted on 3rd/4th & short (≤2 to go)
7.1 yds/carry on 84 carries · 23% explosive (10+ yds) · 48% success rate.
Teams and coaches
3 seasons under Troy Calhoun — 29-10 over that span.
2021Air Force10-3HC: Troy Calhoun · Run-heavy, fast tempo
2022Air Force10-3HC: Troy Calhoun · Run-heavy
2023Air Force9-4HC: Troy Calhoun · Run-heavy, slow tempo
Our ratings
Splits
Home and road splits, scheme and staff
Splits · Per-game
2023 season · 13 games
Home vs Road
| YDS/g | YPC | TD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Home5g | 53.4 | 11.8 | 0.6 |
| Road5g | 38.4 | 4.4 | 0.6 |
First half vs Second half
| YDS/g | YPC | TD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Weeks 1-77g | 60.1 | 11.1 | 0.6 |
| Weeks 8+6g | 29.7 | 3.9 | 0.3 |
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Troy Calhoun
Pass share
13.1%
105 pass / 697 run
Plays / game
61.7
13 games
Team sack rate
8.9%
123 dropbacks · PBP
Scheme: Run-heavy, slow tempo.
Awards
Player standing · 2023
All-Conference
Picked for an all-conference team by at least one selector.
Recognition
Roster2-deepStarterRecognizedEliteApex
Production · CFB Zeitgeist Score
57 · #88 of 310 RBs · 2023
Three seasons at Air Force
- 2023 Air Force CalhounYear 3 · 13 gamesAll-conference
- 2022 Air Force CalhounYear 2 · 13 games
- 2021 Air Force CalhounYear 1 · 2 games
How it ended
Three seasons at Air Force, 1,386 rushing yards — the college career is complete.
Four or fewer games in the first season, then ten or more.
2023 13 games
- All-Mountain West
Trophy case · Confirmed honors
What the selectors said
ALL-MOUNTAIN WEST
All-Mountain West mention (2023)
Coaching lineage · 2021–2023
1 coach2021–2023
Air Force
Played every college season under Troy Calhoun.