Short-yardage / goal-line · enumeration
Who gets the tough yard
2/20Inside-5 share
2 of the team's 20 inside-the-5 carries (10.0%).
Shane Simpson
Shane Simpson: RB · Virginia · #31.
Similar players
Closest statistical matches, adjusted for opponent strength.
Shane Simpson
Wins in space out of the backfield. First career honor, 2018: All-America (NCAA). One game to point at: 71 receiving yards and 70 rushing yards against North Carolina — Week 9, 2020.
Style of play
Style of play
Play style
Deployed as a receiver as much as a runner. Value is in space, not between the tackles.
Fans
No outlet on our list has written about this player by name this season.
Virginia in the news
- Charges dismissed against former UVA player
- Ethan Minter out for Duke game
- Kam Courtney out for game
The Daily Progress Oct 16
Where to follow
Career stats
Swipe the table sideways for more columns.
| Season | Team | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | Virginia | 54 | 278 | 5.1 | 2 | 29 |
| Career | 54 | 278 | 5.1 | 2 | 29 |
| Season | Team | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | Virginia | 13 | 133 | 10.2 | 1 | 71 |
| Career | 13 | 133 | 10.2 | 1 | 71 |
Game log
Game log · Week-by-week
2020 season · 10 games
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| Wk | Opp | CAR | YDS | AVG | TD | LONG | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 4 | W 38-20vs Duke | 8 | 36 | 4.5 | 0 | 12 | |
| Wk 5 | L 23-41@ No. 1 Clemson | 3 | 11 | 3.7 | 0 | 8 | |
| Wk 6 | L 21-38vs NC State | 7 | 37 | 5.3 | 0 | 12 | |
| Wk 7 | L 23-40@ Wake Forest | 5 | 24 | 4.8 | 0 | 16 | |
| Wk 8 | L 14-19@ No. 11 Miami | — | — | — | — | — | |
| Wk 9 | W 44-41vs No. 15 North Carolina | 8 | 70 | 8.8 | 0 | 29 | Season-high 70 yds |
| Wk 11 | W 31-17vs Louisville | 12 | 50 | 4.2 | 0 | 12 | |
| Wk 12 | W 55-15vs Abilene Christian | 4 | 9 | 2.3 | 2 | 6 | |
| Wk 14 | W 43-32vs Boston College | 5 | 19 | 3.8 | 0 | 6 | |
| Wk 15 | L 15-33@ Virginia Tech | 2 | 22 | 11.0 | 0 | 12 | |
| Total | 54 | 278 | 5.1 | 2 | 29 |
Signature game
Week 9 · 2020
W 44-41
1 rec · 71 yds · 1 TD · 70 rush yds (8 car)
Edged out North Carolina at home in a shootout.
With B. Armstrong — 208 yds · 3 TD · 1 INT · 66 rush yds (20 car) · 1 TD · N. Griffin — 42 yards per punt · 2 punts · 51 long
Signature plays
The plays that mattered most
- Week 9 · North Carolina · 2nd and 6 · Q1 · EPA +6.19Brennan Armstrong pass complete to Shane Simpson for 71 yds for a TD (Brian Delaney KICK)
- Week 6 · NC State · 1st and 10 · Q3 · EPA −3.71Shane Simpson run for 10 yds to the NCSt 32 Shane Simpson fumbled, forced by Terrell Dawkins, recovered by NCSt Isaiah Moore
- Week 12 · Abilene Christian · 3rd and 1 · Q2 · EPA +2.45Shane Simpson run for 1 yd for a TD (Brian Delaney KICK)
- Week 9 · North Carolina · 1st and 10 · Q3 · EPA +2.35Shane Simpson run for 29 yds to the Virg 46 for a
- Week 6 · NC State · 2nd and 10 · Q3 · EPA +2.05Shane Simpson run for 12 yds to the NCSt 42 for a
- Week 12 · Abilene Christian · 1st and 10 · Q2 · EPA +1.62Brennan Armstrong pass complete to Shane Simpson for 14 yds to the AblCh 1 for a
4 more plays
- Week 15 · Virginia Tech · 2nd and 10 · Q2 · EPA +1.54Shane Simpson run for 10 yds to the Virg 35 for a
- Week 4 · Duke · 1st and 10 · Q4 · EPA −1.40Shane Simpson run for a loss of 2 yards to the Virg 35
- Week 15 · Virginia Tech · 2nd and 6 · Q3 · EPA +1.39Shane Simpson run for 12 yds to the VTech 41 for a
- Week 5 · Clemson · 2nd and 8 · Q4 · EPA +1.38Brennan Armstrong pass complete to Shane Simpson for 9 yds to the Virg 36 for a
Rushing profile
Rush profile · Shape, efficiency, and ball security
How he gets his yards, and how often it works
54 of 54 carries matched to play-by-play
Success rate
48%54 carriesFumble rate
3.7%2 of 54 carries · 1 lostStuffed
0 or fewer yds9%of carries
5 carries
Grind
1–3 yds35%of carries
19 carries
Chunk
4–9 yds39%of carries
21 carries
Explosive
10+ yds17%of carries
9 carries
5.1 yds/carry on 54 carries · 17% explosive (10+ yds) · 48% success rate.
Teams and coaches
2020Virginia5-5HC: Bronco Mendenhall · Balanced
Our ratings
Splits
Home and road splits, scheme and staff
Splits · Per-game
2020 season · 10 games
Home vs Road
| YDS/g | YPC | TD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Home6g | 36.8 | 4.8 | 0.3 |
| Road4g | 14.2 | 6.5 | 0.0 |
First half vs Second half
| YDS/g | YPC | TD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Weeks 1-74g | 27.0 | 4.6 | 0.0 |
| Weeks 8+6g | 28.3 | 6.0 | 0.3 |
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Bronco Mendenhall
Pass share
51.3%
378 pass / 359 run
Plays / game
73.7
10 games
Team sack rate
4.9%
409 dropbacks · PBP
Scheme: Balanced.
Awards
Player standing · 2020
54 carries and 13 catches in 10 games
Fewer touches a game than most FBS running backs who play every week.
Roster2-deepStarterRecognizedEliteApex
Selector Grid · 2018
AP—
FWAA—
AFCA—
WCFF—
SN—
SI—
Six seasons, two schools
- 2021 Virginia MendenhallYear 7 · on the roster, no stat line
- 2020 Virginia MendenhallYear 6 · 10 games
- 2018 TowsonYear 4 · 1 gameAll-America
- 2017 TowsonYear 3 · 1 game
- 2016 TowsonYear 2 · 1 game
- 2015 TowsonYear 1 · 1 game
- High school Easton AreaEaston, PA · Class of 2015Three-star, No. 1,815 in the 2015 class. Signed with Towson.
How it ended
One season at Virginia, 278 rushing yards — the college career is complete.
Four or fewer games in the first season, then ten or more.
2015
- Signed with TowsonThree-star, out of Easton Area
2018
- All-Americafirst
Trophy case · Confirmed honors
What the selectors said
ALL-AMERICA
Named All-American (2018)
named by 1 selector