CFB Zeitgeist Score
14
Below cohort in the position cohort. Carried by receptions at the 59th percentile.
TJ Horton
Below the discourse floor — the honest stats-only state.
180 RUSH YDS · 0 RUSH TD · 60 CARRIES
2026 Outlook
Returning to Ball State for 2026
2026 Depth chart
Projected starter
Running back · Ball State
Returning around him
2026 Award watch
No preseason watch lists yet (most drop June 15 – July 15)
Ball State · Last season: 4-8 · Talent rank #115 · 2026 recruiting class #119
RB · BALL STATE · MID-AMERICAN
CFB Zeitgeist Score
14
Below cohort in the position cohort. Carried by receptions at the 59th percentile.
Heisman Heat
#4351
<1% win probability
Fan Belief
Awaiting
Player-specific FI not yet ingested. Falls back to team mood below.
Respect Gap
Awaiting
Coming online with player-level FI.
Reality Gap
Awaiting
Coming online with player-level FI.
ACCOLADE PROBABILITY
Heisman
<1%
TOP RB AWARD
Doak Walker
—
CONSENSUS
All-American
—
Player Standing · 17 rungs
Tier 2 · StarterStarter. A locked-in starting role.
Career Arc
The durable bio layer: position, size, hometown, and roster role.
How big the prospect was before college, and whether the later career arc beat that expectation.
| Class | Profile | Context |
|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 3-star | 0.8283 | No. 1921 recruit | HighSchool | Ball State |
Portal movement changes role, context, and perception. This keeps that path in one place.
| Season | Move | Context |
|---|---|---|
| No transfer portal moves on file for this player. | ||
Where the player landed at the end of the listed season — final nowcast rank, win/finalist/ballot probabilities, and the cleanest official Heisman placement on file.
HIGH CONFIDENCE· through week 16Heisman Futures
Not yet listed on major futures markets.
Selector Grid · 2025
Selector recognition fills in once the major honors lists (AP, FWAA, AFCA, Walter Camp, Sporting News, SI) are scraped and ingested.
NIL · Recruiting · NFL Draft
Market value, pedigree & pro outcome
Recruit stars
★★★☆☆
to Ball State
Composite
0.8283
#1921 national
Today’s Hot-Take
The Hot-Take engine fires when this player’s percentile profile crosses a defensible threshold (top 10% in a cohort, 100+ snap sample). When it’s quiet, the model is honoring its “must be defensible” rule.
Anti-Take
PENDINGThe contrarian read fires when the rules-engine detects a stat that complicates the Hot-Take. Quiet here means the model hasn’t found a defensible counter yet — not that one doesn’t exist.
Fan sentiment ·
Belief Meter
100
Grounded Optimism
Top Take
“”
Trajectory
Rival Radar
No rival-bucket mentions in the current season.
Signature Story
He hasn't written his page yet — we'll start filling it in when there are enough snaps to rank against his peers.
Signature Moment
No signature moment on the ledger yet.
Returns once this player puts together a multi-game body of work — single-game flashes alone don't clear the bar.
Season Pace · Projection
Where the rushing totals stand
To hit 750-yard season (currently 180): needs 190/game over remaining 3.
To hit 1,000-yard season (currently 180): needs 273.3/game over remaining 3.
To hit 1,500-yard season (currently 180): needs 440/game over remaining 3.
To hit 10 rushing TDs (currently 0): needs 3.3/game over remaining 3.
To hit 15 rushing TDs (currently 0): needs 5/game over remaining 3.
To hit 20 rushing TDs (currently 0): needs 6.7/game over remaining 3.
The fast read on the thing that makes this player more than a generic stat line.
TJ Horton is not a one-lane back. The profile is interesting because the workload spills beyond pure rushing volume: 180 rushing yards, 15 catches, and 274 return yards for Ball State. That kind of all-purpose footprint gives the card a much richer story than a basic carry total.
Traditional stats first. Advanced context underneath.
Last season
2025 season snapshot | final
30-second read
Passing-game back against FBS RB peers.
2025 season snapshot | final
Rushing
Receiving
Game Log · Week-by-week
2025 season · 10 games
| Wk | Opp | CAR | YDS | AVG | TD | LONG | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | L 0-31@ Purdue | 3 | 1 | 0.3 | 0 | 4 | |
| Wk 3 | W 34-29vs New Hampshire | 8 | 32 | 4.0 | 0 | 8 | |
| Wk 4 | L 25-31@ UConn | 6 | 41 | 6.8 | 0 | 13 | Season-high 41 yds |
| Wk 6 | W 20-14vs Ohio | 7 | 26 | 3.7 | 0 | 11 | |
| Wk 7 | L 0-42@ Western Michigan | 4 | 9 | 2.3 | 0 | 6 | |
| Wk 8 | W 42-28vs Akron | 3 | 22 | 7.3 | 0 | 8 | |
| Wk 9 | L 7-21@ Northern Illinois | 4 | 11 | 2.8 | 0 | 6 | |
| Wk 11 | W 17-13vs Kent State | 5 | 2 | 0.4 | 0 | 1 | |
| Wk 12 | L 9-24vs Eastern Michigan | 12 | 33 | 2.8 | 0 | 13 | |
| Wk 13 | L 9-38@ Toledo | 8 | 3 | 0.4 | 0 | 4 | |
| Total | 60 | 180 | 3.1 | 0 | 13 |
Traditional history
Season rows up top, career context at the bottom.
Season context · Team result + system
| Season | Team | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Ball State | 60 | 180 | 3.0 | 0 | -- |
| Career | 1 loaded season | 60 | 180 | 3.0 | 0 | -- |
| Season | Team | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Ball State | 15 | 71 | 4.7 | 1 | -- |
| Career | 1 loaded season | 15 | 71 | 4.7 | 1 | -- |
Advanced metrics second
Usage, value, and opponent-adjusted context.
Opponent-adjusted rushing value. It helps separate empty volume from carries that actually move the scoreboard.
How much of the team's offense flows through this back once rushing work and receiving work are combined.
Every percentile is compared against players at the same position and level, so an FBS quarterback is judged against FBS quarterbacks, not the whole sport.
The top tables stick to the stats fans already know from broadcasts and box scores. Advanced context is pushed underneath instead of replacing the basics.
| Group | Metric | Value | Rank | Pct | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rushing | Rushing yards | 180 | #357/735 | 52nd pct | Volumevs FBS RB |
| Rushing | Rush TD | 0 | #447/739 | 40th pct | Scoringvs FBS RB |
| Rushing | Yards / carry | 3.0 | #629/735 | 15th pct | Efficiencyvs FBS RB |
| Receiving | Receptions | 15 | #140/552 | 75th pct | Volumevs FBS RB |
| Receiving | Receiving yards | 71 | #226/548 | 59th pct | Volumevs FBS RB |
| Value | Rushing WEPA | -0.05 | #359/362 | 1st pct | Opponent-adjusted rushing value | 50 weighted playsvs FBS RB |
| Usage | Role share | 12.4% | #239/738 | 68th pct | Share of team offensevs FBS RB |
| Rushing | Carries | 60 | #276/739 | 63rd pct | Volumevs FBS RB |
| Rushing | Rushing LONG | 13 | #513/733 | 30th pct | Metricvs FBS RB |
| Receiving | Receiving LONG | 19 | #248/540 | 54th pct | Metricvs FBS RB |
| Receiving | Yards / catch | 4.7 | #433/548 | 21st pct | Efficiencyvs FBS RB |
| Receiving | Receiving TD | 1 | #60/552 | 89th pct | Scoringvs FBS RB |
| Returns | Kick return yards | 274 | #22/200 | 90th pct | Volumevs FBS RB |
| Returns | Kick return avg | 24.9 | #28/199 | 86th pct | Efficiencyvs FBS RB |
| Returns | Kick returns | 11 | #24/206 | 89th pct | Volumevs FBS RB |
| Returns | Kick return TD | 1 | #3/14 | 86th pct | Scoringvs FBS RB |
| Usage | Rush share | 17.7% | #299/738 | 60th pct | Ground-game usagevs FBS RB |
| Usage | 2nd-down usage | 15.3% | #168/738 | 77th pct | Middle-down loadvs FBS RB |
| Usage | 1st-down usage | 15.0% | #228/738 | 69th pct | Early-down loadvs FBS RB |
| Usage | Standard-down usage | 14.7% | #225/738 | 70th pct | Base-situation sharevs FBS RB |
| Usage | Passing-down usage | 8.2% | #280/738 | 62nd pct | Known-passing sharevs FBS RB |
| Usage | Pass share | 6.1% | #115/738 | 85th pct | Air-game usagevs FBS RB |
| Usage | 3rd-down usage | 4.6% | #458/738 | 38th pct | Money-down loadvs FBS RB |
Universal 17-step ladder. Tier pills below; accolade streams nested.
AWAITING CLASSIFICATION
AWAITING CLASSIFICATION · Rung None of 16
Why he’s here
Standing classification populates when honors, Heisman, and roster signals all align.
What moves him up
What moves him down
Accolade streams
Heisman model tracks the top FBS contenders weekly; this player hasn't entered the watch list yet.
Splits · Per-game
2025 season · 10 games
Home vs Road
| YDS/g | YPC | TD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Home5g | 23.0 | 3.6 | 0.0 |
| Road5g | 13.0 | 2.5 | 0.0 |
Win vs Loss
| YDS/g | YPC | TD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wins4g | 20.5 | 3.9 | 0.0 |
| Losses6g | 16.3 | 2.6 | 0.0 |
First half vs Second half
| YDS/g | YPC | TD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Weeks 1-75g | 21.8 | 3.4 | 0.0 |
| Weeks 8+5g | 14.2 | 2.7 | 0.0 |
Pocket and defense-quality (clean vs. pressure) splits are coming soon.
Savant · Box-rate percentiles
Where this profile ranks vs the RB cohort
Concern: long run (1st).
Percentiles versus same-position peers with enough snaps this season, based on box-score rates.
Advanced Savant · RB · 2024
Advanced opponent-adjusted percentile bars are coming soon for this player.
Opponent-adjusted advanced metrics with a cohort filter.
Peer Comparator · Fingerprint match
Three closest profiles by box-rate percentile
Closest peers by overall box-score percentile profile at the same position.
Player DNA
Deployed as a receiver as much as a runner. Value is in space, not between the tackles.
His 2025 production profile sits closest to Gavin Williams’s 2022 season.
Gavin Williams
Dallan Hayden
Kalib Hicks
Clay Ash
Edward Saydee
Matches Gavin on
Differs from Gavin on
Through 2 college seasons, his career arc tracks closest to Ayden Pereira’s path through Merrimack.
Ayden Pereira
Stevie Scott
JaMario Clements
Jason Collins Jr.
Josh Johnson
Matches Ayden on
As a sophomore, his production profile tracks closest to Clay Ash's sophomore season at West Virginia (2025).
Clay Ash
Jason Patterson
D'Eriq King
Austin Jones
Caden Williams
Matches Clay on
Differs from Clay on
Supporting Cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Mike Uremovich
Pass share
38.2%
277 pass / 449 run
Plays / game
60.5
12 games
OL sack rate (allowed)
19.6%
265 dropbacks · PBP
Scheme: Run-heavy, slow tempo.
Coaching Lineage · 2025
1 coachPlayed his entire career under Mike Uremovich.
Off-field context — switch tabs to drill into recruit profile, transfer arc, or roster timeline.
No fields populated yet.
No fields populated yet.
Every honor on the ledger, broken out by stream and selector.
All-America, all-conference, player-of-the-week, watch-list, and postseason awards land here when they're earned. The absence is the signal: most players never collect formal honors, and that's its own kind of context.
Season-end distinction and week-by-week recognition on one timeline.
| Season | Honor | Scope | Team / Selector | Context |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| No formal honors on the ledger yet. All-America, all-conference, weekly awards, watch lists, and postseason trophies land here when they’re earned. | ||||
Modeled rank and official finish by season.
| Season | Team | Role | Latest Model | Forecast | Win | Finalist | Official Finish | Points | Context |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | Ball State | RB2 | #4351 | #4773 | 0.0% | 0.0% | -- | -- | W16 snapshot | Mid-American |
| 2023 | Ball State | RB2 | #4380 | #4509 | 0.0% | 0.0% | -- | -- | W19 snapshot | Mid-American |
Team, conference, and class by season.
| Season | Team | Conference | Pos | Class | Bio |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Ball State | Mid-American | RB | 2 | No. 4 | 5-10 | 205 lb | Lexington, KY |
| 2024 | Ball State | Mid-American | RB | 2 | No. 4 | 5-10 | 205 lb | Lexington, KY |
| 2023 | Ball State | Mid-American | RB | 2 | No. 4 | 5-10 | 205 lb | Lexington, KY |