SOUTH BEND, Ind. – Junior running back Jadarian Price won the Paul Hornung Award National Player of the Week honor for his performance in the 34-24 win over No. 20 USC. The Paul Hornung Award recognizes the most versatile player in college football. It marks the first such national weekly honor of Price’s career.
Price put on a show in multiple phases in the victory, totaling 209 all-purpose yards, including a 100-yard kickoff return touchdown and 113 total kickoff return yards, rushing 13 times for 87 yards and a rushing touchdown, and adding a nine yard reception.
Price and the Irish rushing attack compiled a dominant day against USC, totaling 306 rushing yards in total, the most USC has given up in a game all season, and nearly 200 yards over their average entering the game. With 442 total yards of offense on the evening, Notre Dame totaled nearly 90 yards over USC’s total defense average entering the evening.
Price’s rushing touchdown, a 16-yard dash to the end zone in the second quarter, gave the Irish a 14-10 lead, a lead they would not relinquish until the late third quarter. Immediately after USC scored to take a 24-21 lead in the third, Price responded with a 100-yard jaunt, breaking multiple tackles on his kickoff return to score and put the Irish up 27-24, a lead which they would not relinquish, as the score would be the deciding score in the 34-24 win.
Price is the only player in the nation with two 100-yard kickoff return touchdowns this season, and ties for the nation’s lead in total kickoff return touchdowns.
Price leads the nation in kickoff return average (42.5) and ranks third nationally in total touchdowns (11), ninth in all-purpose yards (127.57 per game), ninth in total points (66), 10th in scoring (9.4 points per game), 13th in rushing yards per carry (6.7) and 15th in rushing touchdowns (8). Notre Dame ranks second in the nation in kickoff returns (33.91).
Price is the first Notre Dame player ever with multiple kick return touchdowns of 100 yards and just the fourth Notre Dame player since at least 1996 to return multiple kickoffs for touchdowns in the same season. It’s just the fifth kick in program history to be returned 100 yards for a touchdown with two coming from Price this season.
Price is now tied for second all-time in kickoff returns for touchdowns in Notre Dame history with three. He joins Tim Brown, Allen Rossum and CJ Sanders for second all-time, trailing only Raghib Ismail’s five. Price is just the third player in program history to return multiple kickoffs for touchdowns against a single team during their career (Raghib Ismail – Rice, Michigan; Paul Castner – Kalamazoo), as he also returned a kickoff for a touchdown vs. USC in 2023.