Former Irish running back C’Bo Flemister pens goodbye to Notre Dame football
These days, it never really feels like a student-athlete has truly departed a program until he bids farewell. Former Notre Dame running back C’Bo Flemister had his moment Monday.
Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman announced in mid-March that Flemister was no longer with the team. Late last month, Flemister’s name popped up in the NCAA transfer portal. Monday, Flemister ceased the silence on his end and spoke his piece about what his time at Notre Dame meant to him.
“I am extremely grateful for the memories and relationships I’ve built in my time at Notre Dame,” Flemister wrote on Twitter. “ND will always hold a special place in my heart. That being said, it has come time to move on! Grad transfer with 2 years of eligibility!”
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Flemister’s tweet included a highlight reel, one that might have more to it than many Notre Dame fans remember. Flemister only carried three times for 10 yards last season, but that was due in large part to his health and perhaps being in the doghouse for an offseason incident in which he was charged for leaving the scene of an accident.
Flemister rushed 58 times for 299 yards and five touchdowns in 2020. He had 48 carries for 162 yards and five scores in 2019. In all, Flemister rushed 110 times for 471 yards and 10 touchdowns in four seasons at Notre Dame.
Had he not gotten himself into trouble and had he stayed healthy, Flemister might have had an opportunity to slide into the No. 2 running back role when Chris Tyree went down with turf toe last fall. Instead, he only touched the ball in one game (Oct. 23 vs. USC).
Flemister leaves behind a running back room led by Tyree in his junior season. Sophomore Logan Diggs has been pushing Tyree for the starting job, but he recently had surgery on a torn labrum in his shoulder. For as long as Diggs is out, fellow sophomore Audric Estime will serve as the Irish’s No. 2 tailback. Notre Dame also has true freshmen Jadarian Price and Gi’Bran Payne to work with.
For Flemister, there will always be a slight sense of what could have been at Notre Dame. But he has two years to make a name for himself elsewhere, and he’s leaving the Irish running back situation in good hands.
