Brenden Knox is a 2-year Featured Back for Marshall. Brenden's 2019 season ranks in the 10th percentile nationally by opponent-adjusted EPA per play across 275 plays — a developing rate for the RB.
The centerpiece of the run game — high carry volume, used in early downs and goal-line, true workhorse role.
Players from 2014–2024 matched on EPA efficiency, play volume, and adjusted value tier — not just one metric.
| Player | Team | Yr | Plays | WEPA/play | Line val | Total EPA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Saquon Barkley | Penn State | 2016 | 288 | 0.340 | 3.9 | 97.9 |
| Dalvin Cook | Florida State | 2016 | 292 | 0.340 | 4.3 | 99.3 |
| Breece Hall | Iowa State | 2020 | 301 | 0.340 | 4.5 | 102.3 |
| Donnel Pumphrey | San Diego State | 2016 | 344 | 0.320 | 4.2 | 110.1 |
| Eno Benjamin | Arizona State | 2018 | 316 | 0.330 | 4.6 | 104.3 |
Comps are statistical — efficiency, volume, and value tier all factor in. Style and conference context differ.
| Wk | Opponent | Result | Opp SP+ | Car | Rush Yds | Avg | Rush TD | Rec | Rec Yds | Rec TD | EPA/play |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | vsVMI | W56-17 | — | 10 | 43 | 4.3 | 2 | — | — | — | 0.32 |
| 2 | @Boise State | L7-14 | 8.1 | 10 | 71 | 7.1 |
Usage = share of team plays (CFBD has no true snap counts).
Chart shows per-game EPA (bars) and rolling 5-game average (line). Season breaks marked with dashed lines. Line value = est. points over replacement per game.
Car 26 · Rush Yds 103 · Avg 4.0 · Rush TD 0
| 1 |
| — |
| — |
| — |
| 0.41 |
| 3 | vsOhio | W33-31 | 3.7 | 16 | 133 | 8.3 | 1 | — | — | — | 0.54 |
| 5 | vsCincinnati | L14-52 | 9.1 | 16 | 49 | 3.1 | 0 | 4 | 50 | 0 | 0.22 |
| 6 | @Middle Tennessee | L13-24 | -11.3 | 19 | 99 | 5.2 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 0.07 |
| 7 | vsOld Dominion | W31-17 | -24.4 | 24 | 104 | 4.3 | 1 | 2 | 18 | 0 | 0.17 |
| 8 | @Florida Atlantic | W36-31 | -0.6 | 23 | 220 | 9.6 | 2 | 2 | 6 | 0 | 0.49 |
| 9 | vsWestern Kentucky | W26-23 | 1.7 | 19 | 84 | 4.4 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.06 |
| 10 | @Rice | W20-7 | -18.0 | 27 | 130 | 4.8 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0.15 |
| 12 | vsLouisiana Tech | W31-10 | 0.2 | 25 | 113 | 4.5 | 2 | 2 | 6 | 0 | 0.16 |
| 13 | @Charlotte | L13-24 | -6.3 | 22 | 92 | 4.2 | 0 | 1 | 40 | 0 | 0.06 |
| 14 | vsFlorida International | W30-27 | -7.0 | 33 | 146 | 4.4 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 0 | -0.07 |
| 1 | vsUCF | L25-48 | 19.1 | 26 | 103 | 4.0 | 0 | — | — | — | -0.09 |
