A little over nine years ago and about 100 miles away from Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, 17-year-old Rico Dowdle was exploding onto the scene as a senior quarterback at A.C. Reynolds High School in Asheville, North Carolina. “Quarterback” may have been a loose term for Dowdle.

Yes, he managed the offense and took the snap, but his 2,382 rushing yards and 48 rushing touchdowns in 2015 tell a much different story of the player he would soon become at the University of South Carolina and almost a decade later for the Dallas Cowboys. In a 2024 season that has seen Dowdle carry the brunt of the load at the tailback position, he is flourishing for the first time in the NFL and producing at a level that he hasn’t seen for himself since those days playing two hours west on Highway 74.

After another career day on Sunday afternoon that included 149 yards on the ground on 25 carries (both career highs), he has now amassed 392 rushing yards over the last three games — the most by any player for the Cowboys in five seasons. “I had some pretty good games in high school,” Dowdle said when asked if this is the best stretch of his career. “A lot of touchdowns, that’s the only thing I’m missing right now.” Yeah, he’s right. In one three-game stretch during his senior season playing for the Rockets, he rushed for 759 yards and 13 touchdowns. Insanity. But against NFL defenses in a prove-it year that seemed to be his last opportunity to secure a spot in the league after going undrafted in 2020, there’s no doubt that this is the biggest point of his career.

“I start with the journey part,” Dowdle said. “Being undrafted took an effect on me. I always felt like I had something to prove since I came in. When you’re undrafted, it’s a different process to getting to where you want to go. I stuck to it, I’ve been able to hang around here and it’s finally paying off.”

With close to 50 family and friends watching at at Bank of America Stadium, Dowdle rattled off physical, productive carries that broke down the Panthers defense as the game went on. Even with the career day in a special place for him with his support circle in attendance, he deflected the credit postgame.

“Those guys up front, that’s what’s working well,” he said. “It all starts with them. Those guys have been opening it up and doing a hell of a job…This is definitely a great time right now, these last three weeks. Those guys are opening it up and it’s been three good weeks in a row.” It hasn’t just been the yards for Dowdle, it’s also been the attempts. Despite his offensive play caller, coach Mike McCarthy, preaching for more attempts in the running category early in the season, those carries didn’t come until after the bye week.

After a rough start that seemed to have Dallas destined to finish dead last in rushing on the year, Dowdle has willed them out of the bottom of the barrel in just three weeks. “It was all about the rhythm,” Dowdle said. “I’ve been firm on that since the beginning, it was all about the rhythm and getting the attempts. I think we always could’ve did it, but the timing is working right now for us.”

All of a sudden, Dowdle is now knocking on the doorstep of rushing for 1,000 yards for the first time in his career. With just 120 yards left to accomplish the feat and three games left, it’s at the front of his mind going into the season’s final stretch.

“No, I definitely didn’t think it was possible,” he said. “All it takes is a couple good ones, and we got those couple of good ones. I wouldn’t have said it three games ago if you asked me…I definitely want to hit that milestone in my first year being the starter. I’m looking for it, and I’m gonna definitely get it.”