Few know Jadarian Price better than Sean Cooper.
The Founder of C4 Sports Performance and Fitness has trained Jadarian Price since he started high school.
The founder of C4 Sports Performance and Fitness has trained Price since he entered high school, watching firsthand as the talented running back navigated the challenges of football, maturity, and life. And from the beginning, Cooper believed Notre Dame was the perfect fit.
(And if you need proof, check out what Cooper said in 2021 following Price’s commitment: Coach Sean Cooper on JD Price: 'He has made me a better husband and father')
Four years later, Cooper believes Notre Dame not only prepared the 5-foot-11, 209-pound Price for the NFL, but also for life beyond football.
“I think he got more than he thought,” Cooper told ISD. “I think when he went, looking at it on the surface, Notre Dame is prestigious. Not knocking Coach (Brian) Kelly, but I think when Coach (Marcus) Freeman took it over, it changed that entire experience and that entire career. I think that gave him exactly what he needed. I think that was what God had designed for him.”
There’s little debate that Freeman has elevated the program since taking over in just about every way imaginable. Price was part of the group that laid the foundation for Freeman and helped take the program to heights it hadn’t quite reached before.
“Seeing Coach Freeman be intense, but be mild – not like insanely rah-rah. He's intense and intentful. That marinates kind of with his personality as well, to where he's pulled back.”
Despite never being the featured RB1, Price will go down as one of the most productive and impactful running backs in Notre Dame history.
Price finished his career with 1,692 rushing yards and 21 touchdowns, added 794 kick return yards and three return touchdowns, and delivered two iconic kickoff return scores against former rival USC. In 2025, Price earned All-American honors as a kickoff returner after totaling 450 yards and two touchdowns.
Everyone in the country knows the depth of the Notre Dame running back room over the last few years as Price teamed up with Audric Estimè and Jeremiyah Love to form one of the nation’s most feared rushing attacks.
Cooper believes both Estimè and Love were perfect for Price and that’s why all three will be in the NFL in 2026.
“Having Audric when he first got there gave him a lot of hope,” explained Cooper. “Audric was a great leader, but having a guy like that leading the room, it set the tone when he was young.
“I think having him and J-Love sharing the backfield and the spotlight, I think it played even more to who God really created him to be, and it allowed him to show people who JD really is.”
Sharing carries for three seasons isn’t easy, but Price did it without complaint. He never flirted with the Transfer Portal and that didn’t surprise Cooper.
“He's humble,” Cooper said. “He's quiet, he's intentful, he's intense, but he's not loud. With Jeremiyah having the Heisman run, I think it actually showed JD’s light even more. It shined a light on the person that he wanted people to know that he is, that he's not faking it.
“I definitely think it gave him a lot of confidence, and he came out of his shell a lot more, and Notre Dame allowed him to be himself, while growing within himself in a bolder way.”
That selflessness stems from how Price was raised and how he handled early success.
“He was a 14 as a freshman when he started coming here,” recalled Cooper. “He was the No. 1 ranked player in Texas his freshman year. Everybody hit him up to train with them. He chose to stay right here and build this program that was on the rise when he could have gone to bigger programs at the time.”
Price’s career wasn’t without adversity. After his first spring at Notre Dame, he tore his Achilles, an injury that can derail careers, and it caused him missed his freshman season.
What did Price do? Worked. In fact, Price came back better than ever and even scored in the season-opener in Ireland in 2023.
Cooper believes Price’s perspective carried him through that difficult stretch.
“Remember, he was in 8th grade when his mother beat cancer,” Cooper explained. “He’s always had a great perspective. I don't think that injury shook him at all. To be honest, it was upsetting because he had to sit out. He was about to play early, but I think watching his mother beat cancer, it gave him the ability to cope with that injury.
“I never really saw it affect him. Obviously, any injury you have, you think, am I going to be able to come back? I think that was just the strength that he gained watching his mother beat cancer and being a young man who had to take care of his two little sisters.”
Perhaps the area where Cooper has seen Price grow the most over the last four years is in his confidence.
“Openness,” sated Cooper. “He talks a little bit more, and his willingness to be open with people and not be so much in the shadows. I think he’s a bolder person and as a man, he’s grown to be comfortable.
“He’s always had great communication skills and he’s smart, but I think he took it to another level interpersonally.”
Price has been training with Cooper over the last few weeks as he prepares himself for the NFL Combine in a few weeks. The focus has been on fine-tuning Price’s body for Combine training so he can hit the ground running.
“We’ve been working on some acceleration and some symmetrical things,” Cooper said. “Even more than that, just really mentally talking to him and reassuring him that he is who he is and that God created him unique. It’s all going to work itself out.
“The draft slot doesn't determine that. Honestly, all you need is one of the 32 in the first round to love what you did on specials, to love the pass pro, love your improvement and to love that you don't got as much volume on your body as some of the guys.”
As far as Price’s 40, Cooper believes it will be fast.
Cooper expects Price to run between 4.37 and 4.43, and it will come down to one detail.
“I just told him the difference of a 4.3 and a 4.4 when you're already a low 4.4 guy, it's just peace,” said Cooper. “Peace and knowing that God's always taking care of you and moving throughout Indianapolis with peace. Not worrying about every minute detail, but just really having peace.
“The guys who don't run what they're capable of, they let anxiety dictate the pace of the race. Have peace and know everything that you've been through, everything that you've overcome, who God created you is going to shine a light at the NFL combine. If you just have peace, you'll run as fast as you need to run.”
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