When the quarterback derby was ended early in fall practice, [autotag]Tyler Buchner[/autotag] had emerged as the choice for head coach [autotag]Marcus Freeman[/autotag] and offensive coordinator [autotag]Tommy Rees[/autotag]. Unfortunately, Buchner went down with a season ending shoulder injury during the Marshall game, just the second contest of the season.
Since Buchner’s recruiting class was now a season and-a-half into their careers, it represented a solid point to look back at the class and be able to dig a bit deeper into if they were ranked accordingly. Chris Hummer of 247Sports did so and when talking about Buchner, their 10th ranked quarterback of the 2021 class, he believes that “Buchner’s ceiling is high.”
The obvious issue has been health, as Hummer recalled that just one time during the last five seasons of football for Buchner has he completed the year. That seems to be his bugaboo, it’s hindered his development. When the Californian has been healthy, it’s been a mixed bag however, with three touchdown passes to five interceptions.
The stats tell part of the story but back to Hummer’s comments about Buchner’s ceiling, which could be what propels Notre Dame back to competing for a College Football Playoff spot. If, and at this point it’s a huge if, Buchner can stay healthy for an extended period of time, the talent is there to show improvement and win plenty of games.
We all know Buchner as a runner can hurt defenses, but without getting live reps against those defenses, it’s hard to become a better passer. It all comes down to his health, if he can stay on the field long enough to use his solid skill set. I don’t disagree that the ceiling is high, but the injury caveat will loom over Buchner until he is able to shake it.
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