Tough news for the Notre Dame football program came out early on Monday morning when news broke that standout center Jarrett Patterson was lost for the year after injuring his foot late in Saturday’s 45-31 win at Boston College.
Patterson’s play and importance can’t be understated as he started each of Notre Dame’s last 21 games dating back to the opener at Louisville in 2019. Although individual stats aren’t simple to look at for offensive linemen like they are their defensive counterparts, Patterson been receiving praise from multiple outlets throughout the year.
So how does Notre Dame go about filling the hole left by Patterson’s injury?
Sophomore Zeke Correll (6-3, 295 lbs.) has been listed second at center on Notre Dame’s depth chart all season long but has played in just one game this season, the 52-0 win over South Florida, but did see action in four contests a year ago.
Correll was a four-star recruit in Notre Dame’s 2019 recruiting class out of Anderson High School in Cincinnati.
Another potential replacement could be senior Colin Grunhard (6-1, 290 lbs.) who has more game experience than Correll, as Grunhard has appeared in 11 games all-time at Notre Dame, including this season’s South Florida contest.
Grunhard is the son of former Notre Dame standout Tim who helped lead the Irish to the 1988 national championship before playing 11 seasons in the NFL with the Kansas City Chiefs.
It’s worth noting as well that senior Josh Lugg (6-7, 310 lbs.) took some reps at center back in spring of 2019 but it’d appear to be quite the upset to see take over the center position.
Notre Dame’s next three games come against North Carolina, Syracuse and Wake Forest, who rank nationally 59th, 70th and 94th respectively in terms of yards allowed per play.
