Tag: Nd Football

Notre Dame Football: Freeman factor re-engaged? Inside great week for Irish

What a difference a week or two makes…

Notre Dame fans have been on quite a roller-coaster ride this season.

From the ups and downs of a tumultuous regular season to the immediate exodus of offensive players that followed, there’s been anxiety. Is the program on the right track or losing momentum? How will the Irish replenish their needs and when? How does it all line up heading into next year?

Fast just a week and at least some answers have been provided. Notre Dame has a new quarterback and has added numerous cast members that have Irish fans feeling a bit better. If you look deeply, you will see the Irish program is modernizing, and Marcus Freeman deserves credit for it.

Let’s examine this concept in detail.

Notre Dame football: Why to get excited about new quarterback Riley Leonard

Will this finally be the answer at quarterback Notre Dame is looking for?

After a very adventurous early off-season, Notre Dame has officially landed big-bodied former Duke quarterback [autotag]Riley Leonard[/autotag] for the 2024 season. This will be Notre Dame’s third portal quarterback in four years.

Will this one truly be the one that can help the offense be more effective against top-flight defenses? Notre Dame fans hope so. Will the mobility Leonard offers help struggling play-caller Gerad Parker’s vision come to fruition?

While there are still more questions than answers about the Irish offense overall, the staff should be commended for how aggressively they have attacked the portal this year. They wasted no time identifying targets and seem to be operating in high gear. This intensity regarding player acquisition in the modern portal era is a necessity and the Notre Dame staff came to play this cycle.

Great job.

Let’s examine some of the key features Riley brings to South Bend.

Notre Dame football: Bouncing back after hectic week

What a week it was…now, about getting past it

Last week was a long week for Notre Dame fans. An assistant coach was indeed let go, just not the one people thought it’d be. As he left so did half of the able-bodied receivers leaving fans to ponder, what exactly is going on behind the scenes on the offensive side of the ball?

Is this just a typical portal cycle that is getting blown out of proportion due to fans’ frustrations with the offense in the toughest games of the year? Or is there truly some deeper issues to worry about with the mass pass-catcher exodus? How can the Irish “level the ship” entering national signing day and bowl season?

Let’s address some of these issues in more depth.

Notre Dame Football – As Season Ends, Questions Begin

Time for the Irish to get back to work…

It feels like just yesterday we were grinding through the dog days of summer begging for college football to start back up again. Just as fast as it all started, it’s now over, and Notre Dame has finished their regular season at 9-3 with more ups and downs than the newest roller coaster at your local Six Flags.

With the season complete, Irish fans are now asking what comes next. This applies to both bowl season this year and into next year as well. There are a lot of moving parts and I suspect more to come. This year featured lots of things to really appreciate and enjoy, it’s just unfortunate that in the big picture, the deficiencies that led to the 3 losses on the ledger weigh down the positivity, justifiably so.

Let’s examine the three big questions Irish fans have now that the regular season has concluded.

Notre Dame football loses yet another player to the transfer portal

Another blow to the Irish wide receiver room

In the wake of the firing of Notre Dame wide receivers coach Chansi Stuckey, the Irish will lose one of their best players from the 2022 class.

[autotag]Tobias Merriweather[/autotag] went to social media to announce his decision, the Washington native could look to transfer closer to home. He was ranked as the No. 14 wide receiver and 80th overall recruit of his class according to the 247Sports Composite Rankings.

Over his two seasons in South Bend, Merriweather caught 15 receptions for 325 yards and three touchdowns. His role was going to expand with Chris Tyree also entering the portal, but instead the Irish receiver room takes another blow.

We wish Tobias the best at finding his new football home.

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Report: Notre Dame football expected to pursue Duke transfer quarterback Riley Leonard

Do you like this potential addition Irish fans?

Shortly after news broke that Duke’s star quarterback [autotag]Riley Leonard[/autotag] entered the transfer portal, there are already rumors that Notre Dame will be pursuing him.

Pete Thamel of ESPN has sources that told him the Irish will be targeting Leonard. This wouldn’t be out of the ordinary for Notre Dame, as they have recently relied on the portal for a starting quarterback.

Three of the last four started at other schools, and Leonard could make it four. He hurt his ankle towards the end of the game where the Irish won on the road, but he is highly regarded and many believe could be a high pick in the NFL draft when he declares.

It would be a home run transfer for head coach Marcus Freeman, arguably bigger than getting Sam Hartman this past cycle. Leonard battled injures and only threw three touchdowns this season, but last year it was 20 along with almost 3,000 passing yards.

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Notre Dame football has relieved Chansi Stuckey of his role

The Irish will have a new coach leading the receiver group

In a surprising move, Notre Dame football will move on from wide receivers coach [autotag]Chansi Stuckey[/autotag], as reported by John Brice.

He was in his second year coaching the group, but now head coach Marcus Freeman will need to find a replacement. The move makes sense, the wide receivers had issues all season finding separation, but that could have been for a variety of reasons.

No names have emerged as of yet as a replacement, but you have to expect that Freeman will find someone who has plenty of experience to help guide the underperforming unit. Chris Tyree announced yesterday that he is entering the portal, so the leading Irish receiver is already gone.

 

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5 Stars: The best and the worst of Notre Dame’s win over Stanford

Once again, a lot of good for the Irish

The Irish really didn’t need to do much to defeat Stanford, as long as they played an average game, it should be a Notre Dame win. That’s exactly what happened, although you could argue that it wasn’t an average game for the Irish but a very good regular season win. There once again wasn’t too much to complain about, but here are the best, 5 stars, and worst, 1 star, performances for the Irish against the Cardinal.

Notre Dame defensive end has entered the transfer portal

Thank you Nana!

It’s that time of year again, when players will seek greener pastures via the transfer portal and Notre Dame football has already taken a hit.

On Monday afternoon, senior edge rusher [autotag]Nana Osafo-Mensah[/autotag] went to social media and announced he will be playing his final season somewhere other than in South Bend. The backup played well this year, registering 20 tackles along with three sacks, all career highs.

Osafo-Mensah could never quite crack the starting lineup, but has been a solid depth player over the last three seasons. The Texas native could be looking to play his final games closer to home, but that is unknown at the moment.

The defender leaves Notre Dame with two degrees, so even after his football career is over, Osafo-Mensah will be set up for success. We wish Nana the best going forward.

Contact/Follow us @IrishWireND on X (Formerly Twitter), and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Notre Dame news, notes, and opinions.

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Notre Dame Football: Irish Down the Tree to Finish 9-3

What do we make of Notre Dame’s dominating end to the 2023 regular season?

After overcoming a bit of a slow start on the road, which was a worrisome trend all year, Notre Dame ended up doing just as they should and downed Stanford 56-23 in sleepy Palo Alto. The presentation of the game felt odd as it was occurring during the Pac 12 Network’s 3-hour funeral eulogy.

With the feeling of finality in the air and literally on it as well, Notre Dame fans were in their thoughts late last night as evidenced by the calls I took on the post-game show. Things quickly turned from Stanford to the big picture with Irish fans pondering where exactly the team finished, how they arrived there, and what comes next. All fair thoughts given a frustrating up-and-down year.

Let’s take a look at three major takeaways from the last game Notre Dame will likely ever play against a Pac 12 opponent.