Tag: Riley Leonard

Where’s Notre Dame in latest College Football Playoff bracket? Full playoff picture

Notre Dame landed 10th in the latest College Football Rankings. Here’s a playoff picture for the Fighting Irish.

The No. 10 Notre Dame Fighting Irish have been clinging to playoff hopes ever since losing to Northern Illinois in their second game of the season. So far they’ve won every other game and worked themselves back into the College Football Playoff conversation.

Improved play from quarterback [autotag]Riley Leonard[/autotag] and a stout rushing attack from [autotag]Jeremiyah Love[/autotag] and [autotag]Jadarian Price[/autotag], plus continued high-level play from a dominant defense, have kept the Irish in the playoff race. Now we know where they stand as the first official bracket has come out.

College Football Playoff bracket: Who’s in, who’s out

Notre Dame is, as of the first projected College Football Playoff bracket, forecast to be number 10 in the bracket.

Key teams that are currently out include SMU, Texas A&M, and LSU.

Latest CFP rankings

Notre Dame’s projected CFP opponent

Notre Dame is projected to play on the road, visiting the Penn State Nittany Lions.

How many teams in College Football Playoff 2024?

For the first time, there will be 12 teams participating in the College Football Playoffs. There are five automatic bids for each of the Power Four conference champions and one to the highest-ranked Group of Five champion. The remaining seven slots are given to the seven at-large teams.

When next College Football Playoff rankings come out

  • Tuesday, Nov. 12: 8:30 p.m. ET
  • Tuesday, Nov. 19: 7 p.m. ET
  • Tuesday, Nov. 26: 8 p.m. ET
  • Tuesday, Dec. 3: 7 p.m. ET
  • Sunday, Dec. 8: Noon ET
Notre Dame drops two spots in the AP Top 25 -- without even playing.
Oct 26, 2024; East Rutherford, New Jersey, USA; Notre Dame Fighting Irish cornerback Leonard Moore (15) intercepts a pass intended for Navy Midshipmen running back Eli Heidenreich (22) in front of linebacker Jack Kiser (24) during the second half at MetLife Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images

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Notre Dame quarterback Riley Leonard has turned the corner since Week 2

Leonard has been on a heater over the last 6 games

It wasn’t the best start of a Notre Dame football career for transfer quarterback [autotag]Riley Leonard[/autotag].

Not only was he starting off with a new team this fall, he along with the rest of the offense was learning how to operate within offensive coordinator Mike Denbrock’s playbook. While he completed over 60% of his attempts during the first two weeks, he didn’t throw for a touchdown and had two interceptions. Each of those games also didn’t see him pass the 175-yard passing mark.

Fortunately for the Irish, it didn’t take long for Leonard to get acclimated, as Pro Football Focus has pointed out that the senior has been one of the highest graded quarterbacks since Week 3. Over that time, he’s completed 68.3% of his passes for 1,039-yards with a touchdown to interception ratio of 8-to-1.

It’s not just about throwing the ball with Leonard, as in that same time frame he’s rushed for 460-yards with 10 touchdowns. Those are extremely impressive numbers, which has seen Notre Dame win every one of those games.

Notre Dame jumps four spots in the AP Poll.
Oct 26, 2024; East Rutherford, New Jersey, USA; Notre Dame Fighting Irish quarterback Riley Leonard (13) throws the ball during the first half against the Navy Midshipmen at MetLife Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images

As long a Leonard continues this progression, which I noted after the Navy victory, the Irish offense has become much more difficult to stop.

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Notre Dame quarterback Riley Leonard makes national award list

Leonard is starting to get national recognition

The national hype for Notre Dame football quarterback [autotag]Riley Leonard[/autotag] is really starting to pick up steam.

On3 recently named him one of its top-10 Heisman Trophy contenders after Week 9, but on Tuesday the [autotag]Davey O’Brien Foundation[/autotag] named Leonard as one of its top quarterbacks of the year.

The list in total was 35 players with some big names like Oregon’s Dillon Gabriel, Texas’ Quinn Ewers, Ohio State’s Will Howard, Colorado’s Shedeur Sanders and Alabama’s Jalen Milroe.

It’s a stacked field that Leonard will have to contend with, but if he continues to play like he has over the last few weeks, there is a chance.

There will be another cut to the list, which will trim it down to 16 semifinalists. The winner will be selected by a national committee along with a Fan Vote. So make sure you log onto Facebook, Instagram or X, the website formerly known as Twitter if Leonard makes it to the next stage.

Oct 26, 2024; East Rutherford, New Jersey, USA; Notre Dame Fighting Irish quarterback Riley Leonard (13) warms up before the game Navy Midshipmen at MetLife Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images

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Notre Dame QB Riley Leonard named to one outlets Heisman top-10 list

Some national love for Leonard

With the NCAA college football season already passing the unofficial midway point, many outlets including On3 have been compiling its Heisman Trophy contenders list.

For the first few weeks of the season, Notre Dame quarterback [autotag]Riley Leonard[/autotag] didn’t perform up to expectations, but then the light switch turned on. Over the course of the last 6 games, all wins for the Irish, the starter has turned the corner and played at an extremely high level.

While it was surprising to see Leonard on On3’s contender list, as he came in tied at No. 9, it is still an encouraging sign that he is moving in the right direction.

On the season, he’s completing 66.2% of his attempts for 1,360 yards with 8 touchdowns and 3 interceptions. He’s been great running the ball as well, as Leonard has carried the ball 85 times for 539 yards with 11 touchdowns.

While the numbers alone aren’t impressive, what stands out are his total stats, as Leonard is currently No. 10 in scoring, No. 8 if you exclude kickers. Many were calling for a change earlier in the season, or at least to see what backup Steve Angeli could do, but clearly the Notre Dame coaching staff knew what they were doing all along.

Oct 19, 2024; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Notre Dame Fighting Irish quarterback Riley Leonard (13) celebrates with teammates after a touchdown against the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets in the second quarter at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-Imagn Images

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Notre Dame Week 9 highlight: Riley Leonard gets it started

Notre Dame strikes first against Navy thanks to quarterback Riley Leonard.

No. 12 Notre Dame got off to a good start against No. 24 Navy at MetLife Stadium on Saturday, thanks once again to quarterback Riley Leonard’s legs.

Leonard capped off a 9-play, 75-yard opening drive that took 4:32 off the clock with a 1-yard touchdown run.

The biggest play on the drive was a blitz-beating 42-yard toss to wide receiver Jaden Greathouse on third and 6.

That kept the drive alive and got Notre Dame into the red zone. Four plays later, Leonard found the end zone on the quarterback run.

Notre Dame has started slow recently, but this opening drive was balanced, and with the exception of one tackle for loss, the Irish moved the ball effectively.

Oct 26, 2024; East Rutherford, New Jersey, USA; Notre Dame Fighting Irish quarterback Riley Leonard (13) warms up before the game Navy Midshipmen at MetLife Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images

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Notre Dame Week 8 highlight: Riley Leonard does it again

Notre Dame quarterback Riley Leonard uses his legs again.

Notre Dame Fighting Irish quarterback Riley Leonard really does use his legs as a weapon.

He’s now accounted for both of Notre Dame’s first two touchdowns against the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets as he pulled the ball back on a run-pass option and scampered for a 12-yard touchdown to give the Fighting Irish a 14-7 lead.

Leonard’s run finished off a 5-play, 68-yard drive that took 2:51 off the clock.

Notre Dame looks a lot more settled after a first quarter in which the Fighting Irish struggled on both sides of the football.

While Leonard had the touchdown run, Beaux Collins had two key catches of 11 yards and Kris Mitchell and Jeremiyah Love each had big receptions — 14 yards for Mitchell and Love for 25. Love showed running ability after the catch.

Marcus Freeman updates Notre Dame’s QB situation ahead of Purdue
Aug 31, 2024; College Station, Texas, USA; Notre Dame Fighting Irish quarterback Riley Leonard (13) speaks during a post game interview at Kyle Field against the Texas A&M Aggies. Mandatory Credit: Maria Lysaker-USA TODAY Sports

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Social media reacts to Riley Leonard scoring game-tying touchdown

Great score.

After giving up a touchdown to Georgia Tech to end the first quarter, Notre Dame got the ball to begin the second. It had the ball for exactly eight minutes, more than half the frame. Fortunately, it ended optimally.

Undoubtedly still frustrated by throwing the interception that ultimately led to the Yellow Jackets’ first touchdown, [autotag]Riley Leonard[/autotag] dictated an Irish offense that ran a decent mixture of running and passing plays until it reached the goal line. It took a couple of attempts, but Leonard took the ball into the end zone himself to tie the game at 7. It was his team-leading ninth touchdown of the season:

https://twitter.com/NDFootball/status/1847736723108761772

Leonard has a long way to go to prove his doubters wrong, but it’s getting late to do so as this game marks the start of the second half of this year’s schedule for the Irish. The stats back up the Irish’s faith in him though, and it’s a reminder that one doesn’t always need what’s perceived as the correct style to be a college quarterback.

Here are some of the reactions we found on social media about this touchdown:

Notre Dame Week 8 highlight: Riley Leonard powers it across the goal line

Riley Leonard responds to Notre Dame’s slow start with short touchdown run.

Notre Dame has had yet another slow start, this time against the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets, but Fighting Irish quarterback Riley Leonard redeemed himself for an earlier interception by capping a long, time-consuming drive off with a QB run for a touchdown.

Notre Dame’s offense stalled on its first drive, and after the defense got a stop, Leonard threw an interception on a deep ball after wide receiver Beaux Collins appeared to break off his route.

The Yellow Jackets followed with a long drive that ended in a touchdown. Notre Dame was down 7-0 after one quarter and Irish fans were likely feeling queasy.

Then the Irish moved the ball well on a 14-play, 75-yard touchdown drive that took 8:00 off the clock that ended with Leonard’s 1-yard run.

Notre Dame quarterback Riley Leonard (13) jumps into the end zone for a touchdown during a NCAA college football game between Notre Dame and Stanford at Notre Dame Stadium on Saturday, Oct. 12, 2024, in South Bend.

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Notre Dame quarterback Riley Leonard named a Manning Award Star of the Week

Riley Leonard’s performance from Saturday gets recognized.

Notre Dame Fighting Irish quarterback Riley Leonard has been named a Manning Award Star of the Week for his performance against Stanford.

Leonard completed 16 of 22 passes for 229 yards and three touchdowns and ran six times for 31 yards and a touchdown with a long of 18 yards. He had a quarterback rating of 94.6 in the 49-7 win over the Cardinal.

Fans can now vote for the quarterback of the week. Leonard is up against Luke Altmyer from Illinois, Evan Bullock from Louisana Tech, Dillon Gabriel from Oregon, Cade Klubnik from Clemson, Jordan McCloud from Texas State, Garrett Nussmeier from LSU, and E.J. Warner from Rice.

Voting closes at 9 a.m. Central time on Wednesday and you can vote here.

Notre Dame quarterback Riley Leonard (13) jumps into the end zone for a touchdown during a NCAA college football game between Notre Dame and Stanford at Notre Dame Stadium on Saturday, Oct. 12, 2024, in South Bend.

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Social media reacts to two more third-quarter Notre Dame touchdown

Another big third-quarter score on the ground.

Notre Dame has been the home to some decent running backs in recent years. The big duo for the program at the moment consists of [autotag]Jadarian Price[/autotag] and [autotag]Jeremiyah Love[/autotag]. Price already had a third-quarter touchdown against Stanford, so Love decided he wanted in on the action.

After the Irish’s defense stopped the Cardinal’s offense yet again, it was time for possession to change hands. Love had been held scoreless in the game up to this point and decided to attack after the Cardinal were called for roughing the passer. That attack came in the form of a 39-yard touchdown run to extend the Irish’s lead to 35-7:

One possession later, [autotag]Riley Leonard[/autotag] hit [autotag]Eli Raridon[/autotag] for a 5-yard touchdown, and the rout was on at Notre Dame Stadium to the tune of a 42-7 score.

At this point, it’s only a matter of time before the Irish bask in their victory. That’s not presumptuous but what must be accepted as reality. If you don’t believe that, read some of the below reactions we found on social media regarding these two scores: