Tag: Tyler Buchner

Notre Dame football: Tyler Buchner spring game highlights

In case you missed the spring game, some video to help you see why so many are so excited for Tyler Buchner.

The annual Notre Dame spring game came and went at the start of the month and the player that created the most fanfare is currently buried to at least third on the depth chart.

That player was freshman quarterback Tyler Buchner who entered the game late in the first half before leading the only two touchdown drives of the game that the blue squad eventually won, 17-3.

Buchner finished the day 6 of 9 passing for 140 yards while running three times for six yards, a touchdown, and once fumbling.

That’s how it appeared in the box score but how did Buchner’s first game-action since the fall of 2019 look?  Take a peek yourself:

Obviously, some bright flashes were in there as Buchner brings the quickest release of any Notre Dame quarterback I can think of in quite some time.  There was plenty of rust to be seen as well but if you hadn’t seen any of his work yet then it was a quality glimpse at why so many are so high on the freshman out of La Jolla, California.

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Notre Dame post-spring positional breakdown: quarterbacks

Notre Dame post-spring positional breakdown: quarterbacks

Will the starting quarterback in Week One be the starter in November?

Spring football has come and gone for Notre Dame in 2021 and the next time we see the Fighting Irish football team will be when they start camp for the regular season.

In that time more will come in figuring out positional battles and where things fall.

For the first time in seemingly forever, Notre Dame goes into the season without a known commodity at starting quarterback as Ian Book, the winningest quarterback in program history is off to the New Orleans Saints.

So how does Notre Dame’s depth chart at quarterback set up for the 2021 season?

Here is what we know at the conclusion of spring ball:

Notre Dame spring game: Five questions that could be answered

Who steps up this afternoon?

The final taste of football is upon us, this weekend is the culmination of Notre Dame’s spring practice ending with the Blue and Gold game.

Heading into the season, there will be plenty of question surrounding the program, the biggest is undoubtably the quarterback position. Find out five question that could be answered during Saturday’s controlled scrimmage.

Must see: Notre Dame true freshman QB Buchner’s beautiful deep ball

Would you like the jump on the hype train with us?

It’s time to get the hype train going for early enrollee quarterback Tyler Buchner. Take a look at this pretty deep ball from one of the best recruits of the 2021 class.

With Ian Book moving on, Notre Dame has a hole at the most important position in all of sports. Yes, Buchner just graduated from high school just a few months ago, but count me in the camp to let the young man play early.

Transfer Jack Coan should get the first shot at running offensive coordinator Tommy Rees’ offense, but if Coan struggles, it makes tons of sense to get Buchner more experience. I can’t see Brian Kelly putting himself in the same position they saw this off-season, entering the year with your quarterback room with virtually no experience.

This might be a complete overreaction to one 8-second clip, but at one point in time Buchner was a 5-star according to the majority of recruiting services. Either way I’m jumping on this hype train and seeing where it takes the Irish.

ESPN answers if Notre Dame’s offense will be top-10 caliber the next 3 years

Too low or too high?

The offseason is in full force, with the Notre Dame staff focusing on spring practice and recruiting, it’s been a great time for analysts to look ahead at what to expect for this upcoming season.

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Well, ESPN’s Adam Rittenberg did us one better, he looked at the next three years (insider) looked at the next three years and tried to predict the best upcoming offenses in the country.

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How did the Irish fare in Rittenberg’s future estimation of offenses? Short answer, they’re one of the best, but not nearly as good as we’d all like them to be coming in ranked as the 14th best offense in the country.

With last season being offensive coordinator Tommy Rees’ first full year calling an offense, he’s established a solid base for Brian Kelly. During the shortened 2020 campaign, the Irish were just outside the top 25 in total offense, 26th, averaging 33.4 points-per-game, good for 30th nationally.

Rittenberg saw what we all did in the Irish’s final two contests, “that the program clearly needs more explosiveness on offense to win titles. The Irish must continue to build on their strengths — offensive line, tight end, running back — and get more from the perimeter game and ultimately quarterback.”

Hard to disagree with that assessment, quarterback in my estimation, is the biggest weakness of the offense at the current moment. Rittenberg views transfer Jack Coan as “a solid option for 2021, but Notre Dame needs incoming recruit Tyler Buchner to be as advertised to help elevate the unit for the future.”

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What about the guys the quarterbacks will ultimately throw to? Rittenberg sees that group as one that “must step up this fall.” The collective of Avery Davis, Kevin Austin Jr., and Braden Lenzy needs to help Coan. Also mentioned was the young duo of Jordan Johnson and Deion Colzie potentially being the “big -play spark Notre Dame desperately needs.”

Aside from that position, Rittenberg is high on the rest of the offense. Michael Meyer is mentioned as a Mackey Award candidate, the depth at tight end being impressive beyond the rising sophomore. He see’s the line returning “versatile veterans such as Jarrett Patterson and Josh Lugg,” along with Zeke Correll.

Although the ranking isn’t what many of us wanted to hear, the nice part about it is that the Irish have room to grow. Even with the so-called offensive deficiencies, the Irish have been to the College Football Playoff’s two of the last three years and are on the cusp of breaking through to join some elite company in the college football world.

ESPN projects who will be Notre Dame’s starting QB in 2021

The battle to replace Ian Book will be one many eyes will be watching and ESPN has predicted which QB emerge as Notre Dame’s starter.

One of the biggest questions going into spring football for Notre Dame is who will replace the all-time winningest quarterback in Irish history, Ian Book. ESPN’s Tom Luginbill took a look around the nation (insider) at programs who will have new signal callers in the 2021 season and obviously the Irish were included.

Of the four quarterbacks on campus fighting for the job (Jack Coan, Brendon Clark, Drew Pyne and Tyler Buchner), Luginbill feels like Coan is the leader in the clubhouse.

There are four legitimate options, but while Buchner is an exciting incoming freshman and can be a difference-maker, he is not the leader to be under center come the fall. That has to be the Wisconsin grad transfer Coan…

This makes plenty of sense, as Coan was brought in to bridge the gap. We predicted that Brian Kelly would dip in to the transfer market to replace Book and the former Badger was the answer even though he wasn’t on our watchlist.

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Luginbill does assess each of the contenders as “Clark is probably the best passer with the most arm strength,” but knee injuries have stunted his growth.

As for the other returning quarterback “Pyne most resembles Book’s skill set, having served as the Irish’s No. 2 quarterback down the stretch last year. He’s undersized but has some skill as a passer with good feet, a solid feel for the game and a high ceiling.”

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How about the incoming freshman Buchner? “He is likely the future. He’s physically capable of playing right away, but as with all freshman, the learning curve can be steep.” The Californian is already on campus going through spring drills, so Buchner is already getting his feet wet in South Bend.

The spring will be very telling as to who will ultimately replace Book, if Kelly will go with experience in Coan or a higher ceiling in Buchner.

Notre Dame drops in ESPN’s future quarterback rankings

With the graduation of Ian Book, Notre Dame must find their signal caller of the future or they could continue to drop in the rankings.

Going into last year the Irish were in very good hands at the most important position in sports, with Ian Book quarterbacking the team for this 3rd-year as a starter. The results were great, a regular season ACC title, a berth in the College Football Playoffs for the second time in three years.

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Although the 2020 season didn’t end the way any of us wanted to, Book brought stability to the position which resulted in 10 wins. The immediate future most likely sees transfer Jack Coan as Books replacement, although the need for Brian Kelly to develop depth at the position is much needed for the future of the program.

The upcoming season’s past 2021 will hold a much different future for the position and after ESPN’s Adam Rittenberg looked at his future quarterback rankings (insider), the Irish will need to catch up a bit. Falling from 7th last year to 16th after this update, the position will once again be in the spotlight in South Bend.

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Rittenberg sees the situation like I do, “Notre Dame needs to upgrade at quarterback to truly challenge for a national title despite two CFP appearances in the past three years.” The need for a difference maker at the position is glaring, Coan isn’t the long-term answer but maybe that player is already on campus.

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The 2021 class included top-100 recruit Tyler Buchner from California, who is the future at quarterback. That’s not a knock on Brendon Clark or Drew Pyne, it’s more of a testament to Buchner’s abilities. Rittenberg mentions Buchner as being “long been pegged as Notre Dame’s quarterback of the future.”

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The future is now and the need to develop the depth at the position is a glaring issue. Clark and Pyne had virtually no experience heading into this season, which is why Coan was brought in.

Kelly and offensive coordinator Tommy Rees can’t have another situation like this years emerge next year. The younger quarterbacks need to play, so going into 2022, there should be some semblance of urgency to get the younger QB’s that much needed experience.

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With Coan’s injury history, relying on him to complete a whole season shouldn’t be taken for granted. Again, getting the younger players experience will be paramount. When Rittenberg revisits his future QB rankings next year, this group should be ranked higher as long as development happens.

How can Notre Dame make a Playoff run in ‘21? ESPN answers

Is there one answer to this question as to how Notre Dame makes it back to play in a big time bowl game?

The Irish have made the College Football Playoffs two of the last three years and going into the 2021 season, it might be a more difficult task to make it three of the last four. There is always hope going into a season, after all, in college football anything can happen.

Recently, the ESPN staff looked at their way-too-early top 25 teams and how the cards need to fall for them to make the CFP. In Notre Dame’s case, they “are losing quite a bit on offense and defense, so if they’re going to make it back to the playoff or a New Year’s Six bowl, the first thing that must happen is they need to find their quarterback early,” said Tom VanHaaren.

What’s interesting about VanHaaren’s assessment of the position is that he doesn’t mention Wisconsin transfer Jack Coan, naming Drew Pyne and Tyler Buchner as his front runners. That doesn’t mean that Coan is not in the mix for the starting job, maybe VanHaaren just forgot about him. Either way he say’s “the coaches need to stabilize that position.” That’s saying it lightly.

Over on the defensive side of the ball, VanHaaren noted that new coordinator Marcus Freeman will need “Kyle Hamilton, Kurt Hinish and Myron Tagovailoa-Amosa, among some other veterans on defense, to be its best players.” Losing a high end player like linebacker Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah and others will definitely hurt, but the talent is there for other players to step up.

When looking at the whole picture for VanHaaren, it’s probably not going to be what Notre Dame fans want to hear “with so much change on the roster and the staff, Notre Dame must have everything fall into place to make it back to where it was this season.” Hopefully everything does fall into place and we see Brian Kelly leading his team to a bowl game on or around New Year’s Day.

247Sports compares Notre Dame QB signee Buchner to former USC star

The experts at 247Sports give Notre Dame signee Tyler Buchner a very interesting comparison to a former USC quarterback.

Today, one of the major recruiting services, 247Sports made their final rankings of the 2021 cycle. Unfortunately no Notre Dame signee or commit was named a 5-Star, although that doesn’t mean there aren’t talented players that will matriculate to South Bend.

With their penultimate rankings out, Andrew Ivins went over each of the quarterbacks ranked inside their top 247 players and Irish signee Tyler Buchner was included in that group as the 90th overall player in the class. His player comparison was to former USC star Sam Darnold, who if you don’t remember went third overall in the 2018 NFL Draft.

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Their evaluation went to Greg Biggins, who gave a glowing scouting report of what to expect out of the Californian. Buchner “has always been a dynamic athlete and was a nationally known lacrosse player in middle school. Physically, has an athletic frame and looks like a running back when he gets out in the open field. Has tremendous escape-ability and a unique sense for making a defender miss and extending plays.”

Sounds like someone we know who just finished his career as the all-time winningest quarterback in Notre Dame history? Ian Book ring a bell?

Biggins went on to then explain what we expect out of Buchner throwing the ball as he “has a live arm and can throw outside the pocket rolling to his right or his left equally well. Has tightened his release over the last year and improved mechanically. Shows accuracy on the deep ball and will continue to improve as a pure pocket passer with more game experience.”

This is where the difference between the two quarterbacks is made. Buchner’s ceiling as a passer is much higher than Book’s, although the outgoing senior was no slouch at slinging the ball around.

Like Darnold, Biggins sees Buchner to “project as a impact upper tier Power 5 starter and future high round NFL draft pick.” If he lives up to this scouting report, Notre Dame fans will surely be happy with Buchner’s career when it’s all said and done.

Reload or rebuild for Notre Dame in 2021?

Will Notre Dame have a season where they struggle like in 2016 or will it be a prosperous season like this past season?

The list keeps growing with Notre Dame players making their intentions for next year known, many of them opting to move on instead of come back. Quarterback Ian Book, tackles Liam Eichenberg and Robert Hainsey, guards Tommy Kraemer and Aaron Banks, linebacker Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah, tight end Tommy Tremble, defensive lineman Ade Ogundeji, cornerback Houston Griffith transferring are just a few of the players on the move.

Recently, ESPN took a look at which schools have recruited the best (insider) to have success in 2021 due to their recruiting. Although Brian Kelly’s efforts have been great, they didn’t make the main portion of the article, the Irish were mentioned in the second group of teams.

Being on the list alone is a good omen for Notre Dame, as the list of players moving on that were major contributors from this past season is significant. Luckily, Kelly has done a great job accumulating talent in South Bend, giving hope that 2021 won’t have a similar result as the 2016 season did.

Per the ESPN article, the Irish will have 38 players returning to the 2021 roster at the current moment that were ranked inside their top 300. So what does that mean for the ‘21 season?

There will be some bumps in the road with many of the younger players getting their first significant amount of playing time, but that doesn’t mean it will be all bad. This past year saw multiple freshman (cornerback Clarence Lewis, tight end Michael Mayer, running back Chris Tyree, defensive end Rylie Mills and linebacker Jordan Botelho) each show flashes of their futures. The first three really shined and you can add Jordan Johnson to the list as well.

Second-year players like safety Kyle Hamilton, interior lineman Zeke Correll, defensive lineman Isaiah Foskey, running back Kyren Williams, linebacker Marist Liufau, and punter Jay Bramblett were major contributors. This group will need to continue to grow.

As for the 2018 class which was ranked in as the 10th best class nationally, they have struggled to make a significant mark. Griffith transferring along with quarterback Phil Jurkovec already leaving and wide receiver Kevin Austin unable to stay healthy has hurt the classes outlook. Those three were the top ranked players in the class. There, however, have been contributors from that class, with include linebacker Jack Lamb, wide receiver Braden Lenzy and tight end George Takacs, linebacker Bo Bauer and center Jarrett Patterson. This class needs to step up in a big way for the Irish to be successful this coming season.

I haven’t even touched on the potential incoming-freshman contributors, which include tackle Blake Fisher, wide receiver Deion Colzie, guard Rocco Spindler, quarterback Tyler Buchner, linebacker Prince Kollie and other talented players.

The schedule isn’t quite daunting, the first three games should give Kelly plenty of time to get the pups feet wet before their big contest against Wisconsin in Chicago.

In my opinion the Irish are not rebuilding, but they aren’t quite reloading. Having a regular spring schedule will be extremely important for this team. The reps and practice time will further develop the players who don’t have as much experience. We should not see another year like 2016.