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Notre Dame Football

Instant Reaction | LB Marist Liufau

August 26, 2021
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There’s always something before the season with any college football program. For Notre Dame this year, it happens to be an injury to a key piece of their defense.

Marist Liufau was ready to take the leap this year as a player. I described him as dynamic in my practice report last Thursday and he appeared to be on the verge of a breakout season. He was bigger, stronger, and faster and it was showing particularly as a blitzer/pass rusher. 

Not only was he primed to be the starter at Will, he was also going to be a beast on 3rd down with his ability to rush the passer. That’s going to be difficult to replace. 

While Notre Dame may not have a player exactly like Liufau ready to step in, they do have quality players who can play Will. 

This is a huge opportunity for JD Bertrand who had worked his way up the depth chart to the 1B at Will. He was going to find his way onto the field in some way and now he gets a great chance to show he is ready for a bigger role. He has the skills to be very productive. 

There’s also Shayne Simon, who had plenty of playing experience last season and is at the very least competent. Perhaps he can be more than that if he can make a splash like he did in the Blue-Gold game. 

We may also get to see Jack Kiser slide inside from Rover. I’m not sure how many reps he took there, but he played there in 2020 and shares a lot of the same athletic traits as Liufau. Marcus Freeman may be able to experiment with this because the depth is so good at Rover with Isaiah Pryor and Paul Moala both capable of making plays from that spot. 

This does open up opportunities in Notre Dame’s nickel defense and this could give more linebackers a chance to shine there. This also might mean Jordan Botelho or Justin Ademilola will get more opportunities to do some of what Liufau was going to be assigned with when it comes to rushing the passer.

No one wants to see injuries to any position and especially not to a rising star like Liufau. The Irish are very deep in the front seven and should be able to replace the production that is lost, even if the defense might not be quite as dynamic without him. 

 
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