Notre Dame QB Tyler Buchner Embracing Leadership Role
It’s been a year of growth for quarterback Tyler Buchner.
The 6-foot-1, 215-pounder saw action last year as a true freshman and Buchner is banking on that experience to take his game to another level in 2022.
"I definitely think it helps,” Buchner said following Saturday’s practice. “I went from starting camp last year being nervous about camp and then once I got through that, then you're nervous about a game. When you get through that, you knock things out of the way and you start getting used to it and comfortable in more situations. I think I'm definitely more comfortable going into my second camp."
Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman and offensive coordinator Tommy Rees weren’t afraid to say they wanted to see Buchner develop more leadership in the spring as he was no longer a freshman and competing for a starting role.
It’s something the staff wanted to Buchner to grasp naturally, but they also put him in situations where he had to lead.
The California native has now become a leader in his second year as he has found a comfort level in the program.
“Throughout my life, I've been somewhat of a leader growing up,” Buchner said. “When you get here as a freshman, you don't want to impede on anyone or overstep and things like that.
"Now, I'm in more of a position to really take that leadership role and run with it - the natural leadership is coming out. You still have to find your voice on the team and your role and how to connect with certain guys. I think that's a good thing to do in camp."
Buchner also had a good leader to learn from a year ago in Jack Coan. The graduate transfer had to quickly build bonds within the locker room, but also catch up on the Irish offense and Buchner noted just about everything Coan did last fall.
"The biggest thing I learned from Jack was how he went through every day like a pro,” stated Buchner. “He went to bed early to get enough sleep - I roomed with him during camp last year, so I'm kind of sticking to the Jack Coan routine right now - goes to bed early, wakes up, tries to be the first guy in the building, watches film during break and watches film after."
The sophomore signal-caller is also quick to point out he’s not the only one who has grown during the summer. Receivers Jayden Thomas and Tobias Merriweather have also caught his attention for their efforts over the last few months.
"My roommate Jayden Thomas has been really good and he's shown a lot,” Buchner said. “Tobias, both the new tight ends, Eli (Raridon) and Holden (Staes), Gi'Bran (Payne) has done a really good job. Pretty much all the new freshmen who came in this summer have been doing a really good job of merging in and attacking this camp.
"I think they're all going to be really good."
Sophomore receiver Lorenzo Styles is the hot pick for breakout player of the year and Buchner has seen significant growth out of his teammate over the last seven months.
"He's grown a lot,” Buchner stated. “He plays really fast now. When he first came in, he was so fast and such a good athlete. I know for the coaching staff, it was how can we make him play that way. Now, he's playing that way and he's playing really, really fast and attacking all of his routes. he runs really good routes. He's super fast and hard to guard. He has great hands.
"Zo has done a really good job. he works so hard. I'm really happy to see how far he has come."
Buchner has also seen the offensive line take a step forward over the offseason.
In fact, Buchner was watching film from Friday’s practice and quickly realized he was getting the ball out too early as the line was holding up against Notre Dame’s aggressive defensive front.
"The offensive line is going to be really good and they are really good,” said Buchner. “I think some of the plays yesterday, I had more time in the pocket than I thought I did. I got the ball out half a second too early. Naturally, you're used to the clock in your head hitting and you have to get the ball out."
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