Projecting Notre Dame's Offensive Depth Chart Entering Training Camp

The offseason ended on Monday for Notre Dame as the team reported back to campus and will go through production and photo day on Tuesday before opening camp on Wednesday. 

Notre Dame will return an experienced team this fall, so if you like position battles, then you might have to wait a year for the pure chaos. Now, that’s not to say Marcus Freeman and his staff will take it easy on this year’s projected starters, but experience and production also mean something. 

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QUARTERBACK
1. Riley Leonard (Senior)
2. Steven Angeli (Junior)
3. Kenny Minchey (Sophomore) 
4. CJ Carr (Freshman) 

Leonard was brought to Notre Dame to start. Angeli has proven he can be more than an effective quarterback at this level, so Leonard will be pushed and Notre Dame has an experienced guy behind him if there is an injury. There should be a solid battle between Carr and Minchey for that third spot, which could mean a few snaps at some point in the year. 

RUNNING BACK
1. Jeremiyah Love (Sophomore)
2. Jadarian Price (Junior) 
3. Aneyas Williams (Freshman) or Kedren Young (Freshman)
4. Devyn Ford (Graduate Student) 

Love is No. 1 on this list due to him being able to do a little more within the offense aka play some receiver. It was very clear in the spring Mike Denbrock wanted to find ways to get Love the ball, but Price will still get his touches. If you want to go 1A and 1B, I don’t think anyone would correct you. Notre Dame will need one of the freshmen to show they are ready as Gi’Bran Payne will miss the season due to an ACL injury. 

WIDE RECEIVER (FIELD)
1. Kris Mitchell (Graduate Student)
2. Jordan Faison (Sophomore) 
3. KK Smith (Sophomore)
4. Cam Williams (Freshmen) 

Mitchell will bring some much-needed experience and speed to the position, which will ideally allow Notre Dame to stretch the field a bit more than it did a year ago. He did have some fumbling issues at FIU, but cleaning that up has been an emphasis. Faison is a player who will play in the slot, but we also believe he’ll be utilized at the field position as well, given his ability to get behind a defense and make defenders miss in space. Smith is a name folks keep talking about in positive ways and he simply needs reps after missing his most freshmen season. Williams has flashed at times, but Notre Dame has the luxury of not throwing him to the wolves. 

WIDE RECEIVER (BOUNDARY)
1. Beaux Collins (Graduate Student)
2. Jayden Thomas (Senior)
3. Deion Colzie (Senior)
4. Micah Gilbert (Freshman) 

Collins is the most talented, but when Notre Dame runs out on the field on Wednesday, it wouldn’t be a shock to see Thomas or Colzie there as they’ve been in the program. That said, Collins should win the job, while the others will also play quite a bit. Thomas is another player who Denbrock can move around within the offense. Gilbert is perhaps the most intriguing of the bunch as it might be a matter of time before he sits at the No. 2 spot. 

WIDE RECEIVER (SLOT)
1. Jaden Greathouse (Sophomore)
2. Jayden Harrison (Graduate Student)
3. Logan Saldate (Freshman)
4. Jordan Faison (Sophomore) 

Greathouse could be in line for a breakout season as he looked dynamic at times during the spring. Sure, Greathouse doesn’t have the pure speed of the other players at this position, but he’s a natural route runner and finds a way to get open or loose in space. Harrison does have the pure speed where Notre Dame use him as a gadget guy, while Saldate is a player who has impressed early since arriving in June. As mentioned above, Faison will get reps in the slot, but he’s got the ability to move around the offense. 

TIGHT END
1. Mitchell Evans (Senior)
2. Eli Raridon (Junior
3. Cooper Flanagan (Sophomore)
4. Kevin Bauman (Graduate Student)
5. Davis Sherwood (Senior)
6. Jack Larsen (Freshman) 

It’s hard to project this position as we don’t officially know who is healthy. The room was crushed by injuries a year ago, so any combination is possible on Wednesday, pending who is cleared or ready to practice. Rardion and Flanagan will be an interesting battle to watch this month. Flanagan proved he could be an effective blocker as a freshman, while Raridon showed flashes of what he can do, but he needs to continue to gain confidence in his knee. 

LEFT TACKLE 
1. Charles Jagusah (Sophomore)
2. Anthonie Knapp (Freshman)
3. Styles Prescod (Freshman)

Jagsuah will start at left tackle and Notre Dame will have to live with some growing pains. If there was an injury, it would likely mean Tosh Baker flips over to the left side as he has experience there. Knapp has added good weight and folks have raved about his development, but the only thing worse than throwing a sophomore with one start to the wolves is playing a true freshman at left tackle. That said, Knapp will have a chance to make noise and prove he can handle it. 

LEFT GUARD
1. Pat Coogan (Senior)
2. Rocco Spindler (Senior)
3. Sullivan Absher (Sophomore) 

Coogan is first as C comes first alphabetically and it’s likely he trots out first with the first-team. That said, Coogan and Spindler will be in a battle over the next three weeks for the starting spot after both started a year ago at guard. Absher has moved to guard and presents an intriguing option down the line at 6-foot-7, 321 pounds, but also expect him to take reps at left tackle too. 

CENTER 
1. Ashton Craig (Junior)
2. Sam Pendleton (Sophomore)
3. Joe Otting (Sophomore) 

Craig might get the award for changing his body the most in the offseason as the Indiana native falls into the large human category. Notre Dame bet on Craig as they let Zeke Correll head to NC State and he’ll have the chance to prove he’s ready for the task. Pendleton is also another large human with big-time strength. If worse came to worse, we do believe Coogan would jump Otting and potentially Pendleton at the center position with Spindler’s experience at guard. 

RIGHT GUARD
1. Billy Schrauth (Junior) 
2. Chris Terek (Sophomore)
3. Ty Chan (Junior)

Schrauth waited patiently after Spindler won the job a year ago and made the most of it. He’ll get the starting nod this year and it’s kind of anyone’s guess who will line up behind him. The loser of the left guard competition between Coogan and Spindler would likely slide over if Schrauth was injured. 

RIGHT TACKLE
1. Aamil Wagner (Junior)
2. Tosh Baker (Graduate Student)
3. Guerby Lambert (Freshman)

Wagner has put himself in position to start as he worked with the first team all summer. Baker holds experience and value as he’s played both tackle spots. Lambert didn’t enroll early, so he’ll be behind the 8-ball, so it’ll be interesting to see how quickly he can catch up as he is another player who could earn a backup role at either tackle. 
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