BREAKING | Notre Dame DT Gabe Rubio Sidelined With Broken Foot

The potential of at least one uplifting camp storyline has been dashed as Notre Dame announced on Thursday that senior defensive tackle Gabriel Rubio suffered a broken foot during the Irish’s first practice of fall camp a day earlier.

It was Rubio’s first practice back with Notre Dame after not being enrolled in school during the spring semester “to tend to personal matters.”

The timeline for Rubio’s return is not immediately known, although Notre Dame did say he’s expected to play this season. 

With his status up in the air during the spring, the Irish prepared as if they may not have him back for the season, but his return was considered a major boost to the front seven.

He looked like a candidate for a breakout season last fall, but was limited by a knee injury he suffered in the season-opener.

He finished with 11 tackles, eight pressures, and zero tackles for loss in nine games. Still, as ISD expert Jamie Uyeyama documented, those stats don’t accurately reflect what he demonstrated on the field. 

With Rubio now sidelined again, the Irish will have to lean even more heavily on Howard Cross and Rylie Mills in the middle.

Jason Onye and Donovan Hinish return with some playing experience while Brenan Vernon, Armel Mukam and Devan Houstan will move up a notch in their competitions to break into the rotation.

True freshman Sean Sevillano should also see his reps elevate in Rubio’s absence.

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