Notre Dame C Ashton Craig Confident, Prepared Heading into 2024 Campaign
The Notre Dame offensive line has been a hot topic over the last eight months and even more so in the last three weeks as starting left tackle Charles Jagusah was lost for the season.
Offensive line coach Joe Rudolph has shuffled, mixed and matched the left side of the line during camp, but one constant has been in the middle with junior center Ashton Craig.
The 6-foot-4, 308-pounder started the final three games of 2023 and hasn’t looked back. In fact, the Indiana native has focused on becoming a leader as communication is essential, especially given Notre Dame’s situation on the left side.
“I just come in every day with the same mindset,” stated Craig. “It's just trying to get better and then I think certain guys see the things, like what the standard is. They always try to follow in that direction. There's certain things like just trying to be that communicator because I'm the center. I'm communicating everything. So just trying to be able to be that voice for the O-line and trying to just have everyone on the same page.”
Notre Dame’s offensive line will be tested from the start as Texas A&M boasts one of the best defensive lines in the country and the Irish will also have to deal with an extremely hostile environment in College Station.
Craig got his first taste of a big game atmosphere last fall as he played 24 snaps at Clemson, but even he knows this will be different.
“That's going to be one of the loudest stadiums we play in this year,” explained Craig. “It's home of the 12th Man. We're ready for anything. We have certain cadences that we'll probably go on. We're confident in that and everybody's going to be on the same page because we've all studied and we're going to be locked into the game plan.
“If it gets rowdy and rocking, I think we're still going to have that poise just to settle in and trust our technique, trust our knowledge and trust the game plan that we put in for that week.”
Some might believe Craig is under a lot of pressure to handle the cadence, adjust the line and identify the right defensive players, but he doesn’t feel it, which might speak to his confidence entering the season.
“Not really,” Craig said when asked if he felt pressure. “It's kind of just the same thing. I have to make sure everybody knows what the direction that we're going in is, what the call is, what the point is. But as long as I do that, I just have to let everyone know and then everybody will communicate that out from center to the tackles.”
Craig’s confidence likely comes from those final three games of 2023, but also his offseason as he’s up 10 pounds and feels stronger after eight months of working with new Notre Dame Director of Football Performance Loren Landow.
“Last season, I hovered around 300 and right now, I'm hovering around like 310,” Craig stated. “So not a crazy jump from last year to this year, but just a little bit trying to get that edge going into the season, trying to build that strength.
“My upper body strength definitely went up. I was benching around 335 last year. Now I'm like 355. I'm just trying to keep continue to build that and just keep continuing to build my lower body strength because that's just also going to help me get that edge this year.”
Rudolph also appears to have a great deal of confidence in the tandem of Craig and Billy Schrauth up the middle as they have taken their opportunity and run with it.
"Ashton and Billy, the way they finished last year, the physicality they play with, the understanding,” Rudolph said. “They definitely have a chemistry in how they execute. They've truly taken an opportunity and just continue to rise with it, not only to finish the season, but carried it through the spring. I think that's why they are where they're at right now.”
As for the offense, Craig has confidence that the Irish will get the job done because they have a dynamic quarterback in Riley Leonard.
“He's always in the Gug just trying to gain that edge on the other guys,” explained Craig. “I know when we come in for summer, we have PLP (player led practices) and OTAs and he's just being that vocal leader and the captain we need.”
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