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Notre Dame Football

Growth From Bye Week Crucial for Notre Dame

October 28, 2024
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Notre Dame’s second bye week comes after an important three-game sprint that saw Marcus Freeman’s Fighting Irish take significant steps forward and put the program back in the thick of the College Football Playoff discussion. 

Two of the most important improvements have come at quarterback and linebacker. We’ve covered Riley Leonard’s ascension since the Louisville game, but Freeman and his staff need some credit for sticking with the Alabama native when the fan base tried to boo Steve Angeli on the field.

Offensive coordinator Mike Denbrock has remained firm in his belief in Leonard as missing the spring and finding a level of comfort within the offense were factors in the slow start. The other piece has become evident by the game in that Notre Dame needs a mobile quarterback in 2024 due to some inconsistent play from the offensive line, while also letting Leonard be a weapon. 

This isn’t meant as a shot at Brian Kelly, but at times, he would want his dual-threat quarterback to be a pocket passer. There are certainly times to hang in the pocket and deliver the throw, but you also want to let players like Leonard create and be elite athletes. Denbrock seems to have found the balance there and Leonard is rewarding him with picking his spots to use his legs outside the structure of the offense. 

Similar to Leonard, Notre Dame’s linebackers needed experience. They needed to see the game come 100 mph at them and that includes Jack Kiser, who had played a lot, but not a ton inside. The Navy game wasn’t the cleanest game, but you also saw improvement as Jaiden Ausberry, Drayk Bowen, Jaylen Sneed and Kyngstonn Viliamu-Asa experienced it more and more. 

When facing “normal” offenses, Notre Dame’s backers have started to become playmakers. Bowen has really turned it on over the last four weeks and you’re seeing him start to become a force in the middle of the defense. The next step for him is to become a game wrecker. 

Max Bullough and Al Golden stated in fall camp they wanted to rotate all five backers due to various skill sets, but also to make sure they all got experience (and not transfer). That’s gone about as well as one could have hoped. Sneed has been the odd man out at times, but he also had the best game of his career on Saturday against Navy. It’s on him to build on that and make the staff get him on the field. 

Another key to Notre Dame’s success over the last three games has been the defensive line. It’s not been a dominant group as most expected entering the season, but it’s still overachieved, considering the injuries the room has dealt with dating back to fall camp. 

Howard Cross III and Rylie Mills have started to come into their own in recent weeks, which has been a significant boost for the Irish. It’s clear Cross isn’t close to 100 percent, but you see flashes of the player who can take over a game. 

Joshua Burnham and Junior Tuihalamaka deserve a lot of credit for finding a way to make plays at the vyper position. Notre Dame had a heck of a rotation between Jordan Botelho and Boubacar Traore, but Burnham and Tuihalamaka haven’t had too much of a drop-off. Both have found ways to get the ball back to the offense, whether it’s intercepting a pass, tipping an option pitch or recovering fumbles. 

If you didn't know what quality depth is, then that’s your example. 

When it comes to the final four-game sprint of the year, there is a long list of areas Notre Dame needs to improve to make some noise in the CFB Playoff and for the most part, it’s all attainable. 

For me, it starts with the offensive line finding a way to take a step forward. Notre Dame comes out of those weekend No. 13 in rushing at 216.5 yards per game and the 5.95 yards per carry is No. 6 in the nation. All are strong marks and it’s actually absurd when you see Jeremiyah Love, Riley Leonard and Jadarian Price are averaging over 6 yards per carry. 

That said, Notre Dame’s offensive line can improve as those numbers are high because all three have routinely hit explosive plays, which isn’t negative. But Notre Dame finding a way to run the ball a little more effectively is going to help the offense tremendously. If Notre Dame can find ways to get into more 2nd-and-3 situations, the more Denbrock can turn Leonard loose. 

Notre Dame has only given up 10 sacks on the year and some of those are created by Leonard himself, but the pass protection hasn’t been to the level that gives Denbrock and Joe Rudolph peace of mind. It’s improved throughout the year, but if Notre Dame didn’t have Leonard, the Irish would likely be in a bit of trouble. 

Billy Schrauth’s return could be the missing link here as his talents have been missed. I think it was smart to slide him over to left guard as Notre Dame’s interior is bigger and Rocco Spindler has more than held his own. 

The other piece on offense I’d love to see Notre Dame attack is taking deep shots to Kris Mitchell. Notre Dame has found ways to get Beaux Collins and Jaden Greathouse loose deep the last couple of weeks, but if Mitchell is added to the mix, it changes how defenses attack. Mitchell’s speed is something that can really change a game and simply taking deep shots to him can completely change the numbers in the box, which allows Denbrock to dictate coverages even more. 

Freeman challenged his offense to look completely different coming out of the first bye week. He should do the same this week as if that happens, then Notre Dame could quickly become a team no one wants to face. 

On defense, it starts with finding ways to coach up younger guys like cornerback Karson Hobbs and defensive end Bryce Young. I won’t dive too much into it as I wrote something similar on Sunday, but both are likely going to be counted on for important reps. Young is already in the mix, but he’s also looked like a freshman. It’s only a matter of time before he’s a dominant force on the edge and the growing pains of 2024 will only expedite that, but he’s also not ready for 30-35 snaps a game. 

Notre Dame’s depth at cornerback is a concern, and finding a way to spell Christian Gray and Leonard Moore will be key. It’s unrealistic to believe they can play every meaningful rep from here on out and not get injured, so this week will be important to find a way to get Hobbs moving forward, but also maybe find a way to get Jordan Clark or Rod Heard II some reps at cornerback. 

Golden will likely look for ways to pressure the quarterback as Virginia and USC have passing attacks that will likely leave him a bit uncomfortable given Notre Dame’s depth at cornerback. Does that mean moving some pieces on the defensive line for passing situations or finding ways to bring more 5-man pressures? Probably both. I continue to believe Viliamu-Asa and Sneed are the chess pieces Golden needs to find roles for on third down. Both have been used off the edge in sub-packages and I think Golden can continue to find ways to get them having success off the edge. 

And finally, Notre Dame’s special teams have been a wild ride and it’s not all on Marty Biagi. He can’t control Mitch Jeter getting injured or guys fumbling, but he can continue to develop punter James Rendell and find ways to get the return game going. 

Rendell has struggled to date, and the early season struggles were expected, given his background. Yet, Rendell should be better eight games into the season and there just doesn’t seem to be consistency in his game at this point. Sure, Notre Dame probably asked him to do too much early in the year in terms of a variety of punts, but the powerful leg and hangtime we saw in fall camp simply hasn’t been there when the lights are bright. 

As far as the return game, it’s hard to return kicks or punts in today’s game. Kickoff rules encourage touchbacks and the punting game has evolved into almost no returns. Rendell has punted 27 times and just 10 have been returned, which is great if you’re Notre Dame, but it goes both ways as the Irish have forced 37 punts and returned just 11. Biagi has a creative mind and at some point, Notre Dame will need a big return for momentum or out of necessity and they have to be ready to take advantage of it. 

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