Players I'll Be Watching Early in Fall Camp

Fall camp for Notre Dame starts in just over a week, and it will be the first time eyes will really be on the team since April. We have heard rumblings of guys making strides during the summer or impressing those who have watched summer workouts.

Jamie predicted a few breakout players last week, but these are a few names I will be keeping close tabs on.

Sophomore DE Ade Ogundeji
The 6-foot-5, 251-pounder has been the talk of many around the program since early summer. Ogundeji arrived at Notre Dame as a raw prospect and simply didn’t get much action last year in fall camp as he was transitioning to the college game.

A year later, Ogundeji has a chance to work his way into the rotation and earn some playing time. While he might be a year away from being a “breakout player,” I would expect Ogundeji to turn a least a few heads over the next few weeks in fall camp.

Junior DL Micah Dew-Treadway
All signs pointed to the 6-foot-4, 299-pounder breaking into the rotation last fall, but a broken ankle at Culver Academy ended Dew-Treadway’s season. The Bolingbrook (Ill.) native has worked hard this offseason to get back to where he was physically a year ago, and the staff would like his weight over 300 pounds.

With the likely departure of nose guard Daniel Cage, Dew-Treadway could be one of the players asked to step into the role at 1-Tech. However, it may be hard to move from 3-Tech in Mike Elko’s scheme. Dew-Treadway has the athleticism most guys his size don’t have and could be valuable at the 3-Tech.

Freshman TE Cole Kmet
We got a sample of early enrollee tight end Brock Wright in the spring, and the Texas native showed he is ready to play this fall. The talk of the summer has been about how impressive Kmet has been during 7-on-7 and summer workouts.

Sources have raved about Kmet’s ability to catch the football and his athleticism. The tight end spot is deep with Durham Smythe, Alizé Mack, Nic Weishar, and Wright, so it will be interesting to see how Kmet does when the pads come on.

Sophomore LS John Shannon
No, it’s not a lack of substance to write about, but after losing a four-year starter at long snapper, Shannon’s development and consistency are vital to Notre Dame’s success. Scott Daly had one costly snap during his tenure, and that was in 2013 against Michigan State.

Shannon comes from the same Rubio Long Snapping program has Daly, and soaked in a lot of lessons from Dal as a freshman. The Lake Forest (Ill.) native traveled with the team and got a feel of what is expected of him.

Getting off to a consistent start in fall camp will go a long way in developing Shannon’s confidence heading into the season.

Senior DE Andrew Trumbetti
 Where does the senior defensive end fit? Trumbetti was playing a lot of strongside defensive end this spring after playing weakside end for the majority of his first three years on campus. The New Jersey native has had a few bright spots early in his career but hasn’t quite had the production many were hoping to see from him at this point in his career.

It sounds weird given concerns about the Notre Dame defensive line, but if Trumbetti doesn’t flash early in camp, he very well could be an odd man out with the progression of Daelin Hayes at the drop position and almost too many bodies at strongside defensive end.

It’s a big camp for Trumbetti, and he needs to use his experience to his advantage.