Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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40 JUNE/JULY 2021 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED said, 'He's the potential first-round pick,'" Freeman said. "He has done a great job. He's working on it." 2. ROVER SPOT STILL IMPORTANT Not that it needed validation, but Freeman's February commitment to keeping the rover position in his de- fense feels even more bankable in May. Asked about his vision for that role, Freeman cited the man who oc- cupied it the last two years as the spitting image. "There's a guy who played here previously named Jeremiah Owusu- [Koramoah]," Freeman said. "He kind of fits that mold. If there's a per- fect rover, you'd look for the traits he possesses." True, though not exactly a rev- elation. There is a deeper message, though. Freeman is open to keeping the rover as an every-down staple if there's a player (or even a collection of players) who warrants such usage — despite the lack of a like-for-like rover position in his previous defenses. Freeman is inheriting the position from Lea and wanted to keep it. In Lea's and 2017 Irish defensive coor- dinator Mike Elko's units, the rover covered slot receivers, played in the box, blitzed and set edges. Owusu- Koramoah's blend of physicality, speed and explosiveness made him adept at handling all four of those. Freeman's 2019 and 2020 defenses at Cincinnati were primarily a 3-3-5 alignment, with three corners and two safeties. At Notre Dame, he will run a mix of three- and four-man fronts. Where that leaves the rover in terms of its usage is not yet clear. But it will be part of the defense. "We're trying to move that rover around so you don't know where he's aligned," Freeman said. "At the end of the day, he has to be a disrup- tive edge-setter. He has to be a guy playing in coverage." Notre Dame split the first-team spring reps there between junior Jack Kiser and fifth-year senior Isa- iah Pryor. Senior Paul Moala figures to get a chance, too, when he returns for fall camp. He missed the spring as he recovered from a torn Achilles suf- fered last fall. It's possible rover becomes a com- mittee that inserts different players based on the situation. For example, one player for early downs to be more of a traditional linebacker and someone else who's best in coverage plays on passing downs. With no media access to practice and a Blue- Gold Game format that split teams evenly, this is based on some educated guesses going off spring video supplied by Notre Dame and information from Brian Kelly in press conferences. Because 2020 was a "free" year for eligibility, per the NCAA, we will include it as such in the class years. Strong-Side End No. Player Ht. Wt. Cl./Elig. 95 M. Tagovailoa-Amosa 6-2½ 282 5th-Sr./2 19 Justin Ademilola 6-2 248 Sr./3 or 18 Nana Osafo-Mensah 6-3 249 Jr./4 or 98 Alex Ehrensberger 6-7 252 So./4 — Jason Onye 6-5 245 Fr./4 Nose Tackle No. Player Ht. Wt. Cl./Elig. 41 Kurt Hinish 6-2 296 5th-Sr./1 56 Howard Cross III 6-1 275 Jr./4 or 54 Jacob Lacey 6-2 293 Jr./3 92 Aidan Keanaaina 6-3 312 So./4 Defensive Tackle No. Player Ht. Wt. Cl./Elig. 57 Jayson Ademilola 6-3 279 Sr./2 99 Rylie Mills 6-5 273 So./4 97 Gabe Rubio 6-5 289 Fr./4 Vyper No. Player Ht. Wt. Cl./Elig. 7 Isaiah Foskey 6-5 257 Jr./4 17 Jordan Botelho 6-2½ 248 So./4 18 Nana Osafo-Mensah 6-3 249 Jr./4 34 Osita Ekwonu 6-1 236 Jr./4 44 Devin Aupiu 6-5 220 Fr./4 48 Will Schweitzer 6-4 215 Fr./4 Mike Linebacker No. Player Ht. Wt. Cl./Elig. 40 Drew White 6-0 227 5th-Sr./2 52 Bo Bauer 6-3 230 Sr./2 27 JD Bertrand 6-1 228 Jr./4 Will Linebacker No. Player Ht. Wt. Cl./Elig. 35 Marist Liufau 6-2 226 Jr./4 or 33 Shayne Simon 6-3 230 Sr./2 — Kahanu Kia 6-1 210 Fr./4 Rover No. Player Ht. Wt. Cl./Elig. 24 Jack Kiser 6-2 227 Jr./4 or 10 Isaiah Pryor 6-1½ 204 5th-Sr./2 or 13 Paul Moala 5-11½ 224 Sr./2 — Prince Kollie 6-2 210 Fr./4 Boundary Cornerback No. Player Ht. Wt. Cl./Elig. 5 Cam Hart 6-2½ 207 Jr./4 11 Ramon Henderson 6-1 189 So./4 or 25 Philip Riley 5-11½ 198 Fr./4 or 15 Ryan Barnes 6-2 182 Fr./4 Field Cornerback No. Player Ht. Wt. Cl./Elig. 26 Clarence Lewis 5-11½ 192 So./4 28 TaRiq Bracy 5-10 180 Sr./2 — JoJo Johnson 5-10 175 Fr./4 — Chance Tucker 6-0 165 Fr./4 Stud Safety No. Player Ht. Wt. Cl./Elig. 3 Houston Griffith 6-0 204 Sr./2 or 12 DJ Brown 6-0 194 Sr./3 23 Litchfield Ajavon 6-0 198 Jr./4 — Khari Gee 6-3 185 Fr./4 Free Safety No. Player Ht. Wt. Cl./Elig. 14 Kyle Hamilton 6-4 219 Jr./3 16 KJ Wallace 5-10 189 Jr./4 or 20 Justin Walters 6-1 178 Fr./4 or 21 Caleb Offord 6-1 184 So./4 SPECIAL TEAMS Kicker No. Player Ht. Wt. Cl./Elig. 39 Jonathan Doerer 6-3 197 5th-Sr./1 — Josh Bryan 6-0 185 Fr./4 Punter No. Player Ht. Wt. Cl./Elig. 19 Jay Bramblett 6-1½ 193 Jr./3 Long Snapper No. Player Ht. Wt. Cl./Elig. 65 Michael Vinson 6-2 226 Sr./3 44 Alex Peitsch 6-1 208 So./4 BGI 2021 Notre Dame Post-Spring Scholarship Depth Chart Junior Jack Kiser impressed in his one start last season and is competing to be Jeremiah Owusu- Koramoah's successor at rover. PHOTO COURTESY NOTRE DAME ATHLETICS