Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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10 APRIL 2022 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED UNDER THE DOME Graduate Student Wide Receiver Joe Wilkins Jr. By Tyler Horka Let's clarify from the start: if junior quarterback Drew Pyne is a projected backup to sophomore Tyler Bu- chner, then he needs to have the best set of spring practices. You never know what will happen at the quarterback position. Pyne needs to progress and be ready to play in the fall regardless. But, the QB competition means we're not really sure who's the starter and who's the backup. We do know, however, that sophomore wide receivers Deion Colzie and Lorenzo Styles and graduate student Braden Lenzy are probable starters at their respective positions. There is a lot of uncertainty tied to those players. That's why Wilkins needs to have the best spring of his career. He could play boundary if Col- zie does not deliver. He could play field if Lenzy needs to take some reps off to prevent injuries, which he has been prone to in the past. Wilkins, coming off MCL surgery in October but fully healthy for the spring, is the wild card of the wide receiver group. He's the depth piece the unit so vitally needs. But he can be more than that. He could be a go-to option if new wide receivers coach Chansi Stuckey develops him over the next month. That said, Wilkins is a bit of an unknown himself at the position. He's not a projected starter because he's not proven. This is the time to prove himself. He could be 2022's Kevin Austin Jr. — a true breakout sensation. Sophomore Tight End Mitchell Evans By Todd D. Burlage Less than two months ago, Evans couldn't have re- alized what a valuable commodity he was going to become practically overnight. Projected in January as a third-string tight end in 2022 behind junior All-American Michael Mayer and talented grad student backup George Takacs, Evans was expected to land a minimal role similar to last year when he ap- peared in all 13 games and had two catches for 21 yards. Evans' prospects and opportunities changed on Feb. 7, when Takacs entered the NCAA transfer portal, a move that moved Evans from a third-stringer to a pro- jected backup — and sometimes an on-field complement — to Mayer in a tight-end-friendly Notre Dame offense. An early enrollee freshman in 2021, Evans already has a full year in the Irish program, so he's familiar with the offense and clear on his improvement mis- sion as he moves through his second year. At 6-5 and 250 pounds, Evans was used by his coaches more as a blocking tight end than a regular receiving option as a freshman last season. That's going to change this spring and fall when Evans sees his snaps and targets increase, especially with the coverage attention Mayer is going to attract. The task this spring for Evans — who's still best known for his three-catch 59-yard performance last April in the 2021 Blue-Gold Game — is to gain more confidence from his coaches and prove to them he'll become the most important backup on the Fighting Irish roster. Point ✦ Counterpoint: WHICH PROJECTED BACKUP NEEDS TO HAVE THE BEST SPRING PRACTICE SESSION? Drew Pyne is fully aware of the importance and impact this spring carries for both his im- mediate and long-term future as a Notre Dame quarterback. Winning the starting job is all the Irish junior has thought about since he committed to Notre Dame out of New Canaan (Conn.) High School roughly four years ago, and now he's getting his chance. Pyne will need to beat out sophomore Tyler Buchner for the starting spot, which ironi- cally, sets up a quarterback competition between best friends and two of the closest comrades on the team. Be it studying football film, or just hanging out, Pyne and Buch- ner are typically inseparable. Pyne played well last sea- son in his two backup ap- pearances against Wisconsin and Cincinnati, completing 15 of 30 passes for 224 yards with two touchdowns, no interceptions and plenty of confidence to carry into 2022. BGI: Given how tight you and Buchner are, does this even feel like a quarterback competition? Pyne: "I think it is a very healthy quarterback competition. But I think at the same time, Tyler and I are very close and the main thing that we care about is getting the team better every single day. "When he's in, I'm cheering him on. When I'm in, he's cheering me on." BGI: What did you learn about yourself during your two relief appearances last season? Pyne: "My major takeaways from those games was confi- dence. I've always prided myself on staying prepared no mat- ter what. I go into those two games, against two of the top five defenses in the country, and I was pretty pleased with the way I played. "I was very confident in those two games and I'll always be ready to play." BGI: What is your first mem- ory of Notre Dame? Pyne: "I grew up in New York, didn't know too much about Notre Dame but I watched 'Rudy' every day growing up. I was a little kid, fat cheeks and everything. "Growing up I loved 'Rudy,' and just because of that, I loved Brady Quinn growing up, and that's why I wear [number] 10 today. I'm living the dream." BGI: There were no guarantees offensive co- ordinator and quarterbacks coach Tommy Rees would return to Notre Dame. What were your thoughts when he did? Pyne: "That was a crazy time. When he comes back, it shows you how much he cares and how much he loves this university, this team and how much he cares for our players. "I don't know if he could've left me and [Buch- ner] because we're so close. I'm just very, very thankful for him." BGI: Would you describe your commitment to Notre Dame, both the school and the football program? Pyne: "You wake up at 6 a.m., and you have to go to practice, and you're in the [football facility] for eight hours watching film later than every- body else, and everyone else is going out on Saturday night and I'm staying in, watching film, or recovering, or getting a good sleep. "Sometimes when you have to sacrifice it all, if you ever get down on yourself, you just have to remind yourself where you are. And being at Notre Dame is where I want to be." — Todd D. Burlage FIVE QUESTIONS WITH … NOTRE DAME JUNIOR QUARTERBACK DREW PYNE Pyne is locked in on what he describes as a "healthy competi- tion" this spring with friend and fel- low quarterback Tyler Buchner. PHOTO BY C HAD WEAVER EVANS WILKINS