Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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28 APRIL 2022 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED ALL EYES ON … JUNIOR CHRIS TYREE From the day Tyree stepped on cam- pus, he always seemed to be the heir to Kyren Williams. Williams is gone now, essentially a lock to be selected in the NFL Draft. Tyree has a lot of work to do to get there himself. Tyree did not have anything like the sophomore season he might have envisioned. A turf toe injury had much to do with that. The hope is that he can stay healthy and be a dynamic, game-changing back. PERSONNEL UPDATE Position Coach: Deland McCullough (1st season) Departing Starter: Kyren Williams (24 career starts) Additional Departures: C'Bo Flemister (no longer with team) Projected New Starter: Junior Chris Tyree (2 career starts) Also Back: Sophomores Logan Diggs and Audric Estime New Faces: Freshman Jadarian Price N otre Dame didn't just lose a back-to-back 1,000-yard rusher. Kyren Williams was the heartbeat of the Irish offense. He was the focal point, the galvanizer, the central nervous system. Those type of players aren't always replaced. Some teams don't have them each year. Maybe Notre Dame doesn't, or if it does, that player is at another position. Asking junior Chris Tyree, sophomore Logan Diggs, sophomore Audric Estime or freshman Jadarian Price to fill that job this year is unfair. Williams didn't become the heartbeat in one offseason. That quartet should, though, be capable of replacing Williams' production, even if it's more a committee effort than one clear-cut lead back carrying the weight. Tyree and Diggs split carries in the Fiesta Bowl after Williams declared for the NFL Draft. Was that a hint at how Notre Dame wants to use them going forward or simply the best plan for that game? Either way, both will be involved. Tyree might be Notre Dame's fastest player. He's a home-run threat any time he touches the ball. His Fiesta Bowl impact came as a re- ceiver (six catches for 115 yards and one touchdown). Diggs nudged his way into the rotation as a freshman while Tyree battled turf toe midseason, and he planted himself there, finishing with 230 yards and three touchdowns in eight games. Behind them, it remains to be seen whether Estime can carve out a role as a change-of-pace back. His frame (5-11, 228 pounds) and power lend themselves well to short-yardage and goal-line situ- ations. Having a steady third-and-short op- tion would help manage the wear and tear on Tyree and Diggs. The spring will also pro- vide an early indication as to whether there is any room in the rotation for Price, a four-star signee who has im- pressed early on. Notre Dame looks like it has the backfield pieces to field a strong rushing attack. Now it has to decide how they best fit together. RUNNING BACKS NUMBERS TO KNOW 3.49 Yards after contact per rushing attempt for rising sophomore Logan Diggs. He averaged 4.7 yards per carry, meaning the major- ity of his yardage came following the initial contact. 58 Missed tackles forced by NFL Draft early entry Kyren Williams in 2021, which ranked 14th in the country. He averaged 3.71 yards after contact per carry, which was 16th among 81 FBS running backs with at least 150 carries. 63.0 Rushing yards per game averaged by Notre Dame in its two losses during the 2021 campaign. The Irish managed only 84 net rushing yards in a 24-13 loss to Cincinnati and 42 in a 37-35 defeat versus Oklahoma State in the Fiesta Bowl. Williams had a team-high 45 yards against the Bearcats, while Diggs had 29 vs. the Cowboys. POSITION BATTLE TO WATCH RUNNING BACK BY COMMITTEE? Like with the quarterbacks, Notre Dame has a com- petition to settle on a starting running back. But unlike with the quarterbacks, the Irish don't have to pick one guy and roll with him. Junior Chris Tyree and sophomore LOGAN DIGGS are the two who have separated themselves from sophomore Audric Estime and true freshman Jadarian Price. They have different skill sets, so it will be intriguing to see how much of a one-on-one battle this is as opposed to figuring out how they comple- ment each other. 2022 SPRING FOOTBALL OVERVIEW PHOTO BY CHAD WEAVER CHRIS TYREE