Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1466176
20 MAY 2022 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED BY TYLER HORKA J ust a month into his tenure as the head coach at Notre Dame, Mar- cus Freeman said he wanted the identity of his Fighting Irish to be one of hard-nosed, run-first offense propelled by a physical, soul-crushing offensive line. After 14 spring practices and the Blue- Gold Game, it appears Freeman will get his wish. He's going to have to. There re- ally isn't much of an alternative. Person- nel problems have presented it that way. It's not yet certain who will start at quarterback for the Irish against Ohio State on Sept. 3. And that's OK. That's not something that was supposed to be resolved during the spring. All signs pointed to sophomore Tyler Buchner and junior Drew Pyne putting forth pro- ductive sessions stacked over and over anyway. The spring was successful from that standpoint. "I was really, really pleased with the work they did in taking care of the foot- ball and making good decisions," Free- man said after a practice midway through the spring schedule. "It's a great compe- tition between Tyler and Drew. It is." Will either of them be great during the course of the 2022 season, though? The jury is out. And the case won't be closed until one of them actually starts his first career game against the Buckeyes. Much of the starting quarterback's suc- cess will hinge on the Irish wide receivers. It's one of the thinnest position groups on the roster. The wide receivers didn't have a banner day in the Blue-Gold Game, and if that was a sign of things to come then Freeman's vision for the Notre Dame of- fense has to ring true: offensive coordi- nator Tommy Rees, in his third season in his current position in charge of his alma mater's offense, will predicate production on a ground-and-pound philosophy. Kyren Williams is gone. It's not as SPRING OVERVIEW: OFFENSE The quarterback competition is unsettled but clearer, while the offensive linemen and running backs emerge as clear offensive strong suits Sophomore quarterback Tyler Buchner went through 13 productive spring practices before rolling his ankle going down some stairs and missing the Blue-Gold Game. PHOTO BY CHAD WEAVER