Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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www.BLUEANDGOLD.com OCT. 15, 2022 5 T he stage is set for Notre Dame freshman tight end Eli Raridon. The circum- stances couldn't be any more primed for him to become a big-time contributor in his first year playing college football. Notre Dame's No. 2 tight end, junior Kevin Bauman, went down with a season- e n d i n g AC L i n j u r y a f te r Week 3. Sophomore Mitchell Evans is progressing but still not ready to return after frac- turing his foot in July. Sophomore Cane Berrong has not been the same since tearing his ACL around this time last year. Head coach Marcus Freeman said he only recently started to get closer to full speed. All of that leaves Raridon competing for reps with for- mer walk-on sophomore Da- vis Sherwood and fellow true freshman Holden Staes. The first play at North Carolina in Week 4 was not an indicator of who would take on most of the reps left in the wake of Bauman's absence. Staes was the starter. He was not the finisher. Raridon played 30 snaps, Sherwood played 23 and Staes played 9. Raridon had previously played a total of 7 in Notre Dame's first three games. The injury to Bauman and the natural progression of a first-year player — es- pecially one with as much potential as the 6-6¾, 245-pound Raridon — could be the catalyst for the class of 2022's No. 5 overall tight end, per the On3 re- cruiting rankings, to break onto the big stage in a big way. "He has it," Freeman said. "He has those traits that you're looking for in a great tight end." Freeman had to momentarily stop his sentence when lauding Raridon. He said Raridon is a guy who "will go to knock —" … and that's where he cut himself off. Knock what? That's open to inter- pretation. Use your imagination. Free- man transitioned to say Raridon "will try to dominate you." Raridon isn't only physically impos- ing when he meets the eye. He's just as menacing when he meets opponents on the field. The numbers back that up. Per Pro Football Focus, Raridon was Notre Dame's No. 2 rated overall of- fensive player behind left tackle Joe Alt through Week 4. He's also the Irish's No. 2 rated run blocker behind Alt, who had an overall offensive grade of 92.7. Raridon's was 79.6, better than all-ev- erything junior tight end Michael May- er's mark of 78.5, albeit with a much smaller sample size. Considering Raridon has not received a single target in the passing game, that's an impressive statistic. He has essentially done nothing but run block, and he has done it very well. The Notre Dame way. The next step for Raridon is to get in- volved as a receiver. He has an excep- tional role model to look up to in that regard in Mayer, who led Notre Dame with 22 catches for 233 yards and 3 touchdowns through four games. His 5.5 receptions per game were the most of any FBS tight end through Week 5. "When a guy like Michael Mayer steps in there and says, 'We need you guys to practice at the standard that we have,' it puts a little bit of added pres- sure on them," Freeman said of Mayer's presence in the Notre Dame tight end room. Bos to n Co l l e ge t ra n s fe r George Takacs was only tar- geted four times in 545 snaps as Mayer's backup last year. Bauman was only targeted three times in three games to start this season. Mayer is a bit of a target hog, and rightfully so. He's the Irish's best pass-catching option. Pe- riod. But it also means Raridon might not show up on Saturdays in the flashiest manner. And that's fine, too. Through his first 37 ca- reer snaps, Raridon has done all Notre Dame has asked of him. He tore his ACL less than a year ago and is still getting onto the field because of similar injuries to other players in his position group. So far, Raridon has done nothing but be dependable when dependability has been at a premium. That's the best thing a coach can ask of a guy who's currently being tasked with playing second fiddle to Mayer. If Raridon starts getting looks in the passing game, look out. That's some- thing only Tommy Tremble has been able to do as a tight end in the three years Mayer has controlled the position at Notre Dame. Tremble had 19 catches for 218 yards alongside Mayer in 2020. Now he's 20 games into his NFL ca- reer and has 25 professional receptions. Tremble also has "it" — "those traits that you're looking for in a great tight end," as Freeman said of Raridon. Tremble proved it. He's proving it further at the highest level. Now it's Raridon's turn. ✦ GOLDEN GAMUT TYLER HORKA Tyler Horka has been a writer for Blue & Gold Illustrated since July 2021. He can be reached at thorka@blueandgold.com Raridon's 79.6 offensive grade from Pro Football Focus through four games trailed only left tackle Joe Alt's 92.7 for the Irish. PHOTO BY CHAD WEAVER It's Freshman Tight End Eli Raridon's Time To Shine