Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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UNDER THE DOME BLUEGOLDONLINE.COM APRIL 2023 9 some free safety, that's what stood out to me." Notre Dame's staff has told Harper he will play free safety and nickel, he said. The Irish lost Bracy and 10-game starting safety Brandon Joseph from last year's secondary. The dual role fits in with his duties at Oklahoma State last season. Harper was a safety in designa- tion, but he played 259 of his 397 defen- sive snaps in the slot. He played 64 at free safety and 61 in the box. "If we need some help at nickel, that's where I'll be," Harper said. "If we need help at free safety, that's where I'll be." Harper worked his way up from lightly recruited freshman ranked out- side the top 1,200 of the 2019 On3 Con- sensus to starter as a senior. He won a special teams role as a freshman, broke into the rotation at safety in 2020, stayed in it in 2021 and won a starting job in 2022. He had 30 tackles, 1.5 tack- les for loss, 1 interception and 2 passes broken up last year. All told, he posted 93 tackles, 5 tackles for loss, 2 inter- ceptions, 7 passes broken up, 1 forced fumble and 1 fumble recovery in four years with the Cowboys. His Oklahoma State career ended when he entered the transfer portal in early December. He had not played since late October because of a labrum injury in his right shoulder that required sur- gery. It first bothered him in the Cow- boys' game at Baylor Oct. 1. He played the rest of the month, though, before undergoing surgery in November. Even if he is limited when spring practice begins in March, he has a grasp on what he can bring to Notre Dame's defense. "My footwork and coverage are good enough to play nickel," Harper said. "I came in as a corner out of high school. The way I play, I play more like a free safety — I like to look at the quarterback, go make plays on the ball. Coming in as a corner really helped me play both." Harper and Notre Dame matched in on-field goals and needs. But the Irish separated themselves from finalist Kan- sas State and other interested schools because of who they will play. Harper wanted film of him playing a diverse collection of offenses rather than an- other year of the Big 12. At Notre Dame, he will get a shot at Heisman winner Caleb Williams, an Ohio State receiver unit full of high-end play- makers, an encounter with Navy's triple option and a grab-bag of various ACC offensive styles. Clemson's offense is now run by Garrett Riley, the Broyles Award- winning offensive coordinator whose schemes Harper faced at TCU last year. "That was a big thing for me going into the portal," Harper said. "I wanted to be able to show my abilities against differ- ent competition after being in the Big 12 for four years. Notre Dame's schedule is all over the place — Big Ten, Pac-12, ACC. You get a little dose of everything." Notre Dame hopes to get a dose of everything from him, too. ✦ Notre Dame's 'No. 1' Piece In Its Next Media Rights Deal Jack Swarbrick understands the most impactful and most discussed part of Notre Dame's next media rights deal will be its value. The dollar figure is the measure in a world of inflating TV contracts that are at the root of many recent major decisions in college sports. Swarbrick, though, has a different No. 1 priority in the next deal, whether that's with NBC or another network. "What we need from our media partner that NBC has done so well historically is to A) broadcast us nationally every game, and B) give us an opportunity to promote Notre Dame," Swarbrick said during an in-house live chat Feb. 23. "'What would you fight for' ads are a great example. No one else is getting 90-second PSAs. The opportunity to see campus and the way they cover our games, it helps people understand more about Notre Dame. "That's No. 1, a committed partner to our message." The current deal with NBC, Notre Dame's home game TV rights holder since 1991, runs through 2025. Discussions with NBC about the next deal have begun, Swarbrick said. At this point, it's hard to see how a new contract would be anything other than beneficial for both. NBC has been a willing conduit for Notre Dame's message, in Swarbrick's view. The network made clear its interest in staying in college football by becoming part of the Big Ten's new media rights deal, which begins next football season. The decision on where to take Notre Dame's TV rights, in the end, will come down to dollars, es- pecially if there's no resistance to continuing the promotional efforts Notre Dame wants. The school is hoping for a significant bump in its next deal from the current $25 million annual NBC payout, and according to an August report from Sports Business Journal's John Ourand, it should expect around $60 million per year. Swarbrick knows the value needs to go up, and by a lot. The Big Ten's new deal, signed last August, could reportedly pay its members $80 to $100 million annually by the end of its seven-year term. "We need the financial resources to compete with the schools in the Big Ten and SEC," Swarbrick said. "As we enter into new negotiations, we have a very specific goal of making sure we reach those levels. We want to compete." The current NBC deal is not the school's only source of media rights revenue as an independent. Notre Dame's partial ACC membership entitles it to a smaller annual payout of the ACC's deal with ESPN. That distribution is about $10 million per season. The ACC's contract with ESPN runs through 2036. Swarbrick and Notre Dame aren't up against a tight deadline to get the deal done. The discussions with NBC so far have left him "encouraged" about signing another contract that meets the school's goals and keeps its home football games on their familiar station. "We have such a long relationship," Swarbrick said. "It goes back so long and it's important to both parties. Lastly, I feel especially good with their Big Ten partnership. We're better if they have more col- lege football inventory. There will be cross-promotion. It will create a better environment. As opposed to very limited football inventory on NBC, we're part of a much larger package." If NBC remains Notre Dame's home, expect at least one game a year to continue to be streamed on Peacock Premium. The Irish have put one home contest on the streaming platform each of the last two seasons: the 2021 home opener against Toledo and a late October 2022 game against UNLV. The 2023 Peacock game has not been announced. "Everyone who does a broadcast agreement — the NFL, anyone — understands part of their inven- tory will be streamed as opposed to carried on regular television," Swarbrick said. "NBC with Peacock is a great streaming partner. We've found that out with the games we've done already, and we look forward to continuing to work with Peacock. We have to have that component." — Patrick Engel