Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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BLUEGOLDONLINE.COM JUNE/JULY 2023 21 "When we went out to look for a transfer portal quarterback, you don't look for the second, third, fourth [best QB]," Freeman said. "You look for the best player in the country that would fit in your locker room. Sam Hartman showed [in the Blue-Gold Game] why he was extremely successful at Wake Forest, and I think he will be extremely, extremely successful here." Sophomore Steve Angeli and fresh- man Kenny Minchey struggled in the Blue-Gold Game, meanwhile. They only generated one field goal between them on drives they operated. Each of them led their respective sides into three turnovers on downs, too. It's Hartman or bust for Notre Dame in 2023 with the way the current roster is constructed. Luckily for him, he has promising weapons with which to work in an Irish offense that might be set for takeoff this fall. EMERGING WIDEOUTS Jaden Greathouse had more recep- tions (11) in the Blue-Gold Game than Tobias Merriweather had targets (8) during the entire 2022 season. Com- paring a spring game to actual regular- season games is like comparing an apple to an orange. But a 13-game season is a long time, and trying to catch just one pass in a spring game can be a bit of a crapshoot. Just ask Merriweather, who had 1 catch for 1 yard. Greathouse had 11 for 118. Greathouse showed all spring that he has a knack for getting open and being a quarterback's best friend. It didn't mat- ter if it was Hartman, Buchner, Angeli or Minchey throwing him the ball; he beat his man, and he caught the thing. Getting open and making catches, when it transpires as much as it did for Great- house in practices and in the spring game, generally translates to actual games. "Eleven for 118 is a pretty good stat line," Freeman said. "He stuck out. He played well. He played really well. All three of those freshmen [receivers] are going to help us. All three of those freshmen will play for us this year. I'm really confident in that those three guys will help this football team." The other two are Rico Flores Jr. and Braylon James. They did not have a big spring game — just 1 catch for 0 yards between them — but they had an im- pressive spring season. Fourteen prac- tices are always going to be greater than one glorified scrimmage in terms of what you can take away. Notre Dame's depth at wide receiver has improved so much that the pro- gram is able to withstand Virginia Tech graduate transfer Kaleb Smith medically retiring and Lorenzo Styles entering the transfer portal and still feel comfortable with what it has. But if the freshmen do not produce right away, it could be an- other dreary season for Irish wideouts. Junior Jayden Thomas looks for real. He caught a 46-yard deep ball from Hartman and scored on a 9-yard screen in the spring game. But junior Deion Colzie had only 2 catches for 18 yards. Merriweather's aforementioned stat line was a concern. The only senior on the roster at wide receiver is a former walk-on in gradu- ate student Matt Salerno. The fresh- man trio has to be as good as advertised. Greathouse is doing a great job in set- ting the standard. EMBATTLED TIGHT ENDS Just a few months after watching Mi- chael Mayer set all kinds of records — including every one of importance at the tight end position — Notre Dame fans watched former walk-on Davis Sherwood battle sophomore Holden Staes, all of 1 catch for 11 yards between the two in their Irish careers, in the Blue-Gold Game. They performed decently; each had 2 catches, and 3 of the 4 receptions went for first downs. But neither was a game- wrecker, and Notre Dame might not have one on the roster anymore at tight end with Mayer gone. Sophomore running back Gi'Bran Payne could be in for a dramatically increased role in his second season with the team after impressing with a team-high 51 yards rushing in the Blue-Gold Game. PHOTO BY CHAD WEAVER