Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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BLUEGOLDONLINE.COM PRESEASON 2023 25 Look for more of that on a consistent basis this fall from Colzie. 24. LB MARIST LIUFAU Pro Football Focus graded Liufau as Notre Dame's best coverage linebacker, with a rating of 75.9, in his first season back from the ankle injury that forced him to miss all of 2021. He was targeted 16 times and allowed 9 catches for only 40 yards. Those numbers add up to a 35.4 passer rating for quarterbacks targeting Liufau. When he drops into coverage, Liufau is an asset for the Irish who helps lock down the middle of the field. While he is not a perfect linebacker — lower tack- ling numbers and poorly graded pass rushing reflect that — many defenses could use Liufau's skill set in their start- ing lineup. 25. WR JADEN GREATHOUSE The true freshman gives Notre Dame a big-bodied, sure-handed target in the slot — or anywhere else, really. He's listed at 6-foot-1 and 204 pounds. He doesn't look like a freshman. So far, he hasn't practiced like one either. Hartman thrived at Wake Forest when he could get the ball out quickly to a wideout who found space against a zone defense or beat his man in tight quarters. Greathouse seems to be that type of target, so it's no wonder the two displayed a reliable connection in the spring game when Greathouse caught 11 passes for 118 yards, both of which were game-high totals. ✦ These five players came up just short of landing in the BGI top 25. Keep an eye on them this fall; they could still make serious impacts. Graduate student safety DJ Brown Brown has never been the flashiest Notre Dame defensive back, but he's been one the Fighting Irish have called upon quite a bit over the years. Rather sneakily, Brown played the seventh-most snaps of any Irish defensive player in 2022. He was on the field for 504 of them. An 11-game starter in 47 career appearances, Brown started fall camp as the projected starter at free safety. It would not be surprising at all to see him start double-digit games in 2023, as he did in 2022. He has 105 career tackles and 3 interceptions. Senior cornerback Clarence Lewis Lewis hasn't ended up being the surefire starter at corner many thought he'd be after starting six times as a freshman in 2020, but he's still a very use- ful player for the Irish. He played in all 13 games last season with two starts. He battled Oklahoma State transfer Thomas Harper for the starting job at nickel corner in fall camp. It appeared to be a very neck-and-neck type of bout. Experi- ence is always handy, and Lewis has plenty of it. He's going to play a lot in 2023. Sophomore linebacker Jaylen Sneed It feels like a young linebacker is finally going to get a significant amount of snaps this season, and Sneed appears to be the one most primed to do it. He's up to 222 pounds, a far cry from the skinny player who arrived as an early enrollee in 2022. He looks bigger, plays bigger and also plays smarter than he did as a true freshman. The backup to Marist Liufau at weak-side linebacker, Sneed is set up to steal some reps. Liufau struggled a bit last fall, and the Notre Dame coaching staff won't be shy to put the best players on the field. Sophomore tight ends Eli Raridon or Holden Staes We couldn't pick just one. This duo came arrived at Notre Dame in 2022 looking like they could get the job done in year one. A couple issues; the Irish had All-American Michael Mayer to eat up snaps and targets, and Raridon ended up tearing his ACL in October. Staes, meanwhile, took a longer time adjusting than it seemed he'd need. Raridon entered fall camp on the cusp of being fully cleared for all activity, and Staes took advantage of being one of three healthy scholarship tight ends in the spring. One of these guys is going to burst onto the scene. Sophomore running back Jadarian Price Price did not show any signs of slowing down coming back from an Achilles injury he suffered in June 2022. He began fall camp as Notre Dame's No. 2 running back behind junior Audric Estimé. There are three other solid options to back up Estimé, but in a way that's helpful to Price's cause. If the Irish coaching staff can't fully figure out who RB2 is, then at the very least they all will get some playing time. All Price needs is a little window to make something happen. He showed that with 116 yards from scrimmage in the 2022 Blue-Gold Game. — Tyler Horka Five Players On The Cusp Sophomore linebacker Jaylen Sneed has bulked up to 222 pounds and appears poised to make an impact in 2023. PHOTO BY CHAD WEAVER