Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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BLUEGOLDONLINE.COM MARCH 2024 19 Deion Colzie (Sr.), KK Smith (So.) Cam Williams (Fr.), Micah Gilbert (Fr.), Logan Saldate (Fr.) You could project Faison, Thomas and Williams as the starters and the response would be, "Yeah, I could see that." The Irish overhauled the wide receiver posi- tion over the offseason and each starting role will have to be earned. Mitchell and Collins, transfer additions Notre Dame targeted immediately for very specific reasons (speed, length and production), should have the upper hand on the out- side. Greathouse over Faison was the most difficult call on offense. They will both see the field a ton, and Faison made a very compelling case with his MVP perfor- mance in El Paso, Texas. It's just tough to forget how good Greathouse looked early in 2023, before his hamstring injury and his move to the outside. He'll likely move back to his natural position, which is the slot, and should be able to reestablish his promising trajectory. TIGHT END Starter: Mitchell Evans (Sr.) Others: Eli Raridon (Jr.), Cooper Fla- nagan (So.), Davis Sherwood (Sr.), Kevin Bauman (Gr.), Jack Larsen (Fr.) If Evans is healthy, he's TE1. He was Notre Dame's best pass catcher before a torn ACL ended his season in late Octo- ber. Pro Football Focus named him the nation's best tight end that opted not to declare for the 2024 NFL Draft, and the only silver lining for Notre Dame after his injury was that decision became a fore- gone conclusion. If Evans is not healthy by Aug. 31, Rari- don has the inside track to start. He fin- ished his sophomore season as well as could be expected after his second ACL tear, and the Irish remain very high on his upside. Flanagan appears to be in good standing with the Irish coaching staff, too, having played a lot as a freshman in some of Notre Dame's heavier personnel packages. OFFENSIVE TACKLE Starters: Charles Jagusah (So.), Tosh Baker (Gr.) Others: Aamil Wagner (Jr.), Ty Chan (Jr.), Sullivan Absher (So.), Guerby Lam- bert (Fr.), Styles Prescod (Fr.) After Jagusah was named the start- ing left tackle for the Sun Bowl and did a pretty good job in El Paso, it looks like Notre Dame's highest-ranked recruit in the 2022 class will indeed be the blindside protector of the future. The right tackle spot is a little hazy, though, while the Irish debate whether Baker or Wagner should replace Blake Fisher. Notre Dame would love to see Wagner gain the requisite weight and take advan- tage of his natural power and athleticism, but when the 2024-25 roster was released, he was listed at 284 pounds. Entering his third season, that's a concern. The wild card here: Don't sleep on Lambert. He will enroll in the summer, but so did Joe Alt. Lambert, nicknamed the "Dancing Bear" for his movement skills at his size, could step into the lineup sooner than later. OFFENSIVE GUARD Starters: Pat Coogan (Sr.), Rocco Spindler (Sr.) Others: Billy Schrauth (Jr.), Sam Pend- leton (So.), Chris Terek (So.), Peter Jones (Fr.), Anthonie Knapp (Fr.) Schrauth finished the 2023 season in place of the injured Spindler (knee), play- ing relatively well by all accounts. Spin- dler and Coogan were solid starters for the Irish after winning their respective competitions in fall camp, but were they good enough to put their names down in Sharpie just yet? Probably not. We'll pencil them in as starters for now, pending both Spindler's health — he should return for spring camp, though perhaps in a limited capacity — and a potential junior-year improvement for Schrauth. Pendleton made the two-deep for the Sun Bowl and his progress is worth tracking over the offseason, too. CENTER Starter: Ashton Craig (Jr.) Others: Joe Otting (So.) Zeke Correll is out after two years as Notre Dame's starting center. He trans- ferred to North Carolina State, and Ash- ton Craig should take over in South Bend. The Irish were impressed with the way he played in the final three-plus games after Correll suffered a concussion. Andrew Kristofic would have given this spot some more depth, but he stepped away from football to start his career in financial planning. The Irish can also cross-train one of their freshman interior linemen at center, like they did with Ot- ting and Craig before him. VYPER DEFENSIVE END Starter: Jordan Botelho (Gr.) Others: Junior Tuihalamaka (Jr.), Joshua Burnham (Jr.), Kahanu Kia (So.), Boubacar Traore (So.), Loghan Thomas (Fr.), Cole Mullins (Fr.) This was an underwhelming position for Notre Dame in 2023. Botelho, Burn- Just a sophomore, Jeremiyah Love could be in line to take the torch from Audric Estimé as Notre Dame's lead running back in 2024. PHOTO BY CHAD WEAVER