Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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22 JUNE/JULY 2024 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED and leaves Notre Dame quarterbacks hanging. He is vastly more athletic, though, and there's a chance that outweighs what he gives up in weight. He doesn't stay in front of defensive players be- cause he's immovable. He stays in front of them because he can move, very well. He's got a background in track that he draws on for strength purposes, too. "I picked it up in middle school and then I continued on through high school. I think the translation from shot put and just being able to produce power through your fingertips is huge," Wagner said. "Obviously, in high school I was an undersized lineman. So having the ability to truly punch hard through my fingers, through my hands and gen- erate with as much pop as possible car- ried me throughout high school. "As I got in college, when I was rela- tively undersized, it gave me opportuni- ties to compete. I can stun someone be- fore they get to my body. I can redirect people a lot. Having that kind of refined technique, built by another sport, was extremely useful early on." Wagner is a longer-term solution than Baker, and him playing more Blue- Gold Game snaps was an indication of investment from the Notre Dame coaching staff. But that also could have been a sign of wanting to keep Baker healthy. Last year taught everyone that just when you think Notre Dame has an es- tablished starting five across the offen- sive line, that just isn't the case. DON'T SLEEP ON THE TIGHT ENDS There's been more to the Mike Den- brock effect than getting the ball in playmakers' hands in space. The posi- tion group he's in charge of, the tight ends, appears to be reaping rewards that come with learning from someone as experienced as Denbrock. There's no Mitchell Evans (a senior) or Kevin Bauman (a graduate student). No problem for junior Eli Raridon, sopho- more Cooper Flanagan, freshman Jack Larsen and senior Davis Sherwood this spring. That's assuring for the Fighting Irish considering Evans went down in late October last year and might not be ready for the start of the 2024 season. He left his timetable open-ended when reporters spoke to him in March. He's moving better every day, but the last thing he wants to do is rush his recovery. He might be more inclined to wait a little longer if those who are healthy continue to produce the way they did in the spring. An 11 personnel (one running back, one tight end, three wide receivers) approach means less tight ends on the field at the same time. But it also means the one who is out there has a great chance of making a play in the passing game. Raridon, Flanagan and Larsen all had at least 5 targets in the Blue-Gold Game. All three quarterbacks looked their way at different points throughout the afternoon. That's nothing new at Notre Dame. Look what Evans did last year, hauling in a team-high 29 receptions for 422 yards with 1 touchdown despite play- ing in only eight games. Look at what Michael Mayer did for three years, shattering nearly every Irish tight end record. Notre Dame has a handful of tight ends who all seem like a threat to catch passes every time they're on the field. That has a lot to do with the way Den- brock sees the game. Tight ends, with their unique statures and skill sets, need to be utilized, even in 11 personnel. "Let's be the steadying force of this football team and just be the ones that are always up in the face of people and playing aggressively," Denbrock said. "Good things are going to happen if we play that style." ✦ Quarterback No. Player Ht. Wt. Cl./Elig. 13 Riley Leonard^ 6-4 217 Sr./1] 18 Steve Angeli 6-2 203 Jr./3 8 Kenny Minchey 6-2 209 So./4 12 CJ Carr* 6-3 206 Fr./4 Running Back 4 Jeremiyah Love 6-0 196 So./3 24 Jadarian Price 5-10 201 Jr./3 3 Gi'Bran Payne 5-9 203 Jr./3 20 Aneyas Williams* 5-10 203 Fr./4 21 Kedren Young*^ 6-0 229 Fr./4 Boundary Receiver (W) 83 Jayden Thomas^ 6-2 218 Sr./2 or — Beaux Collins+ 6-3 210 Sr./1 14 Micah Gilbert* 6-2 204 Fr./4 0 Deion Colzie 6-4 212 Sr./1 Field Receiver (X) 10 Kris Mitchell 6-0 184 Gr./1 11 KK Smith 6-0 170 So./4 17 Cam Williams* 6-2 201 Fr./4 Slot Receiver (Y) No. Player Ht. Wt. Cl./Elig. 19 Jaden Greathouse 6-1 205 So./3 or 5 Jordan Faison 5-10 179 So./3 2 Jayden Harrison^ 5-10 194 Gr./1 — Logan Saldate+ 5-11 185 Fr./4 Tight End 88 Mitchell Evans^ 6-5 260 Sr./1 9 Eli Raridon^ 6-7 252 Jr./2 87 Cooper Flanagan 6-6 249 So./3 85 Jack Larsen* 6-3 240 Fr./4 38 Davis Sherwood 6-3 237 Sr./1 84 Kevin Bauman^ 6-5 255 Gr./2 Left Tackle 56 Charles Jagusah 6-7 329 So./4 75 Sullivan Absher 6-7 325 So./4 77 Ty Chan 6-5 313 Jr./3 — Guerby Lambert+ 6-6 290 Fr./4 Left Guard 78 Pat Coogan 6-5 302 Sr./2 50 Rocco Spindler 6-5 324 Sr./2 73 Peter Jones* 6-5 295 Fr./4 Center No. Player Ht. Wt. Cl./Elig. 70 Ashton Craig 6-4 308 Jr./3 72 Sam Pendleton 6-4 307 So./4 64 Joe Otting 6-3 297 So./4 Right Guard 74 Billy Schrauth 6-5 306 Jr./3 77 Ty Chan 6-5 313 Jr./3 55 Chris Terek 6-5 331 So./4 Right Tackle 79 Tosh Baker 6-8 321 Gr./2 59 Aamil Wagner 6-6 292 Jr./3 54 Anthonie Knapp* 6-4 276 Fr./4 71 Styles Prescod* 6-6 283 Fr./4 * Early enrollee; ^ coming off an injury; + enrolling in the summer Post-Spring 2024 Notre Dame Scholarship Depth Chart Here is Blue & Gold Illustrated's projection for how Notre Dame's 2024 offense scholarship depth chart looks coming out of spring practice.