Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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BLUEGOLDONLINE.COM SEPT. 28, 2024 53 I t sounds crazy, but Notre Dame o f fe n s ive co o rd i n a to r M i ke Denbrock warned Irish fans about what senior quarterback Ri- ley Leonard would look like in the early going. Few cared to listen. On Aug. 17, Denbrock reminisced about Jayden Daniels, his dual-threat quarterback at LSU who would wind up winning the Heisman Trophy. But in his fifth game as a Tiger, Dan- iels had a stinker through the air. He completed 8 of 20 passes for 80 yards against Auburn, even though LSU wound up winning 21-17. Denbrock laid out what was hap- pening to Daniels then. His explana- tion should sound awfully familiar. "That process that he was going through was me getting familiar with him, him gaining trust and camara- derie with the wide receivers. That process hadn't run its course yet," Denbrock said. "Even though there were receivers running open, he was more entrusted in himself to put the ball down and run it than he was to let go of it." That's pretty much what's happening to Leonard right now. Denbrock knew it at the time, saying he saw the same things in his starter with the Irish. Daniels had two years to develop as a passer, while Leonard has one. Leonard isn't entering Heisman conversations this year. But that's Notre Dame's vision for the Duke transfer, and the Irish are sticking with it. "I think and believe that that's com- ing along," Denbrock said. "I do, and we've got to continue." The obvious catch is that the plan did not include losing to Northern Illinois. Many factors contributed to NIU's shocking upset, but if you had to single out one, it was probably Leonard and the passing game's performance. Calls for junior backup quarterback Steve Angeli exploded, with Notre Dame fans responding with vitriol and disgust at the mere suggestion Leonard should re- main the starter. Entering Week 3 at Purdue, Leonard had to play well. The Irish absolutely could not lose that game and keep their season alive, and if the game was close because of an anemic Notre Dame offense again, Denbrock and head coach Marcus Freeman would have to turn to Angeli. That, obviously, is not what hap- pened. Instead, Leonard rushed 11 times for 100 yards and connected on 11 of 16 throws for 112 yards. The game was over by halftime. Was he perfect? No. The downfield passing game still strug- gled. But in that game, Leonard and the Irish showed a glimpse of their vision: A deadly, three-pronged rushing attack with each ball carrier being a threat to break a big one at any moment. The key to that is Leonard, who can either shear through tackling attempts himself or use the threat of that to open up holes for incredibly explosive run- ning backs in sophomore Jeremiyah Love and junior Jadarian Price. That's an offensive identity. That's a formula Notre Dame can win with — if it can complement it with improved pass- ing. It can't play Purdue-level teams every week, particularly in November. The Irish still firmly believe they can get there by that time. "I think we're a few connections and confidence-builders away from break- ing through," Denbrock said. "And you can see signs of it. It's painful to watch at times for all of us, but I do think there's progress being made there." If they're right, this can be an of- fense that wins in November. And, if the Irish finish 11-1, in December, too. One more reason to believe Leon- ard can get there: As a sophomore at Duke, he completed 21 of 51 throws (41.1 percent) with 10 touchdowns and 2 interceptions on passes 20 or more yards downfield (he's 0 of 5 with an interception through three games at Notre Dame). That 41.1 percent is just below Caleb Wil- liams' in his Heisman season at USC. Leonard has it in him. He just needs time to rediscover it. As inexcusable as the NIU loss was — and the Irish still need to consider temporarily turning to Angeli to bail them out if Leonard plays that way again — that vision is not worth abandoning after one bad game. Angeli does several things well, but while he's not a statue, he doesn't pro- vide nearly the same threat with his legs. Offensive identity matters. It's better to be elite at one thing and complement it with another than to be just pretty good at two things. Leonard can engineer the former, while Angeli's ceiling is the latter. Also, while Leonard has bailed on some clean pockets and missed targets down- field in favor of taking off, Angeli's pocket presence needs even more work. Albeit in a small sample size, his 2024 pressure- to-sack ratio right now is 100 percent (3 pressures, 3 sacks). Leonard's is 10 per- cent, which is considered pretty good. This is an unpopular opinion. I get it. I understand being furious after NIU and wanting change. But as far off as it may seem, Leonard is still Notre Dame's best chance to ac- complish meaningful things in Novem- ber and December. That would be worth the wait. ✦ Leonard rushed for 179 yards and 4 touchdowns in Notre Dame's first three games, but his downfield passing is still a work in progress. PHOTO BY MICHAEL MILLER Sticking With Riley Leonard Is The Right Call Staff writer Jack Soble has covered Notre Dame athletics for Blue & Gold Illustrated since August 2023. Contact him at Jack.Soble@on3.com. OFF THE DOME JACK SOBLE