Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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BLUEGOLDONLINE.COM OCT. 12, 2024 11 UNDER THE DOME NOTRE DAME'S CORNERBACK DEPTH TAKES A HIT Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman announced Sept. 23 that junior cornerback Jaden Mickey has decided to redshirt for the rest of the 2024 season with the intention of entering the NCAA Transfer Portal upon graduating. By choosing to redshirt, he will have two years of eligibility remaining. Mickey has already played four games in 2024. So, he cannot play the remainder of the regular season. "Coaches, teammates, staff members and supporters: I can't put into words how grateful I am for how you have loved me and my family," Mickey shared in a statement on social media. "Every up and down was worth it and all that my younger self could have asked for. "With a heavy heart, I will be redshirting this year with plans on transferring after I graduate in the spring. This isn't risk, this is faith! Thank you, Jesus!" Mickey played 82 snaps, including 23 against Miami (Ohio). He had 3 tackles and broke up 1 pass this season. The 6-foot, 182-pounder also played on the team's punt return and field goal block units. Before this season, Mickey appeared in 24 career games for the Irish, logging 20 tackles (15 solo), 3 passes broken up and an interception. Last season, he started against Pittsburgh in Week 9 and Oregon State in the Tony the Tiger Sun Bowl. With Mickey deciding to leave the roster, the Irish only have four scholarship cornerbacks avail- able: junior Benjamin Morrison, sophomore Christian Gray, and freshmen Leonard Moore and Karson Hobbs. Before arriving at Notre Dame, Mickey was a four-star recruit coming out of Corona (Calif.) Centennial in the 2022 class. He was the No. 11 prospect in California, and the No. 22 cornerback and No. 185 overall player nationally in 2022 On3 Industry Ranking. He chose the Irish over 19 other scholarship offers. His four finalists were Notre Dame, California, Northwestern and Oregon. Mickey was a member of the only recruiting class Freeman was a part of while serving as the program's defensive coordinator. When Notre Dame elevated Freeman to head coach in December 2021, Mickey stuck by his verbal commitment and signed with the Irish later that month, all while his mom was battling colon cancer. Mickey's mother, Nilka, passed away the night before the Sun Bowl last year. Mickey still suited up and played with a heavy heart. — Kyle Kelly Notre Dame Launces New NIL Initiative On Sept. 23, Notre Dame announced the launch of RALLY, a collective and lifestyle agency for the next iter- ation of collegiate athletics dedicated to creating mean- ingful and market-based name, image and likeness (NIL) opportunities for Notre Dame student-athletes. The university unveiled the news in a press release. Just a couple hours later, Notre Dame football head coach Marcus Freeman appeared for his weekly Mon- day press conference sporting a jacket with the RALLY logo on his chest. Freeman said he's excited for RALLY because it will give the chance for Irish fans to engage and reach out to the players through a portal at NDRALLY.com. "It's going to be something very beneficial for our athletics department," Freeman said. "As we navigate the new landscape of college athlet- ics, our collaboration with RALLY will set our student- athletes and athletics programs up for success for years to come," Notre Dame director of athletics Pete Bevac- qua added. RALLY is getting off the ground with the help of for- mer Notre Dame football player Jack Shields, who is the namesake of the new football operations facility being constructed on campus and the chairman of the RALLY Board of Directors. Other board members include Gayla Compton, Jordan Cornette, Matt Moroun, Kevin O'Connor and Hannah Storm. They're all setting out to develop RALLY into an NIL agency for Notre Dame athletics focused on sales and marketing, business operations and unique experiences. "As we enter a new era of college sports, I'm pleased to support our student-athletes and allow them to benefit in ways that were never thought possible," Shields said in a statement. "Notre Dame is one of the most iconic brands in American sports, and every one of our student-athletes is proud to wear the blue and gold every game day. "I couldn't be more excited to work with my fellow board members, the Notre Dame alumni around the world and our subway alumni globally to bring this new agency model to life." — Tyler Horka Junior cornerback Jaden Mickey won't play again for the Irish, but he will finish out the semes- ter and graduate from Notre Dame before entering the transfer portal. PHOTO BY MICHAEL MILLER Director of athletics Pete Bevacqua and Notre Dame are continuing to be as cutting edge as possible in the name, image and likeness (NIL) space with the creation of a new in-house collective called RALLY. PHOTO BY MICHAEL MILLER