Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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BLUEGOLDONLINE.COM NOV. 29, 2025 7 UNDER THE DOME BY TYLER JAMES N otre Dame scored a touchdown the first time freshman tight end James Flanigan entered the 37-15 win at Pitt Nov. 15. Flanigan did much more than observe on junior running back Jeremiyah Love's 56-yard touchdown run. He pulled around from the left side of the offen- sive line and followed redshirt sopho- more left guard Sullivan Absher as lead blockers for Love. Flanigan occupied linebacker Kyle Louis, one of Pitt's best defenders, long enough for Love to find the running lane and set up his spin move on the last defender in Love's path. Flanigan had played only 15 career snaps before that Love touchdown run. He saw action on 11 offensive snaps in the Irish's 56-13 blowout win over Ar- kansas Sept. 27, as well as four offensive snaps in the 25-10 win over Boston College Nov. 1. Despite his lack of experience, the 6-foot-6, 241-pound Flanigan didn't look much like a freshman in his 15 snaps against Pitt. "You talk about a guy that's im- proving," Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman said. "Oh, man. He is improving. "We knew Flanny's got a really unique skill set. He's a tough guy, physical guy. But now he's understanding how to control that toughness and physicality and not just be a young bull in a china shop. I know that's like coach's speak, but he's understanding technique and angles and details. He played as well as any freshman in that Pitt game. He played really, really well." Most of Flanigan's work came as a second tight end on running plays for the Irish. One of his best blocks came on a 5-yard rush by Love behind Flanigan that was wiped out by a holding pen- alty on redshirt freshman right guard Guerby Lambert. But Flanigan also laid a nice block on a 10-yard Love run in the third quarter when the Irish were backed up near their own goal line. Flanigan, the son of former Notre Dame defensive lineman Jim Flanigan (1990-93), was also on the field for four passing plays. Twice he ran routes. Twice he stayed in to help protect redshirt freshman quarterback CJ Carr. On one of his two pass-blocking snaps, Flanigan held up on the backside while Carr threw a pass to senior tight end Eli Raridon for a 3-yard gain on third-and-2. Junior tight end Cooper Flanagan has only been available to play one game while he's recovering from the torn left Achilles he suffered in January, so the Irish have relied heavily on just two tight ends: Raridon and redshirt junior Ty Washington. Raridon was fifth on the team in offensive snaps through 10 games — 575, per Pro Football Focus — and third on the team in receptions (30) and receiving yards (473). Washington logged 205 offensive snaps in the first 10 games, but PFF hasn't been impressed with his perfor- mances this season. His season-long offense grade of 47.7 was Notre Dame's worst for anyone who played more than 56 snaps through 10 games. The growth of Flanigan gives offensive coordina- tor Mike Denbrock more options at the tight end position and gives the offense more flexibility with Raridon. "It helps tremendously in terms of the run game and the pass game," Free- man said of Flanigan. "Giving Eli a spell, utilizing two tight ends. Obviously, Ty helping us, too. "It helps our offense holistically when you can add James Flanigan to the mix in terms of what we can do for Eli and how we can utilize and keep him fresh or use him in different positions and have con- fidence that tight end that's in the game that isn't Eli is getting their job done." Because Flanigan, who was the seventh-ranked tight end in the Ri- vals Industry Rankings for the 2025 recruiting class, played in three of the first 10 games, the coaching staff planned to only let him play in one of the last two regular-season games. That will allow him to qualify for a redshirt season, but he will still be available to play in any postseason game. "We owe it to him," Freeman said. "I always say, we've got to do things that are best for the team. But also when we can, we want to do what's best for the player, too. "We don't want to use his redshirt on just one extra game. We've got to decide which game that will be, but he is defi- nitely helping us." A redshirt season for Flanigan will in- crease the chances he gets to play with his younger brother, Richie Flanigan, who committed to Notre Dame's 2027 class in September. Rivals ranks the younger Flanigan brother as the No. 41 defensive lineman in the class and rates him as a three-star recruit. The Flani- gan family should impact Notre Dame's program for the next several years. ✦ UNDER THE DOME FINDING A ROLE Improved freshman tight end James Flanigan makes impact late in the regular season Flanigan threw a key block on junior running back Jeremiyah Love's 56-yard touchdown run against Pitt Nov. 15. PHOTO BY FRANK HYATT