Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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16 DECEMBER 2016 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED BY BRYAN DRISKELL AND LOU SOMOGYI E ntering this December, only eight scholarship players on Notre Dame's current roster have exhausted their eligibility. The Fighting Irish scholarship roster breakdown for 2017 is, so far, as follows: • 20 fourth-year seniors, headlined by quarterback DeShone Kizer. • 22 juniors, including wide receiver/ return man Chris Finke, who was awarded a scholarship this August. • 23 sophomores, with 14 having played this season as freshmen, the most in head coach Brian Kelly's seven seasons. • 18 verbal commitments so far in the class of 2017. That takes the count to 83 — not including 10 current Irish seniors eli- gible for a fifth year (a number that includes suspended cornerback Devin Butler). The NCAA permits 85 on scholarship, so if all 10 came back that means barring any early departures to the NFL, transfers or medical hard- ships, the staff will have to trim eight scholarship players from the roster. It's not unusual to have 90-plus players at this point in a season, as long as it reaches the 85-man limit by August. Senior offensive lineman John Montelus has already tweeted he will not return in 2017. Below is a look at the other nine members of the 2013 recruiting class who may or may not return for a fifth season in 2017. SET TO RETURN Left tackle Mike McGlinchey and tight end Durham Smythe have al- ready announced they will return — assuming they are approved by the university. Although McGlinchey is still pegged by some as a potential first- round NFL Draft pick in May, he be- lieves he has more room to improve. "I'm pretty confident that I'll be back for a fifth year," McGlinchey said in October. "It's not any ground-breaking decision. I fully intended to do that when I first got to college. … I have so much left to learn here, and it's not going to come down to projections or potential money that I can make." McGlinchey moved to left tackle his senior season after starting the previous 14 games at right tackle. The transition was not overly smooth — he was inconsistent in pass protec- tion and not the dominant run game force he was in 2015. He will look to follow in the foot- steps of former Notre Dame standout Zack Martin, who was drafted 16th overall by the Dallas Cowboys in the 2014 NFL Draft after returning as a fifth-year senior. Like Martin and his younger brother Nick (2011-15), Mc- Glinchey could become a two-time team captain. Smythe, who has started 15 games, missed all but three contests in 2015 because of knee and shoulder inju- ries, but he quickly won his starting spot upon his return. The Texas native hauled in four touchdown passes in this year's first 11 games, the most by a Notre Dame tight end since Troy Niklas' five in 2013. UNCERTAIN RETURNS Senior wide receiver and team cap- tain Torii Hunter Jr. missed his fresh- man season while recovering from a broken femur as a high school senior. He started eight of the team's first 11 games this year and ranked second in receptions (38) and receiving yards (521). Hunter Jr. was sidelined against Nevada (concussion) plus Army and Virginia Tech (knee). His injury his- tory and the fact he was selected by and signed with the Los Angeles An- NUMBER CRUNCHING Fifth-year seniors will be the X-factor in the 85-man scholarship limit for 2017 The return of Torii Hunter Jr. — who ranked second on the team in receptions (38) and receiving yards (521) through 11 games — would bolster what could be an outstanding Irish receiving corps in 2017. PHOTO BY ANGELA DRISKELL