Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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www.BLUEANDGOLD.com DECEMBER 2017 17 Mustipher and Bars would go a long way toward helping make their tran- sition much smoother. Punter Tyler Newsome has been a steady force on the Notre Dame spe- cial teams the last three seasons. Even with the presence of current freshman Jonathan Doerer — the punter of the future — it would make sense if Notre Dame asked Newsome back and if he made the decision to come back. Should Notre Dame get in a num- bers crunch and if the staff is confi- dent in Doerer being able to take over next season, this is an area where Notre Dame could free up a scholar- ship for a top recruit. But having a proven and productive punter would be a significant bonus for a program that will be looking to make a Col- lege Football Playoff run next season. UNCERTAIN TO RETURN Notre Dame would receive a major shot in the arm on defense if rover and team captain Drue Tranquill de- cides to return for a fifth season. Tran- quill played as a true freshman in 2014, but suffered a major knee injury in the third game of his sophomore campaign to earn a medical redshirt. Tranquill, who has had two major knee injuries at Notre Dame, has put together an outstanding 2017 season and is on pace to graduate in Decem- ber. The question here is whether or not he decides to return for a fifth season in hopes of improving his draft stock and working towards a master's degree, or does he leave for the NFL now in hopes of avoiding another major injury? Should Tranquill return, the de- fense would get back its most disrup- tive player. Heading into the final game of the regular season, Tran- quill was tied for second on the team in tackles for loss (6.5) and ranked third in tackles (62); he also had four passes defended, an interception and three fumble recoveries. Losing Tranquill early would be a significant loss for Notre Dame, because no apparent replacement emerged this season. Junior Asmar Bilal is Tranquill's backup, but the Indianapolis native never looked comfortable in space, while freshman Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah did not see any game action. One of the pleasant surprises for Notre Dame this season was the emergence of strongside defensive end Jay Hayes, who was arguably the top run defender for the Irish this fall. He was a physical edge player that did his best work against the run and was able to provide the occasional pass rush, registering a sack and four quarterback hurries through the first 11 games. Hayes has yet to announce his in- tentions for his final season, but his return would be impactful for the defense. Having a fifth-year player of his caliber to complement cur- rent sophomore Khalid Kareem after he gets another year in the strength program would give Notre Dame an outstanding one-two punch at the strongside end position. Nick Watkins began the season as Notre Dame's starter at the bound- ary cornerback position, but he was replaced in the starting lineup by sophomore Troy Pride Jr. prior to the Nov. 4 matchup against Wake Forest. Losing his starting spot raises ques- tions about whether or not he would return for a fifth season. Notre Dame is lacking in numbers at the position and the 2018 recruit- ing class currently only has one cor- nerback, so there is a potential depth issue at that spot. That lack of num- bers (five scholarship cornerbacks), combined with the fact Watkins is a good player, would make it seem ob- vious that he should be asked back. The counter argument, of course, is that it can be difficult to bring back non-starters when the team is al- ready facing a numbers crunch. How Notre Dame finishes the 2018 recruit- ing class could go a long way to de- termine whether or not Watkins and other non-starters are asked back. Notre Dame will lose current fifth- year senior tight end Durham Smythe following this season. This will give Nic Weishar an opportunity to earn more playing time next season should he decide to return, but Weishar has a tough decision to make. Weishar was Notre Dame's third tight end this season, but in order to stay in the rotation he will have to fight off Cole Kmet and Brock Wright, two of the team's more talented play- ers in the current freshman class. It is clear that Notre Dame would like to bring Weishar back, but does the Midlothian, Ill., native want to compete for playing time with younger and more talented players, or does he choose to go somewhere else in hopes of becoming the top player at his position? Another option is Weishar could simply choose to graduate and move on from his football career as well. UNLIKELY TO RETURN Wide receiver Freddy Canteen was an early enrollee at Michigan prior to the 2014 season, so he graduated a year early and showed up at Notre Dame prior to the 2017 season with two seasons of eligibility remaining. It was assumed at the time that Canteen would play his final two seasons in South Bend, but a shoul- der injury against Georgia cost Can- teen all but two games this season. It was yet another season-ending injury for Canteen, who struggled to stay healthy during his three seasons at Michigan. It is unlikely that he would be brought back due to Notre Dame's depth at the position and his own injury history. Former walk-on Austin Webster has eligibility remaining, but he is not expected to be brought back for a fifth season. The wideout earned a schol- arship just before the 2017 season. Quarterback Montgomery Van- Gorder has been Notre Dame's holder the last two seasons, but he is not ex- pected to return for a fifth season. Neither is offensive lineman Jimmy Byrne or defensive tackle Pete Mokwuah. ✦ If senior rover Drue Tranquill decides not to return for a fifth season, it would sap the Irish defense of one of its top playmakers. PHOTO BY ANGELA DRISKELL