What does Steve Angeli's transfer say about Notre Dame's QB future, philosophy?

New York Times

22-04-2025

SOUTH BEND, Ind. — You have quarterback questions. How could you not?
Steve Angeli's departure via the transfer portal puts a different spin on Notre Dame's offseason and may change where this fall (and winter) could take the Irish. Let's get into those questions and more in this week's Notre Dame mailbag.
(Note: Submitted questions have been lightly edited for clarity and length.)
Advertisement
If it were (highly-paid) head coach Pete Sampson, how would you prioritize these in choosing the starting quarterback?
1. Best QB in spring/late summer practices
2. Best chance to win against Miami
3. Best chance to win a national championship this season
4. Highest ceiling individually moving forward, even beyond this season
5. Least likely to cause more than one of the other QBs to head for the transfer portal immediately
— Michael M.
Wait, have you not endowed my position? Am I not Dick Corbett Head Football Coach Pete Sampson? What kind of operation are we running here, Michael? As for your question, I thought this was straightforward in terms of what matters most and what matters least, with one exception.
1. Best chance to win a national championship this season: The whole point of Notre Dame football is to win a national championship. And I'm in the camp that believes Notre Dame needs an exemplary quarterback to do that. Not a game manager. Probably not even Ian Book, who was a playmaker and won 30 games as a starter. The Irish need more than that. So if you think you've got that on the roster for this season, that's the quarterback you start. The hunch is that Marcus Freeman believes the same, which is why Angeli's departure should be seen as a positive message about CJ Carr and Kenny Minchey.
2. Best chance to win against Miami: In reality, this means the best quarterback on the roster on Aug. 31. Would experience help make that quarterback the best option? Yes. Is it a deal breaker or deal maker? No. Freeman started a freshman tackle and redshirt freshman guard at Kyle Field last year. He'll bet on talent to figure it out, even if that talent is young. Before spring practice, I thought Angeli's experience — not just in games but also from being QB2 in practice for two years — would carry him to the starting job at Miami. After watching a scrimmage and spring game, it became clear that experience alone wouldn't be enough.
Advertisement
3. Best in spring/summer practices: I thought about putting this fourth and then realized the signal that picking potential over production (even in the offseason) would send to the roster. This gets lost among fans looking for the next big thing. Whether that's Tyler Buchner, Phil Jurkovec, Brandon Wimbush or any other top-100 talent at quarterback … you have to do it on the practice field before the staff can choose to put you in the games. Because you know who knows who's having a great spring or summer? Everybody else on the roster. For a coaching staff to ignore that in favor of potential threatens its credibility with the players.
4. Highest ceiling: I get it. Every top quarterback recruit has it. And potential is undefeated in the offseason and easily rationalized during games when it doesn't all come together. Just give him more reps! Maybe he's just a gamer! Could 247, Rivals and On3 be wrong? Turns out, yes. The highest ceiling is nothing more than a recruiting ranking from a group of analysts who are wrong more than they're right when it comes to quarterbacks. Just look at the 2022 class.
5. Least likely to make other quarterbacks transfer: Everybody can transfer whenever they want. No sense in making a decision based on something you can't control.
Will the coaches feed Jeremiyah Love enough carries to make him a Heisman contender? Should they? — Andrew S.
No and no.
It's worth remembering three running backs have won the Heisman Trophy in the past 20 years: Reggie Bush, Mark Ingram and Derrick Henry.
Those three averaged 315 offensive touches in their Heisman Trophy-winning seasons, which doesn't include Bush getting 46 additional touches on kick and punt returns. For the sake of comparison, Love got 191 offensive touches last season, meaning we'd be talking about a 50 percent jump in usage for a player who's had a run of injuries in the past six months.
Advertisement
If you're looking for a more recent comparison, Ashton Jeanty got 397 offensive touches for Boise State last season, more than double what Love got at Notre Dame. Jeanty finished runner-up to Travis Hunter.
So, would Notre Dame feature Love enough to keep him in true Heisman Trophy contention? Probably not. Would Love's body hold up if the coaching staff tried it? Probably not. The best shot for Love to be a Heisman contender is a combination of otherworldly games against Miami and Texas A&M early to set the stage for the season, plus Notre Dame running the table into the College Football Playoff. Love's candidacy would have to be built on singular moments more than statistical volume because he's unlikely to get that level of work.
I'm sick and tired of hearing about the transfer portal! It's ruining college sports! You recruit, develop and then a player leaves for more money. I am losing interest in college sports, and it's being caused by the portal and NIL money. Look what it's done to the women's basketball team. You recruit, develop and then they walk away for bigger bucks. I'm sick of hearing about it! And I think it's time for me to put my money spent on sports to better use! — Terry M.
Is there a question in here?
Hope you enjoyed Riley Leonard's touchdown pass to Beaux Collins, RJ Oben's strip sack and Jayden Harrison's kickoff return touchdown against Georgia. Or maybe Mitch Jeter's game-winning field goal against Penn State.
What is your read on how Pete Bevacqua is doing to ensure Notre Dame has a 'seat at the table' for playoff or other broad college football discussions? It seems like that was one of Jack Swarbrick's biggest strengths as AD and is more important now than ever. — James M.
I wouldn't call this my biggest concern when Bevacqua took over for Swarbrick, but it was one of my bigger questions. This is where that one year Bevacqua spent shadowing Swarbrick probably paid the biggest dividends. If there were relationships Bevacqua needed to make on the political side of the sport, those relationships were formed before Notre Dame's athletic director was in his new role.
I think Swarbrick and Bevacqua may be described in similar terms as Notre Dame ADs. One was an attorney working during a moment of unprecedented legal change in college athletics. Notre Dame wasn't guaranteed to have a seat at the table when Swarbrick arrived on the job, but he worked to strengthen relationships with Bob Bowlsby, John Swofford and Mike Slive to not only maintain Notre Dame's independence but set up some of the sport's future rules that further strengthen it.
Bevacqua arrived at a time when understanding the media landscape, particularly Notre Dame's relationship with NBC, is paramount. It's hard to think Notre Dame could have done better here, never mind Bevacqua's longstanding relationship with Big Ten commissioner Tony Petitti, who spent a decade at CBS in a similar role to Bevacqua at NBC. With the revenue stresses on college athletics, a committed media partner is arguably more important than ever before. Notre Dame has an athletic director who understands both sides of that reality better than most.
Advertisement
Is Notre Dame finally selling booze at sporting events to fill the revenue gap in the athletic department that will come with the House settlement? Will they make $20 million from alcohol sales? — James M.
I don't think it's as simple as creating one new revenue stream to meet one new revenue expense. Everything in college athletics is getting more expensive, including the facilities under construction for Notre Dame football, never mind Freeman's new contract, plus the new contracts for the Irish coaching staff. There's a budget to balance. Selling $20 million in alcohol — if every fan at all seven home games bought four $10 beers, the total would come close — is a stretch. But every bit of revenue helps in a world where expenses are spiraling annually.
Entering the spring, you said that this year's team felt like a 10-2 roster that should be a contender to make the CFP. Do you still feel that way? — Chris K.
I do, although I wonder if 'contender' may prove to be underselling it.
Before spring practice began, my theory was that Angeli would open the season as the starting quarterback before Freeman eventually moved to Carr. My hunch was Notre Dame would lose to either Miami or Texas A&M, the offense would appear too limited with Angeli, and the Irish would turn to Carr in search of an offensive spark, which he'd provide. Notre Dame's offense would grow into the season, Freeman would coach with his back against the wall and the Irish would either just make the CFP or just miss it.
My other pre-spring theory was that if there was one thing that could move the needle on Notre Dame's potential, it was Carr blowing past Angeli and winning the job. That would give offensive coordinator Mike Denbrock the entire summer and training camp to build the offense around Carr. In that world, Notre Dame probably still splits its opening games, but Carr benefits from the work instead of just watching it unfold. The Irish still have to develop the offense in-season, but they're a few steps ahead with Carr being the guy immediately (how Kenny Minchey fits into this scenario is harder to figure out).
Would a season where Carr starts all 12 regular-season games make Notre Dame a stronger CFP contender than one where he started six? It's hard to argue that it wouldn't. And that's where I think Notre Dame could be better coming out of spring practice than it was going in, because the quarterback decision (at least one of them) was made early.
(Photo of Marcus Freeman and Kenny Minchey: Justin Casterline / Getty Images)