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Yahoo
25-04-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Down to 2: Notre Dame football loses QB Steve Angeli to transfer portal
SOUTH BEND —And then there were two. Notre Dame football saw its three-way quarterback battle for the 2025 starting job reduced by one with Thursday's news that fourth-year junior Steve Angeli is headed to the transfer portal. Advertisement Angeli confirmed the decision with a social media post on Saturday evening. Angeli finished 8-of-11 passing for 108 yards and one sack in the Blue-Gold Game on April 12. Angeli hit freshman wideout Scrap Richardson for a 16-yard score on his fourth and final series, but redshirt freshman CJ Carr and third-year backup Kenny Minchey apparently did enough to this spring to close the experience gap with Angeli. A three-star recruit from Bergen Catholic in northern New Jersey, Angeli learned under three different offensive coordinators during his time in South Bend. He also won the Sun Bowl against Oregon State in 2023 with quarterbacks coach Gino Guidugli calling plays as the interim OC. Advertisement Marcus Freeman: Notre Dame football coach talks current transfer rules: 'That's not real life' When Riley Leonard was briefly sidelined due to concussion protocol in the Jan. 9 Orange Bowl win over Penn State, it was Angeli who led the Irish downfield for their first points of the game. Irish coach Marcus Freeman suggested after the spring game that there had been little separation between the three starting candidates through 12 spring practices. 'It's crazy to think this, but you've got three guys that all could lead your program to a victory and be your starting quarterback,' Freeman said. 'You would like to go into fall with a two-quarterback battle. It's really hard truly having a three-quarterback battle.' Advertisement With practice repetitions at a premium, Freeman added there would be 'conversations about what's best for our program, what's best for our quarterbacks, and we'll make those decisions in the future.' Comparing QB candidates by the numbers For the Irish and their first true quarterback derby since 2022 (Tyler Buchner vs. Drew Pyne), the next phase of that future started Wednesday. Kenny Minchey: Don't overlook rocket-armed Minchey in Notre Dame football's QB battle Kennedy Urlacher: Safety reportedly headed to transfer portal after one year at Notre Dame football A top-50 recruit from Saline, Mich., Carr has four game snaps to his credit, all in last year's blowout win at Purdue. After suffering an injury to his throwing elbow in practice in late September, Carr spent the rest of his redshirt season rehabbing. Advertisement In this year's spring game, Carr went 14-of-19 passing for 170 yards and two touchdowns. The grandson of former Michigan coach Lloyd Carr also threw an interception. Minchey, the Hendersonville, Tenn., product with the most dual-threat capability of the trio, went 7-of-15 passing for 106 yards and added a 4-yard touchdown run in the scrimmage. Minchey, who dealt with a minor shoulder injury in his senior year at Pope John Paul II High School, also took two sacks and finished with 11 rushing yards on six attempts. Minchey has appeared in four games (17 total snaps) and is 3-for-3 passing for 16 yards. In an indoor scrimmage on April 5, Angeli struggled to a 1-for-7 showing in the team portion with his lone completion going for 7 yards to freshman Elijah Burress. Angeli's last five pass attempts fell incomplete, although a short pass to Jadarian Price was wiped out by a defensive penalty for roughing the quarterback. Advertisement Unofficially in that same scrimmage, Carr went 2-of-3 passing for 29 yards and a sack, courtesy of Bryce Young. Carr finished the session with a 25-yard scoring strike to Burress on a seam route. Minchey went 5-for-10 passing for 63 yards and interception (Isaiah Dunn). Minchey ran twice for 16 yards in the team portion. Mike Berardino covers Notre Dame football for the South Bend Tribune and Follow him on social media @MikeBerardino. This article originally appeared on South Bend Tribune: Notre Dame loses veteran QB Steve Angeli to transfer portal
Forbes
24-04-2025
- Sport
- Forbes
Notre Dame Coach Marcus Freeman Narrows Quarterback Competition
SOUTH BEND, INDIANA - APRIL 12: CJ Carr #13 of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish throws a pass during ... More the 94th Annual Notre Dame Blue-Gold Spring Game at Notre Dame Stadium on April 12, 2025 in South Bend, Indiana. (Photo by) Three times in the past four seasons, Notre Dame has started a veteran transfer at quarterback. The Fighting Irish are not alone in that trend, as numerous other major programs have relied on transfers at the sport's most important position. This fall, though, Notre Dame will start an inexperienced quarterback who signed with the college out of high school. The Fighting Irish have narrowed their choice to either CJ Carr, a current freshman, or Kenny Minchey, a current sophomore. Steve Angeli, a junior and the most experienced quarterback on Notre Dame's roster, announced his commitment to Syracuse on Wednesday after Fighting Irish coach Marcus Freeman decided to have a two-man competition for the starting spot. Carr, the grandson of former Michigan coach Lloyd Carr, was the sixth-ranked quarterback in the high school class of 2024, per the 247Sports Composite. Carr, who is listed at 6-foot-3 and 209 pounds, had offers from Alabama, Georgia, LSU, Penn State, Michigan and other major schools before committing to Notre Dame in the summer before his junior high school season. Carr redshirted last season at Notre Dame after sustaining an elbow injury in September, but he was impressive during the annual Blue-Gold Game spring scrimmage this month, completing 14 of 19 passes for 170 yards, two touchdowns and one interception. Minchey, meanwhile, was the No. 14 quarterback in the high school class of 2023, per the 247Sports Composite. He originally committed to Pitt, but he changed his mind after several months and signed with Notre Dame, which offered him a scholarship shortly before his senior high school season began. Minchey, who is listed at 6-foot-2 and 206 pounds, appeared in three games as a freshman and one game as a sophomore. He has only attempted three passes in college, completing all of them for 16 yards. Despite the inexperience, Freeman liked what he saw of Carr and Minchey in the spring. 'Both, we believe, have the ability to be the starting quarterback,' Freeman told reporters during a Wednesday press conference. 'Both have done a tremendous job improving through spring practice. Every single quarterback has improved. It was awesome to see.' He added: 'It's just tough when you have limited reps to truly say somebody separated themselves. There were certain days they'd get 12 team reps each. That's not many…It's hard to have a true, three-quarterback battle in fall camp. There's just not enough reps to go around.' That left Angeli as the odd man out. Angeli, a three-star prospect in high school, enrolled at Notre Dame in 2022, making him the veteran of the group. During three seasons, he appeared in 21 games, completing 58 of 80 passes (72.5%) for 772 yards, 10 touchdowns and only one interception. Angeli's best performances came in the postseason. He made the only start of his career in the 2023 Sun Bowl, completing 15 of 19 passes for 232 yards and three touchdowns in Notre Dame's 40-8 victory over Oregon State. And in the College Football Playoff semifinal in January against Penn State, Angeli entered the game late in the first half after starter Riley Leonard went into the concussion protocol. Angeli completed 6 of 7 passes for 44 yards on the final drive of the half, leading to Mitch Jeter's field goal that cut Notre Dame's deficit to 10-3. The Fighting Irish ended up winning 27-24 to advance to the national title game, where they lost to Ohio State. Still, after evaluating his quarterback options this spring, Freeman made it clear that he preferred having the two young quarterbacks battle for the position rather than having them split time with Angeli, who still could become the starting quarterback at Syracuse. Notre Dame hosts Syracuse on Nov, 22 in the second-to-last regular season game. 'The thing you can create when you have a competition, a true competition where it's 50-50, you guys are going to battle it out, is you try to put some of that pressure that a real game presents,' Freeman said. 'You have to perform in practice because you understand if you don't perform consistently that other guy's pretty good and he might take off with this race. I'm pleased that we're going to have a true competition as we begin fall camp.' It is a change for Notre Dame. The Fighting Irish had veteran transfers in three of the past four years in Jack Coan, who arrived in 2021 after three years at Wisconsin and led ND to a 11-2 record; Sam Hartman, who took over in 2023 after five years at Wake Forest and helped the Fighting Irish finish 10-3; and Leonard, who started last year after three years at Duke and led Notre Dame to the national title game. Although the transfer portal route has worked out well, Notre Dame should benefit from having continuity at quarterback for at least the next two seasons because either Carr or Minchey project as multi-year starters. Whoever wins the job will face a difficult challenge in their first two starts. The Fighting Irish open the season at Miami on Aug. 31 and then have a week off before hosting Texas A&M on Sept. 13. Still, the Fighting Irish should be able to compete against those teams. They return numerous players from last season, including five offensive linemen who started games and arguably the nation's top running back in Jeremiyah Love. They will likely be ranked in the top 10 of the preseason polls and in contention for another College Football Playoff berth. Still, Freeman understands it's a long season. He referenced a stunning loss to Northern Illinois in the second game of last season, after which Notre Dame won 13 consecutive games. 'When you talk about this team being a really good football team, we definitely have the ability to do that,' Freeman said. 'We've just got to continue to develop, and we'll see what the outcomes are. If you would've asked me after Week 2 last year, 'What's the outlook of this season?,' I would've gone, 'Whoof. I'm just trying to get ready for Week 3.' We'll let the outcomes kind of happen when we get to the season, but I do believe we have a high ceiling. We've just got to continue to elevate to reaching that level we aspire to reach.'
New York Times
24-04-2025
- Sport
- New York Times
Four Notre Dame spring practice lessons that will show up during the 2025 season
SOUTH BEND, Ind. — Notre Dame logged 14 traditional spring practices over 35 days, one of the first formal steps in what could be a difficult encore performance for head coach Marcus Freeman. After playing in the championship game of the first 12-team College Football Playoff, the Irish are once again talented, with Freeman hardly pushing back on the notion of Playoff expectations. They also have some new parts — defensive coordinator, quarterback, captains — that have to get sorted out before anyone talks about postseason possibilities. Advertisement As Notre Dame moved into the true offseason, Freeman met with the media this week to wrap up spring practice, putting a bow on the handful of practices the Irish staged after the Blue-Gold Game that took place almost two weeks earlier. Not everything Freeman said will hold once the season approaches. But here are four takeaways that will matter for the fall. Freeman didn't detail why CJ Carr and Kenny Minchey remain as the two quarterbacks competing for the starting job, nor did Notre Dame's head coach explain how Steve Angeli fell short. But if you knew how to listen, Freeman at least gave a hint about why Notre Dame's spring practice quarterback competition ended with Angeli transferring to Syracuse. 'Are you making the right decisions is probably the most important thing,' Freeman said. 'Delivering the ball, the ability to create plays, maybe when things are breaking down and taking care of the football. Those are things that we really, really evaluate, and they've done a tremendous job at doing that.' Angeli can do most of that, which why he has a 10-to-1 career touchdown-to-interception ratio, to go with a 72.5 percent completion rate. The former Notre Dame quarterback was good at taking what the defense gave him, which was more than enough to be a serviceable backup to Riley Leonard and Sam Hartman. But tucked inside that quote is an area where Minchey and Carr thrive and Angeli sometimes struggled. Because 'when things are breaking down,' it's Minchey who can escape with his legs and Carr who showed a skill for evading the pass rush while keeping his eyes down the field. The ability to make something out of nothing is high on the list of what Freeman values in a quarterback. Leonard did it last season. There's belief Carr and/or Minchey can do something similar this fall, although Freeman doesn't want the starting duties to be shared. Advertisement Freeman added that former Notre Dame starting quarterback Tyler Buchner could return to the quarterbacks room after being a scout team wide receiver last season. Freeman will need to invest time in developing leaders between now and the start of camp in late July because for how much talent the Irish lost from last year's roster, replacing the playmaking abilities of Riley Leonard, Jack Kiser and Xavier Watts is probably the easy part. Figuring out how fill the leadership void on the roster left by those three, along with former captains Benjamin Morrison and Rylie Mills, is when things get harder. 'We're looking at you guys as leaders and captains to be problem solvers,' Freeman said. 'The other thing is that you have to make those around you better. I often say if you're a leader and the temperature or the performance of those guys that you're leading is the same when you're there as when you're not, you're probably not that great of a leader. 'I believe we have multiple guys that are doing those things, that are leading, they're solving issues. They're making guys around them better.' Who are they? Freeman didn't say, which doesn't mean he doesn't have an idea of the candidates. Drayk Bowen, Adon Shuler and Aamil Wagner all look the part. Jeremiyah Love probably does, too. Yet when Freeman outlined what Notre Dame got done during spring ball, he included building trust, whether that was coach-to-player, player-to-coach or player-to-player. Notre Dame needs all of that. And it has to know which players can pull the program forward, just like last year's captains did. That might be what summer is all about. Assuming Notre Dame gets through summer workouts without a freak injury, the Irish should open camp down only tight end Cooper Flanagan, who is still recovering from a torn Achilles in the Sugar Bowl against Georgia. Freeman said defensive ends Jordan Botelho and Boubacar Traore are on track for a unrestricted summer after suffering torn ACLs early last season. Same story with center Ashton Craig. Offensive tackle Guerby Lambert, who underwent shoulder surgery during spring practice is expected back for training camp but may be limited during the summer. Advertisement Freeman's balancing act will be steeling the roster for the season but not burning it out should the Irish go on another 16-game run to the national championship. That requires meeting with Notre Dame's sports performance team, including head strength coach Loren Landow. 'You can't cheat the preparation,' Freeman said. 'There is a physical preparation into making sure you're team is ready to go Week 1. You guys heard me say this enough, the future is uncertain so for us to preserve for an uncertain future is crazy — a future that you might not ever get. We have to make sure we are ready to go the minute that first game, and there's a physical preparation that you have to go through to make sure you're ready.' At a minimum, Notre Dame will move beyond the pitch counts of spring practice, when nearly a dozen starters were rested for the bulk of offseason drills. That means when camp does open, Freeman should be playing with a full deck. It's still not clear whether Notre Dame will have to cut down to reach the 105-man roster limit proposed in the House v. NCAA settlement, although federal judge Claudia Wilken on Wednesday opened the possibility of denying the proposed settlement if schools don't come up with fairer plan for players at the back of the roster. That might explain why Freeman offered few details on how Notre Dame would manage the 105-man limit, assuming the Irish have to at all. 'We have a plan for if it's 105, and we have a plan for if it's not,' Freeman said. 'So, I don't sit and think about if it's going to be 105 or not.' Regardless of Notre Dame's roster limit, whether it cuts to 105 or stays at 120 with a full complement of walk-ons, it appears there will be fewer walk-ons this season than last. As scholarship limits continue to fade away, Freeman said Notre Dame could potentially add 10 new scholarship players. Advertisement 'I think we're probably around 95 if it gets to the 105 limit,' Freeman said. 'But if we need to find a way to make sure there's more guys that don't have to pay for school, we have a plan to do that, too. But actual scholarship numbers right now, the plan would be around 95.' It's not clear how Notre Dame would use those new scholarships; it could give them to individuals in full or it could divide the scholarship, splitting it amongst players. Regardless, it appears that future Irish rosters will feature more scholarship players and fewer walk-ons.
New York Times
16-04-2025
- Sport
- New York Times
Notre Dame transfer portal primer: Where the Irish stand at every position as spring window begins
SOUTH BEND, Ind. — As the transfer portal opens Wednesday, Notre Dame coach Marcus Freeman will need to make decisions. It's just not entirely clear how he'll make them or the math he'll apply to an unprecedented offseason in college football as the sport continues to lurch toward 105-man roster limits paired with the elimination of the 85-man scholarship maximum. Advertisement For Freeman and general manager Mike Martin, the roster revolution is an opportunity and a hurdle. Notre Dame can add scholarships to better suit the sport's extended calendar, which can stretch a program to its limits. The Irish also have to rethink their walk-on program and the functions it serves day to day. And however the Irish play it, assuming the 105-man roster limits pass in the House v. NCAA settlement as expected, Notre Dame's roster will look a little different. Notre Dame exited spring practice with 118 players after adding summer transfers Malachi Fields and Ty Washington, plus 12 freshmen expected to arrive this summer, including kicker Erik Schmidt. That could create an unfortunate reality that 13 players have to go, either via the portal or being cut. Safety Kennedy Urlacher and long snapper Rino Monteforte both entered the portal Wednesday morning. It's all part of why Freeman doesn't expect to add in the spring portal, barring an unexpected rash of departures that leave the Irish light at a particular position. Notre Dame doesn't have the room. 'If a guy on our current roster is interested in getting into the portal, I'm sure we'll have those conversations,' Freeman said. 'At the end of the day, figure out what's best for them, for us. 'We're not actively seeking to add to our roster. We're really happy with what we got. If something comes to our attention and we see adds value to our roster and our program, then we have to have a conversation about it.' Here's how Notre Dame's roster adds up by position and how those numbers fit into the 105-man era. (Walk-ons denoted with an *) Steve Angeli CJ Carr Blake Hebert Kenny Minchey Anthony Rezac* If Notre Dame could keep a five-man quarterback room, it would. That would leave two quarterbacks for the scout team (Hebert and Rezac) and three for the varsity. But that's probably a luxury quarterbacks coach Gino Guidugli won't enjoy, considering Freeman said he'd like the quarterback competition to be down to two contenders entering summer. Advertisement Does the third option stick with Notre Dame or find a better path to playing time? Assuming the staff doesn't need to see more from the quarterbacks to give a preliminary order, there's a tough decision for Angeli or Minchey. The former has enough tape to be an attractive option for a program looking for a starter. The latter doesn't, aside from the Blue-Gold Game, when Minchey flashed potential in short bursts. Carr will be part of whatever competition happens from here. If Angeli goes, he should do it with his head held high. Dylan Devezin* Nolan James Jr. Jeremiyah Love Gi'Bran Payne Jadarian Price Jake Tafelski* Aneyas Williams Kedren Young New running backs coach Ja'Juan Seider said it's tough to involve more than three backs on game day. The Irish have six on scholarship, plus two walk-ons who play on special teams. The math doesn't work for all eight, even if the depth chart is expected to turn over after next season when Love and Price depart. The question will be who's left. Williams is the clear No. 3, but Payne and Young may have decisions to make. Payne was a favorite of former running backs coach Deland McCullough; he committed to McCullough at Indiana before following him to Notre Dame. He's also coming off a torn ACL. Jerome Bettis Jr. Tyler Buchner* Elijah Burress Jordan Faison Malachi Fields Micah Gilbert Jaden Greathouse Matt Jeffery* Will Pauling Scrap Richardson Logan Saldate Leo Scheidler* KK Smith Xavier Southall* Alex Whitman* Cam Williams Sixteen is a big number, but does it get trimmed among scholarship talent or walk-ons? Every player listed either has potential or production. But math is math, so keeping the entire position intact will be almost impossible. The Irish have a strong top four in Fields, Pauling, Greathouse and Faison. After that, Burress distinguished himself during spring practice. But the other six scholarship recipients are developmental. Do they all want to stay for that process? And if they do, how does Notre Dame manage five walk-ons, including a former starting quarterback in Buchner? Advertisement Kevin Bauman Justin Fisher* Cooper Flanagan James Flanigan Henry Garrity* Jack Larsen Eli Raridon Ty Washington While Notre Dame might not have its traditional abundance of riches at tight end, Raridon's spring move at least gives the Irish a true starter. Bauman and Larsen showed enough to want to see more in the fall. And Washington will arrive this summer from Arkansas, more of a blocking tight end who will give tight ends coach Mike Denbrock positional flexibility. This doesn't leave more wiggle room before getting to the walk-ons, and Fisher may be a reliable special-teams contributor. It's not clear how Notre Dame will handle the tight end spot when pushed against the overall roster limit. Sullivan Absher Max Anderson* Ashton Craig Cam Herron Devan Houstan Charles Jagusah Peter Jones Joe Otting Billy Schrauth Chris Terek It's a top-heavy group with Craig, Jagusah and Schrauth, and each has at least two years of remaining eligibility. Keeping Absher with the program should be a major priority for offensive line coach Joe Rudolph, even if there's not an immediate starting spot available. The sophomore could help at all five positions, but played guard and center during spring practice. He'd be similar to former linemen Sam Pendleton (transferred to Tennessee), Rocco Spindler (Nebraska) and Pat Coogan (Indiana) in the sense that there would be a strong market. It's not clear what Notre Dame has from the rest of this position group, which is part of why keeping Absher is so important. Aside from the midyear enrollee Herron, the rest of these interior linemen feel undistinguished from one another, which probably opens the door for at least one to depart. Matty Augustine Will Black Anthonie Knapp Guerby Lambert Styles Prescod Owen Strebig Aamil Wagner Robbie Wollan* It would be a shocker if Notre Dame lost one of its seven scholarship tackles, considering this is a mix of starters and freshmen, aside from Lambert recovering from shoulder surgery and Prescod coming off a strong spring after missing his freshman year due to injury. Would there be a marker for Prescod without actual tape? He was more of a developmental prospect when Notre Dame signed him out of Indianapolis, but there's reason to believe that development is happening. Advertisement While other positions probably need to shed scholarship talent, offensive tackle isn't one of them. This depth chart feels tidy with younger talent backing up older talent, meaning everybody's got a path to playing time eventually. Jordan Botelho Christopher Burgess Josh Burnham Dominik Hulak Cole Mullins Loghan Thomas Boubacar Traore Junior Tuihalamaka Bryce Young Like offensive tackle, Notre Dame would want to keep this band together if possible, especially with Traore and Botelho returning from ACL tears. If those two are fully healthy at the start of camp as expected, it may crowd the path to playing time for Tuihalamaka and Thomas. Tuihalamaka is down to his final year. Could he be a four-game redshirt candidate to extend his career at Notre Dame or elsewhere? Thomas flashed as a freshman but has had a short history of nagging injuries, including a hamstring that kept him out of the spring game. The injury let Mullins run with the starting defense and he looked the part as the strong-side end. It's impossible to have too much pass rush. Notre Dame would love these nine players to agree. Jared Dawson Davion Dixon Donovan Hinish Elijah Hughes Armel Mukam Jason Onye Joe Reiff Gabriel Rubio Sean Sevillano Jr. Gordy Sulfsted Brenan Vernon There's a reason Notre Dame took two defensive tackles in the portal in Dawson and Hughes, who have three years of eligibility remaining. The Irish felt the depth chart was short on talent, although Onye's return to form after missing the second half of last season for personal reasons might have changed that opinion, with Rubio and Hinish already established commodities. Keeping 11 defensive tackles on scholarship is probably impossible, which could lead to some movement among the reserves. Dawson and Hughes effectively stonewall the rest of the depth chart from moving into the rotation, which might be difficult for Vernon, Mukam and Sevillano. They combined for 107 snaps last season. Is there enough work to go around, even at a position where injuries always seem to hit? The three freshmen figure to be scout teamers. Advertisement Jaiden Ausberry Drayk Bowen Madden Faraimo Bodie Kahoun Kahanu Kia Ko'o Kia Tommy Powlus* Teddy Rezac Anthony Sacca Jaylen Sneed Kyngstonn Viliamu-Asa Preston Zinter Considering Notre Dame typically plays two linebackers in its base defense (i.e. nickel), the linebacker math is the most brutal on the roster. The Irish can't afford to carry a dozen linebackers, with all but one on scholarship. And Notre Dame has recruited this position so well that if there's a departure, he'd likely end up on a Power 4 roster. If there's an exit, it won't be Bowen, Sneed, Viliamu-Asa or Faraimo. Ausberry and Zinter are valued by the staff. Kahoun was called out by linebackers coach Max Bullough for a standout offseason. But the math is unforgiving. It's just not clear how this will work, even after Bullough nailed his rotations last season with five linebackers logging at least 340 snaps. Mickey Brown* Charles Du* Isaiah Dunn* Dallas Golden Christian Gray Karson Hobbs Leonard Moore DeVonta Smith Cree Thomas Chance Tucker Mark Zackery IV Notre Dame has recruited this position as well as any on the roster, so well that it needs to prepare for three-and-outs like Benjamin Morrison, who is off to the NFL. Gray, Moore and Smith (nickel) compose an excellent group of starters. Holding Hobbs needs to be a priority, considering he could be a three-year starter after rotating at nickel this season. It wouldn't be a surprise if all three freshmen panned out, especially with Thomas already impressing during spring ball. There is some roster spot flexibility, if Notre Dame needs it, among the walk-ons or career reserve Tucker. Overall, this position feels like offensive tackle, where younger talent will work behind older talent, likely waiting their turn. The work by defensive backs coach Mike Mickens to reshape this position has been exemplary. Taebron Bennie-Powell JaDon Blair Tae Johnson Brandon Logan Ethan Long Ben Minich Adon Shuler Jalen Stroman Luke Talich One is already off the board with Urlacher entering the portal Wednesday morning. The Irish have a solid top of the depth chart in Shuler, Talich, Stroman and Johnson, who made a spring move into the two-deep that probably signaled to Urlacher that playing time would be limited. Minich might have a difficult decision pending after flashing during spring practice. Stay as a third-team nickel/safety or leave to become a starter elsewhere? With three freshman safeties incoming — Blair and Long joining for the spring semester — competition for reps will be intense. Safeties also make excellent special teams players, so there's value beyond playing defensive back. Advertisement William Bartel* Noah Burnette Marcello Diomede* Andrew Kros* James Rendell Jerry Rullo* Erik Schmidt* Joseph Vinci* Zac Yoakam* The second portal entry for Notre Dame on Wednesday was the walk-on long snapper Monteforte, which says plenty about the new reality of college football. Before, Notre Dame could load up on specialists and let them compete. Now there's the 105-man limit to consider, although Monteforte seemed to have fallen down the pecking order at long snapper this spring. Still, the old rules allowed for a long snapper competition. The new ones might not. Special teams coordinator Marty Biagi said he didn't expect the 105-man limit to drastically affect his roster, but there's no doubt it will have at least some impact as the Irish carried multiple snappers, holders and kickers last season (and used them).
New York Times
12-04-2025
- Sport
- New York Times
CJ Carr shines in Notre Dame spring game, rising to the top of the QB competition
SOUTH BEND, Ind. – Marcus Freeman won't rush his quarterback decision. There's no point in microwaving the biggest decision Notre Dame's head coach will make before kickoff at Miami on Labor Day weekend. There's no upside in rushing judgment, potentially upending the quarterback room before the transfer portal opens next week, not when the competition among Steve Angeli, Kenny Minchey and CJ Carr can extend into training camp. Advertisement As the Blue-Gold Game showed on Saturday afternoon, Notre Dame has three quarterbacks who could start this season, the follow-up to that run to the national championship game. And all three could be good enough to keep the Irish in contention for a return to the College Football Playoff, considering the roster talent assembled. The Irish may have one of the nation's best offensive lines and top defensive backfields. It might have the nation's top running back. The linebacker and defensive-end rooms are CFP-level. It's just the quarterback position that has to get settled. 'It's crazy to think that you've got three guys that all can lead the program to a victory and be your starting quarterback,' Freeman said. 'So we'll evaluate it. We'll talk about it and have a discussion moving forward.' But the point of Notre Dame football these days is no longer 'lead the program to a victory' after last season's back-to-back wins over Georgia and Penn State before running aground against Ohio State. The point is to win the game Notre Dame lost on Jan. 20. And for one afternoon, at least, it was hard to look at Notre Dame's three quarterbacks and not see the one with potential that rises above the other two. Angeli and Minchey were good. Carr was better. Not so much better than Freeman can't keep a straight face while talking up a quarterback competition that will follow Notre Dame out of spring practice. But Carr is better enough that he suddenly feels a bit inevitable, if not on opening night against the Hurricanes, then at some point during what could be a return to the CFP. 1️⃣3️⃣ ➡️8️⃣5️⃣@13Cjcarr | @jacklarsen35 #GoIrish☘️ | @meijer — Notre Dame Football (@NDFootball) April 12, 2025 If spring game statistics mean anything, Carr went 14-of-19 for 170 yards, two touchdowns and one interception. Minchey went 6-of-14 for 106 yards and a rushing touchdown followed by a backflip. Angeli finished 8-of-11 for 108 yards and a touchdown while hitting his final six throws. All three quarterbacks looked like college starters. That doesn't mean they all looked the same. Advertisement 'I don't know where it's headed, but they're all doing really good things, and whoever it is, is going to do a good job,' said tight end Eli Raridon. 'They're all playing at a very high level. If I were to make a decision, I wouldn't know who to pick either. It's definitely a hard decision for (the coaches), and whoever it is will do a good job.' This is all new territory for Freeman, who didn't pretend to stage a quarterback competition last season when Riley Leonard arrived from Duke and then missed virtually all of spring practice. That competition was over before it started. It's different from two years ago, too, when Freeman insisted Wake Forest transfer Sam Hartman and Tyler Buchner were engaged in a quarterback competition exiting spring practice, which convinced no one, especially Buchner, who entered the portal roughly 72 hours after being out-classed by Hartman. The evidence for Carr is neither overwhelming nor complete. Notre Dame had just two open practices during spring ball. Carr was good in the first, including a walk-off touchdown to Elijah Burress. But the other two quarterbacks were good too. Carr was great Saturday, including a walk-off touchdown to Xavier Southall. Combined with Carr's practice showings last spring, when he flashed in both an open practice and the Blue-Gold Game, rising above the competition is now a habit. On Saturday, the sophomore feathered passes to tight ends Kevin Bauman and Jack Larsen, throwing both open when coverage said otherwise. Carr's accuracy means he doesn't have to take what the defense gives him as much as he can create space with his arm. If Angeli and Minchey can operate a passing game, it feels like Carr can conduct one. 'You would like to be able to kind of go into the fall with a two-quarterback battle. It's really hard with truly having a three-quarterback battle,' Freeman said. 'But we got to sit down and have conversations about what's best for our program, what's best for our quarterbacks, and we'll make those decisions in the future.' Advertisement There's little point in searching for verbal tells about how Freeman describes the competition, but that might as well be one. If Notre Dame were to cut the competition to two quarterbacks exiting spring practice, there is no world in which Carr is not part of the conversation. It's a harder call with Minchey and Angeli. 'We'll go back and watch, but it was a reflection of how the first 11 practices have been,' Freeman said. 'Those guys have been battling, they've all improved. They're all doing some really good things.' One just happens to be doing potentially great things, which changes the calculus on how Freeman wants to make this quarterback call. There's a world where Angeli is the safe pick, considering his experience against Penn State and his spot start in the Sun Bowl. That prior knowledge would never win the job on its own, but it could make him the comfortable pick on opening night. Little from Freeman's breakthrough season suggests he'll play it safe. Notre Dame marched to the national title game on the strength of fourth-down conversions, fake punts and lots of man-to-man defense that left the secondary without a safety net. Freeman wanted to build an aggressive mindset, demanding it in practice and calling it on game day. This is the same coach who wasn't scared to take an offensive line with six career starts and run it out at Kyle Field, benching two returning starters in camp because he believed in the younger talent despite its inexperience. Now Freeman might have to make a similar call, but it's got a lot more weight behind it than choosing an offensive guard. Angeli or Minchey could start the year, and the Irish would probably be just fine. But if Carr's performance on Saturday is any clue, he could turn Notre Dame's season into something bigger. No, Freeman doesn't need to rush this call. Even with the portal about to open, time appears to be on Notre Dame's side with Carr, Angeli and Minchey. But after Saturday's performance by Carr, it's difficult to look at the former national prospect and not see the flickers of a quarterback this program has been waiting on. Would it be a difficult decision to start a quarterback with four career snaps and zero career pass attempts at Miami? Of course. But choosing hard isn't just a catchphrase for Freeman. It's standard operating procedure. And after Saturday, a quarterback competition he's in no rush to decide took a step toward the kind of conclusion Freeman always knew could be possible.
