NFL Draft Matchup: Notre Dame Defensive Line vs UNC QB Sam Howell
The Notre Dame defense is in a stretch of some explosive and challenging opposing offensive attacks. The Tar Heels suffered a couple clunkers early in the season but offensively have rebounded well as a new cast of characters out wide and in the back field have gotten acclimated.
With a talented trigger man in Sam Howell still leading the way, the Fighting Irish will have their hands full this weekend. As part of that North Carolina offense vs Notre Dame defensive matchup, NFL evaluators will have their eyes firmly on how Howell navigates chaos against a talented defensive front.
How he is able to do so, could be a huge decider in the outcome of this game.
FIRST ROUND QUEST
Entering the 2021 college football season, North Carolina quarterback Sam Howell was viewed as one of the early front runners to be the top quarterback off the board come April. So far, 2021 has not gone quite as planned. After losing his top four playmakers from last season, including running backs Javonte Williams and Michael Carter, as well as wide receivers Dyami Brown and Dazz Newsome, there were a lot of question marks at the skill positions for the Tar Heels.
That put the spotlight firmly on Howell’s shoulders to transcend and elevate the players around him. Despite a lot of returning experience on the offensive line, the unit leaves a lot to be desired. That forces Howell off script a ton, needing to make a ton of plays on the move.
In this matchup with Notre Dame, Howell will need to do his best to deal with a bevvy of next level talent up front. With defensive tackle Jayson Ademilola, as well as edge defenders Isaiah Foskey and Myron Tagovailoa-Amosa, Notre Dame quietly sports one of the more talented defensive lines in all of college football.
FOSKEY’S DRAFT CLIMB
The headliner of the group from an NFL Draft perspective would have to be redshirt sophomore defensive end Isaiah Foskey, currently pacing the squad with eight sacks. His story has been highly publicized, along with his development at defensive end since he has been able to focus solely on the challenges this season in a full time capacity.
That higher volume of reps has allowed Foskey to develop into one of the more productive pass rushers in all of college football. Through seven games, the redshirt sophomore currently paces the Irish in both tackles for loss (8.5) and quarterback sacks (8), while also chipping in with an additional four quarterback hurries. The scary part is - Foskey is still just figuring it out. When he is given the green light, he is virtually unblockable. That should remain true against the Tar Heels.
START TALKING ABOUT ADEMILOLA
Defensive tackle Jayson Ademilola is starting to get a little more buzz - but is still not receiving the attention nationally that he deserves. He entered the Notre Dame team as a highly recruited kid out of St. Peters Prep in New Jersey but was victim to an abundance of depth in front of him. Even so, Ademilola was still able to make his impact known in a lower volume of snaps, setting up for a huge 2021 breakout.
He could have the biggest matchup of the night if North Carolina opts to leave offensive lineman Joshua Ezeudu inside at guard. Ademilola has been a menace to opposing quarterbacks all season. This opportunity to continue supplying pressure against one of the more heralded signal callers in all of college football provides a hue opportunity.
LORD MYRON
The elder statesman of the group, Myron Tagovailoa-Amosa may be in his fifth season a part of the Irish program, but he is in only the first year at a brand new position. It wasn’t hard to see traits from #95 prior to 2021, boasting plenty of flashes of penetration ability working inside at defensive tackle. Unfortunately his durability did stunt his growth at times during his career.
“MTA” from a body typing perspective is a player who may have just been carrying too much weight, justified by his rapid weight loss this past off-season. After playing closer to 285-290 over the last couple of seasons, he left the spring at a svelte 259 pounds - ready to man the big end position in defensive coordinator Marcus Freeman’s odd man front. That has offered an entirely different role, making for an interesting evaluation with his ability to work inside and out.
WHAT CAN THEY GAIN?
For Sam Howell, he has a huge opportunity to grab some momentum down the stretch in what is still a wide open quarterback pecking order. In an NFL that is seeing athletic quarterbacks go from the exception to the standard, being able to make plays outside of structure has become more and more imperative.
Howell is never going to be confused as the more athletic signal caller of all time but he has done some nice things in that department - especially with his involvement in the run game. His extension abilities as a passer are going to be put to the test against the Irish. His ability to navigate chaos will go a long way to helping him shine in this uncertain quarterback class. Although the NFL will most likely value a couple of the more dynamic passers as options, Howell still has first round opportunities in front of him.
No matter which defensive lineman you’re talking about, this game offers them a huge opportunity to wreak havoc against one of the more notable passers in all of college football. From an NFL Draft perspective, NFL evaluators will have their eyes glued to this game, doing
their homework on what Howell can provide on the next level. Those eyes could quickly turn to the defensive front if they have the type of game that they are capable of. Both defensive ends probably have the easier pathways to success. Whether they are facing right tackle Jordan Tucker or blindside protector Asim Richards, the Tar Heel offensive tackles specifically have been less than optimal so far in 2021. So much so that the team has even toyed with putting their best offensive lineman Joshua Ezeudu outside to compensate.
The most obvious beneficiary of the struggling offensive tackle play is the dynamic Isaiah Foskey. He has an opportunity to ascend up a historic edge group for the 2022 NFL Draft assuming he declares. His twitch and athletic profile will be a lot for the Tar Heels to counteract. If he is able to finish Howell on the ground, expect a massive bump in terms of draft projection here soon.
Myron Tagovailoa-Amosa, on the other hand, might potentially be the biggest winner of the trio of talented defenders. He has been a headache for opposing offensive lineman for a majority of the 2021 season - but it has been more for his presence in the run game and energetic style as a pass rusher. The latter, however, still begs the question how much impact that he can have on third downs. “MTA” has shown some natural instincts in that department, including some surprising nuance from an inexperienced edge rusher. He will have opportunities to test his pass rushing chops. The question is whether he can finish.
With a strong performance, Ademilola gets another opportunity to continue his climb amongst a less than stellar interior defensive line group. He also has the biggest matchup potentially working against a stronger interior compared to the tackle play. There is nothing worse for quarterbacks than an interior push, which Ademilola is more than capable of supplying. His string of strong performances should start to provide him with the attention he deserves. With the state of the interior class, a top 100 evaluation is not out of question for the talented senior.
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