NFL Draft Recap: A Look At What Notre Dame's 2020 Opponents Lost

Notre Dame lost six former starters to the NFL Draft, but of course the Irish weren’t the only team to deal with losing top players. Below is a breakdown of the drafted players for Notre Dame’s 2020 opponents.

Note: Western Michigan and Duke did not have any players drafted.

NAVY MIDSHIPMEN - AUG. 29

QB Malcolm Perry - Round 7 - #246 - Miami Dolphins

Navy returns a lot of depth and talent from its 11-2 squad, but one of the few losses is quarterback Malcolm Perry, who was selected in round seven by the Miami Dolphins. Perry became the first Navy player to get drafted since 2016, when another quarterback - Keenan Reynolds - was picked by the Baltimore Ravens.

Perry rushed for 2,017 yards and 21 touchdowns as a senior and finished his career with 4,359 rushing yards and 40 touchdowns. He also caught 22 passes for 470 yards and three more scores, and passed for 10 touchdowns.

The quarterback is the key cog to the option offense, so how they replace Perry will make or break the Midshipmen in 2020.

ARKANSAS RAZORBACKS - SEPT. 12

DT McTelvin Agim - Round 3 - #95 - Denver Broncos
S Kamren Curl - Round 7 - #216 - Washington Redskins

The Razorbacks head into 2020 with a brand new coaching staff after former Georgia offensive line coach Sam Pittman was hired to replace Chad Morris. Arkansas will have to replace its top two defensive players, which will make the rebuild even more challenging.

Agim - a third round pick of the Denver Broncos - registered 140 tackles and 31 tackles for loss to go with 14.5 sacks during his career. The Razorback defensive tackle had 8.5 tackles for loss and five sacks as a senior and 10 tackles for loss and 4.5 sacks as a junior.

Curl was picked by the Redskins in round seven, and he was more of an alley safety for the Razorbacks. He finished his career with 175 tackles, 15 pass break ups and two picks. He had 76 tackles, four tackles for loss, two sacks, two interceptions and two break ups as a junior in 2019.

WAKE FOREST DEMON DEACONS - SEPT. 26

LB Justin Strnad - Round 5 - #178 - Denver Broncos
OT Justin Herron - Round 6 - #195 - New England Patriots

Strnad finished his career with 244 tackles and 22.5 tackles for loss before being picked by the Broncos in round five.. A strong coverage player, he also racked up 10 pass break ups and four interceptions. Strnad was injured after seven games in 2019, so the Deacons already have experience trying to replace him.

Herron was a talented blocker for the Deacons and was a sixth round pick of the Patriots. He earned third-team All-ACC honors in 2017 and 2019, but he missed the 2018 season with a knee injury.

Wake Forest got huge news in the offseason when wide receiver Sage Surratt and defensive end Carlos Basham Jr. chose to return for their senior seasons. Both were first-team All-ACC selections last season. Surratt hauled in 66 passes for 1,001 yards and 11 touchdowns while Basham racked up 18 tackles for loss and 10 sacks this past season.

The Deacons lost quarterback Jamie Newman to Georgia, but they do return Sam Hartman, who has over 2,000 career passing yards.

WISCONSIN BADGERS - OCT. 3

RB Jonathan Taylor - Round 2 - #41 - Indianapolis Colts
LB Zach Baun - Round 3 - #74 - New Orleans Saints
C Tyler Biadasz - Round 4 - #146 - Dallas Cowboys
WR Quintez Cephus - Round 5 - #166 - Detroit Lions

Wisconsin didn’t lose a lot of players from its Big Ten West championship squad, but the players they did lose were incredibly talented and productive. Taylor - a second round pick of the Indianapolis Colts - rushed for 6,174 yards and 50 touchdowns in just three seasons with the Badgers. He rushed for 2,194 yards as a sophomore (2018) and 2,003 yards as a junior. He “only” rushed for 1,977 yards and 13 touchdowns as a freshman.

The top blocker for Taylor was center Tyler Biadasz, a consensus All-American in 2020 and the best center in the country. If not for injuries, Biadasz likely would have been drafted much higher than round four, which could make him a steal for the Cowboys.

Also gone from the offense is leading receiver Cephus (fifth round, Detroit Lions), who caught 59 passes for 901 yards last season, and linebacker Baun (third round, New Orleans Saints), who had a breakout season in 2019, registered 19.5 tackles for loss and 12.5 sacks.

Wisconsin also lost linebacker Chris Orr, who had 14 tackles for loss and 11.5 sacks this past season. Orr was signed by the Carolina Panthers as an undrafted free agent.

STANFORD CARDINAL - OCT. 10

TE Colby Parkinson - Round 4 - #133 - Seattle Seahawks
OLB Casey Toohill - Round 7 - #233 - Philadelphia Eagles

Stanford doesn’t lose much to the draft, but they did have a number of players transfer out of the program this offseason. Parkinson (round four, Seattle Seahawks) caught 48 passes for 589 yards this past season, but he had just one touchdown. Toohill was a productive edge player before being selected by the Eagles in round seven. He racked up 11.5 tackles for loss and eight sacks as a senior.

PITTSBURGH PANTHERS - OCT. 17

CB Dane Jackson - Round 7 - #239 - Buffalo Bills

The Panthers return a lot of talent in 2020, including first-team All-ACC offensive lineman Jimmy Morrissey, first-team All-ACC defensive tackle Jaylen Twyman and first-team All-ACC safety Paris Ford. They also return second-team All-ACC defensive end Patrick Jones II and third-team All-ACC offensive lineman Bryce Hargrove.

Pittsburgh will have to replace talented cornerback Dane Jackson, a seventh round pick of the Buffalo Bills. Jackson had 26 pass break ups the last two seasons and 39 for his career. He was a second-team All-ACC corner in 2019.

CLEMSON TIGERS - NOV. 7

LB Isaiah Simmons - Round 1 - #8 - Arizona Cardinals
CB AJ Terrell - Round 1 - #16 - Atlanta Falcons
WR Tee Higgins - Round 2 - #34 - Cincinnati Bengals
S Tanner Muse - Round 3 - #100 - Oakland Raiders
G John Simpson - Round 4 - #109 - Oakland Raiders
S K’Von Wallace - Round 4 - #127 - Philadelphia Eagles
OT Tremayne Anchrum - Round 7 - #250 - Los Angeles Rams

No one on Notre Dame’s schedule lost more than the Tigers, the national runners up from the 2019 season. Linebacker Isaiah Simmons was taken with the eighth overall pick after racking up 104 tackles, 16.5 tackles for loss and eight sacks this past season, earning All-American honors. Clemson also lost first-team All-American guard John Simpson (offensive line), who was picked by the Las Vegas Raiders in round four.

Cornerback AJ Terrell was taken in the first round by the Atlanta Falcons, wide receive Tee Higgins was taken with the first pick of round two (Cincinnati Bengals), safety Tanner Muse (Raiders) was taken in round three, safety K’Von Wallace was picked in round four (Philadelphia Eagles) and offensive tackle Tremayne Anchrum in round seven (Los Angeles Rams).

Higgins earned first-team All-ACC honors after hauling in 59 passes for 1,167 yards and 13 touchdowns. Terrell was also a first-team All-ACC player and picked off six passes in his career. Muse finished his career with 191 tackles, 14 break ups and seven picks. Wallace had 156 career tackles, 15 break ups and five interceptions. Anchrum was a first-team All-ACC blocker.

GEORGIA TECH YELLOW JACKETS - NOV. 14

TE Tyler Davis - Round 6 - #206 - Jacksonville Jaguars

Georgia Tech returns most of its roster from its 3-9 season, but it did lose Davis, who caught just 17 passes for just 148 yards last season.

LOUISVILLE CARDINALS - NOV. 21

OT Mekhi Becton - Round 1 - #11 - New York Jets

Louisville also had one just player taken, with Becton going with the No. 11 overall pick to the New York Jets. Becton is a brilliant talent and the Irish pass rushers had trouble with him last season.

The reason Louisville had just one player drafted from its 2019 bowl team is because the Cardinals return almost their entire lineup next season. That includes running back Javian Hawkins (1,525 yards in 2019), wide receiver TuTu Atwell (70 catches, 1,276 yards, 12 TDs in 2019) and linebacker Rodjay Burns, who led the Cardinals with 11 tackles for loss.

USC TROJANS - NOV. 28

OT Austin Jackson - Round 1 - #18 - Miami Dolphins
WR Michael Pittman Jr. - Round 2 - #34 - Indianapolis Colts

USC also returns a great deal of its roster in 2020, but the two losses are significant. Talented left tackle Austin Jackson was taken with the 18th overall pick and Pittman was taken with the second pick of the second round.

Jackson was by far the best blocker on the USC line last season, and Pittman caught 101 passes for 1,275 yards and 11 touchdowns.

RECAP - TOTAL LOSSES

1st Round - 4
2nd Round - 3
3rd Round - 3
4th Round - 4
5th Round - 2
6th Round - 2
7th Round - 5

Total Picks: 23

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