DB Shaun Crawford To Return In 2020

The journey Shaun Crawford has taken at Notre Dame has been one most wouldn't be able to make. It's been a long, hard, challenging road for the Ohio native, but he continues to amaze with his ability to bounce back.

Despite missing two full seasons and ten games in another, Crawford was able to get back to health and play 10 games this season, registering 28 tackles, two break ups and an interception as a key part of the rotation at . cornerback.

After saying in the fall he would not be back, the veteran defender has announced he intends to return for a sixth-season.

Thank you God for your direction... Love thee☘️ @NDFootball pic.twitter.com/j8IFGiYrL6
— Shaun Crawford (@ShaunCrawf20) January 10, 2020

I would not have predicted that Crawford would be able to play 10 games this fall, much less play at the level he did. The veteran corner was good in run support and solid in coverage despite missing all of 2018 with a second major knee injury.

Crawford wasn't the playmaker he was in 2017, but that's to be expected considering what he has been through. If he can stay healthy during the offseason he'll likely get a step back, which should allow him to make more plays next season.

A healthy Crawford provides much needed experience and leadership to a cornerback position that will otherwise be quite young next season.

Notre Dame loses three-year starting cornerback Troy Pride Jr. and veteran Donte Vaughn, who started three games and played 309 snaps this season. The Irish return rising junior TaRiq Bracy, but after him there is just 21 combined snaps returning to the depth chart in 2020.

There is talent returning in the form of Bracy and rising sophomores KJ Wallace, Cam Hart and Isaiah Rutherford. Sources I spoke with after the season raved about the potential of that group, and Rutherford finished the season on a strong note. All three of them will get a chance to compete for major snaps in 2020, as will the incoming freshman class.

But with Crawford back the staff can ease the young players into the lineup. Crawford might not ever be a guy that can play 60+ snaps week after week, but him returning means at the very least the younger players can be used in more of a rotation. Had Crawford ended his career and not returned, an unproven redshirt freshman would have been thrust into the starting lineup next season.

Most importantly, Crawford provides leadership and character the younger players can look up to an emulate.

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