Notre Dame Spring Preview: Key Storylines - Offense Edition
Notre Dame kicks off its 2023 spring practices today, which means we'll get our first glimpse of what the latest installment of the Irish football program will look like. As is the case every year, there will be plenty of interesting storylines this spring, and here's a look at the five most intriguing on offense.
1. Will The Coaching Staff Mesh Together - Notre Dame has two new assistant coaches in Joe Rudolph (offensive line) and Gino Guidugli (quarterbacks), and Gerad Parker has been promoted to offensive coordinator. It's certainly a new look coaching staff for Notre Dame, but they don't have as much turnover as they did a season ago.
There are fewer coaches getting to know each other this year than there were a season ago, but that doesn't mean there won't be an adjustment period. How quickly the staff gets on the same page will have a key role in how smoothly the spring goes for the offense.
There are some interesting dynamics at play on offense from a staff standpoint. Guidugli and Rudolph both have coordinator experience, which should help Parker if they have the right staff dynamic. We'll get a glimpse into that this spring.
2. What Changes Will We See - Anytime you have a change at the coordinator position there will be changes. The spring gives us a first look at what those changes will be. How will the practice be structured under Parker and with the new look staff? What will the dynamic be between players and coaches? Will they do different drills? Will the team periods look different, and will there be different emphases in practice? How about any personnel, formation and scheme changes?
This isn't about being better or worse, per se, it's just about it being different. I'm very curious to see what changes Parker makes and how quickly he makes this offense his own. He could choose to adopt some of the things we saw in previous seasons under Tommy Rees, or he could just completely overhaul things now.
3. The Quarterback Room Looks Very Different - I don't know if there will be a true quarterback competition this spring, but there's no doubt that Notre Dame has a much, much healthier quarterback room this spring than it had a season ago.
The addition of Sam Hartman gives Notre Dame one of the best returning signal callers in all of college football. He enters the 2023 season ranked 19th in college football history in passing yards (12,967) and 18th in passing touchdowns (110). He passed for 7,929 yards and 77 touchdowns the last two seasons.
Junior Tyler Buchner has missed a lot of time during his prep and college career with injuries, but when he's been healthy he's been quite good. Buchner was injured after just his second start last season, but he returned for the bowl game and promptly racked up 334 yards and five touchdowns. There's a lot of his game that needs to be cleaned up, but Buchner is extremely talented. I'm curious to see how much he grows this spring and he came become a more consistent player.
I'm looking forward to seeing how much growth we see from Steve Angeli in his second spring, and we'll get our first glimpse of talented freshman Kenny Minchey.
This spring will look very, very different at quarterback, that's for sure. But how good will it be? That's the most important part.
4. What Playmakers Emerge On The Perimeter - I fully expect the quarterback position to be much better, Notre Dame is loaded at running back and the offensive line should be good again. The question is who will the playmakers be in the pass game.
Notre Dame has plenty of talent at wide receiver, and we've spent the entire offseason talking about the unit's potential. Potential, however, doesn't win you football games, production does. This spring should gives us some indication if anyone will step up and become an impact playmaker on the perimeter. Hopefully it's more than one player.
Junior Jayden Thomas was the team's best wideout during the second half of the season and he now has a year under his belt. Sophomore Tobias Merriweather has all the talent and skill needed to be a dominant college pass catcher, but will he break out this spring? We'll see. Junior Lorenzo Styles was expected to be the top wideout a year ago but he had a major sophomore slump. Will he bounce back? If he does this unit will be very, very good.
Junior Deion Colzie and grad transfer Kaleb Smith will both get an opportunity to battle for a starting role, with Colzie being a boundary receiver and Smith being capable of playing all over. Colzie oozes potential, and it's time for him to turn that potential into impact production. Smith was an All-ACC player a season ago and he adds size, experience, leadership and playmaking ability to the unit.
Notre Dame also welcomes three very talented newcomers in Braylon James, Jaden Greathouse and Rico Flores Jr. Needless to say, Notre Dame is in a way, way better position at wideout this spring than it was a year ago. I am very much looking forward to seeing this group perform this spring.
5. Guard Battle - Notre Dame has two open spots at guard, and how well those roles are filled will have a major impact on how the line will perform this season. It will be fun to watch the guard battles rage this spring. Sophomore Billy Schrauth is certainly the most intriguing player at the position, and arguably the most talented player competing for a starting role at guard. This spring will be our first true glimpse at Schrauth.
Another player I'm intrigued by and looking forward to this spring is senior Michael Carmody. He made two starts at tackle in 2021 and played center last season, but guard could be his best position. Carmody is a physical blocker and his athleticism should play well at guard. He was listed at 280 pounds in the fall, which just isn't big enough for every down snaps. Will he fill out enough to thrive at the role? We'll find out.
Fifth-year senior Andrew Kristofic is the most experienced returning guard, and he's been steady the last two seasons. Steady is good, but Notre Dame needs better. Can Kristofic be that player? We'll get a chance to see that this spring. We will also get a first-glance look at Ty Chan, and junior Rocco Spindler gets a chance for a fresh start with the new coach.
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