Notre Dame Post-Spring Position Group Rankings - Offense

Ranking and breaking down the Notre Dame position groups for the 2024 offense

Notre Dame running back Jadarian Price will be a significant weapon for the 2024 offense / Angela Driskell, Irish Breakdown

Notre Dame had a successful spring session that ended with an entertaining Blue-Gold Game. The spring is just one part of what it takes to build a football team. Notre Dame players have finished up the spring semester and the next step will be reporting for summer workouts and then fall camp.

There is no doubt this unit will play a major role in determining just how good Notre Dame can be in 2024. The offense has fallen short of what is needed to be a playoff team in recent seasons, but the hope is the arrival of Mike Denbrock will change that.

As we head into the summer period let's take a look at where things stand for the Irish, beginning with a look at the offense.

1. RUNNING BACK

Notre Dame running back Jeremiyah Love is ready for a breakout season in 2024 / Angela Driskell, Irish Breakdown

Junior Jadarian Price and sophomore Jeremiyah Love have a chance to form an extremely potent 1-2 punch in the backfield. Both are home run hitters, and they fit well into Denbrock's run schemes. Price is a slasher that can also hammer teams, while Love shows the shake and versatility to be a game changer.

They have far more production than the 2022 backfield had going into that season, and that combo of Audric Estime and Logan Diggs turned out to the backbone of the offense. Estime and Diggs combined for 290 rushing yards and three scores the previous season, but the Love-Price duo combined for 657 rushing yards and six offensive scores.

This combo is going to be fun to watch, and we got a glimpse of that in the Sun Bowl when Price rushed for 106 yards and Love had a highlight reel touchdown catch. That run-pass threat from Love adds something the Irish haven't had in the backfield in quite some time.

If this pair wasn't enough, Notre Dame also returns gritty junior Gi'Bran Payne and one of the best freshman backfields in the country in Kedren Young and Aneyas Williams. Notre Dame's backfield is deep, explosive, versatile and showed this spring it has the kind of talent to emerge as one of the nation's best backfields in 2024.

2. QUARTERBACK

Notre Dame quarterback Riley Leonard is a key to success for the Irish in 2024 / Greg Swiercz, USA TODAY Sports

We didn't get to see the full quarterback arsenal this spring, but the unit still showed off impressive skill. This is the deepest quarterback depth chart that Notre Dame has possessed in at least a decade. I now have much more confidence that Notre Dame will get high-level quarterback play in the fall than I did before the spring started.

Part of that faith, however, is still centered around the notion that transfer Riley Leonard is going to be a difference maker for the Irish. If he's not able to get to full speed, or if he can't at least repeat his 2022 success, this position will drop down a spot or two in the rankings. Leonard is a dynamic run-throw threat that puts defenses in a very tough bind. He was able to get a lot of throwing work in this spring, and if the result is improvements from a decision making, consistency and accuracy standpoint he'll be the dominant player the Irish need.

What encourages me is not just Leonard, who I was already high on before the spring started. What has this group so high on this board is the way the other quarterbacks performed this spring. Let's get this out of the way, as a group they turned the ball over too much and there is still work needed when it comes to going through progessions like a veteran.

Leonard being out gave this group a lot of reps, and those mistakes from the spring will benefit the unit in the fall. Steve Angeli continued to grow, and sophomore Kenny Minchey and CJ Carr displayed their big time arm talent. Minchey finished the spring on a strong note, and Carr showed the kind of arm talent this spring that Notre Dame hasn't had in years.

It's a work in progress, but this group is very talented and the potential is through the roof. The margin for error expanded this spring thanks to the development of the young talent.

3. TIGHT END

Young tight ends Eli Raridon (9) and Cooper Flanagan (87) help form on the best TE units in college football / Angela Driskell, Irish Breakdown

Notre Dame's tight ends had an impressive spring despite the absence of Mitchell Evans, who is expected to be one of the top players in the country at his position. An argument could be made that this group should be ranked higher, but the checkered injury history at the position is what gives me pause. Evans is a big and smooth tight end with excellent ball skills, which resulted in him making multiple highlight reel grabs last season. He was on pace to be one of the three most productive tight ends in the country last season before a knee injury ended his season. It marked the second straight season that Evans missed a big chunk of the season with an injury.

Getting Evans back to full strength, and keeping him that way, is key to this unit not only moving up the list, but having a chance to be considered one of the best - if not the very best - tight end room in college football. With Evans out, sophomore Cooper Flanagan got a lot of reps this spring, and he performed well. Flanagan could start for at least half of Notre Dame's 2024 opponents. Consistency from a technical standpoint is still needed from Flanagan, but he'll be a factor for Notre Dame in 2024.

Junior Eli Raridon was a bit limited this spring as the staff worked to keep him healthy after back-to-back knee injuries. Him ending spring healthy was the biggest win he could have, but even in limited reps Raridon showed he has loads of talent. He is big and athletic, and this spring he showed he's starting to get his speed back. If Raridon can get back to what he was before the knee injuries he'll be a star player at Notre Dame, and we'll start to see that this season.

If that wasn't enough, freshman Jack Larsen showed off an advanced feel for the game this spring, and he's already starting to fill out. There have been many seasons in the last decade where he would have a chance to play immediately. I'm also impressed by what I've seen from walk-on Henry Garrity.

4. OFFENSIVE LINE

Notre Dame guard Billy Schrauth had a breakout spring for the Irish offense / Angela Driskell, Irish Breakdown

Yes, the offensive line is very much a work in progress, and two position battles will likely be carried into the fall. But I'm actually encouraged by what I saw from the offensive line this spring. Battling against a talented defensive line and a defense that employs an aggressive blitzing scheme is good for this unit. It forces the young linemen to grow up in a hurry, and exposes any holes the unit has, making it easier to know what to address during the summer and fall.

Junior right guard Billy Schrauth and junior center Ashton Craig finished the 2023 season as the starters, and both showed they have those positions locked down this spring. Schrauth made big strides and Craig is developing more consistency. Left tackle Charles Jagusah is still up-and-down, but when he's up his ability to dominate in the run game and engulf edge rushers gives him star potential. This trio gives the offensive line a great deal of promise, and all three made strides during the spring.

Notre Dame has to get better at left guard, and I'm far more confident in that happening now than I was when spring camp started. Moving Rocco Spindler to left guard to battle with Pat Coogan is why I have that level of confidence. If Spindler can carry over his strong spring finish into the fall he'll have a great shot to not only win the job, but develop into a dominant run game blocker. If Coogan wins the job it will likely mean he's shown much-needed improvement from last season. Either way, this position should be much better in 2024, and we saw that potential this spring.

Right tackle is the biggest question mark up front, and arguably for the entire offense. We saw Tosh Baker have a solid bowl game performance, but he was still too inconsistent as a pass blocker this spring. Baker needs to learn to play with more force and consistent pad level. Right tackle Aamil Wagner was up-and-down all spring, but he graded out as the team's best blocker in the Blue-Gold Game. Notre Dame needs one of these two players, or possibly sophomore Sullivan Absher, to lock down this position in the fall.

5. WIDE RECEIVERS

Sophomore Jaden Greathouse had an outstanding spring for Notre Dame / Angela Driskell, Irish Breakdown

The wide receiver room showed growth this spring, but it's still a unit that has a lot to prove. You could make a case they need to rank above the offensive line, but there's still a lot we don't know about this group. We went through the spring with no Beaux Collins or Jordan Faison, Jayden Thomas was injured most of the spring and Jayden Harrison also missed half the spring with an injury.

A breakout from Jaden Greathouse was the biggest takeaway from the spring, and that alone moved the needle with this group. Transfer Kris Mitchell also showed promise this spring as he continues learning the offense. Freshman Micah Gilbert also showed promise this spring and actually ended the spring in the top spot at the boundary spot. Freshman Cam Williams missed the spring game and his game is still raw, but he also showed his talent is immense. Sophomore KK Smith also showed playmaking ability this spring, and Faison's return this summer will provide the wideouts with a boost.

Those are all positives to take out of the spring, and they give the unit a good start, but if the wideouts are going to play at a championship level another big jump is needed. The boundary position remains a question mark, and the hope is Collins can help there, Gilbert can continue emerging and one of the two veterans - Thomas or Deion Colzie - can have a breakout.

Greathouse proved he has big time ability, but Notre Dame needs other players to step up and show more if the offense is going to play championship football. They are well ahead of where they were when spring began, but another jump is needed in the fall. Loads of potential exists in this room, and the next four months will tell us if the potential will turn into top level production.

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