ND FOOTBALL: Roster turnstile reflects Notre Dame's recent storylines

Dec. 14—SOUTH BEND — As No. 16 Notre Dame (9-3) prepares for its final game of 2023 in the Tony the Tiger Sun Bowl against No. 19 Oregon State (8-4), the transaction log inside the program has not been quiet.

New members to the staff have been named, a highly rated quarterback has landed in South Bend and several others have departed the Irish for greener pastures.

All of that was also said last year, which makes the unfamiliarity of it all become much more familiar in the new transfer-heavy era.

Below is a summary of the latest storylines to come out of South Bend in preparation for the Sun Bowl.

WEALTH OF IRISH pORTAL ENTRIES

Addition and subtraction. Such is the way of the transfer portal.

As of Thursday, Dec. 14, Notre Dame has had 13 scholarship players enter the portal. Some, like starting graduate center Zeke Correll (NC State), starting senior slot receiver Chris Tyree (Virginia) and sophomore lineman Joey Tanona (Purdue) have already found their new homes for 2024. That list also includes graduate defensive end Nana Osafo-Mensah and freshman wide receiver Braylon James who are both headed to TCU.

Other have entered but are still seeking that next home. That dense list includes notable names in sophomore Tobias Merriweather (WR), freshman Rico Flores Jr. (WR), sophomore Holden Staes (TE), graduate Antonio Carter II (S) and senior Michael Carmody (OL). Irish names joining them in the search are senior Aiden Keanaaina (nose tackle), senior Ramon Henderson (S) and junior Ryan Barnes (CB).

That's a hefty loss considering that starters Sam Hartman (QB), Joe Alt (LT), Audric Estime (RB), Blake Fisher (RT), Cam Hart (CB) and Marist Liufau (LB), have all declared for the NFL Draft.

Holes at wide receiver, cornerback and offensive line seem to be the most glaring issues as other 2023 starters ponder their decision which would open other areas to fill for next year.

This might be why the Irish haven't sat back when it comes to using the portal for their own benefit.

LEONARD LEADS NAMES FOR 2024

Experimenting with the one-year transfer quarterback this past season, head coach Marcus Freeman must have been satisfied with Hartman's performance considering who the Irish have already landed for 2024.

Riley Leonard, the starting signal caller for Duke this season, hopped in the portal pretty soon after the Blue Devils regular season concluded. From that point, Leonard was expected to land in South Bend and there were no surprises when the three-year player at Duke used a shamrock emoji to declare Notre Dame as his team for 2024.

Leonard, who passed for 4,450 yards, ran for 1,224 more and totaled 43 touchdowns in his three years under center, should be the favorite to lead the Irish following a quarterback camp with sophomore Steve Angeli (who will start the Sun Bowl), Kenny Minchey and incoming freshman C.J. Carr.

A more mobile quarterback than Hartman, Leonard brings a bit more of a ground game will less accuracy than Hartman. Fitting the current junior inside Notre Dame's pro-style offense will be the trick and that's where Notre Dame's other additions come in.

Junior Beaux Collins (Clemson) and graduate Kris Mitchell (Florida International) are the pair of wideouts headed toward South Bend next season. Considering Notre Dame's struggles in 2023 at the position and the loss of providers in the portal, Collins (510 yards, 3 TDs) and Mitchell (1,118 yards, 7 TDs) are two promising aspects of a new wide receiver room for next season.

Graduate Jordan Clark (CB, Arizona State), Junior R.J. Oben (DE, Duke) and sophomore Mitch Jeter (K, South Carolina) round out the rest of Notre Dame's current additions from the portal. It's unlikely that the Irish are done with their additions, but the starting haul is promising despite the limited amount of eligibility remaining for the new names.

WIDEOUTS FIND NEW LEADER

Following the lone staff shakeup so far, Notre Dame announced the replacement for ex-wide receiver coach Chansi Stuckey this past Sunday.

Mike Brown, who has immediately begun working with the wide receivers in preparation for the bowl game against Oregon State, will be watching over the wideouts in 2024.

Brown is a familiar face to Freeman. The pair worked together at Cincinnati, where he spent three seasons as the Bearcats wide receiver coach, before following head coach Luke Fickell to Wisconsin. After a year with the Badgers, Brown is now following Freeman and taking over the Irish's unit in need of patching up 2023's shortcomings.

No Irish wide receiver reached past 500 yards receiving for the second-straight season. This year, the room endured several lingering injuries to its top targets and made having a reliable unit on Saturday's a guessing game.

Brown was an All-American himself during his playing career at Liberty, winning the award twice with the Flames.

Notre Dame's bowl game against Oregon State on Dec. 29 will be the fifth bowl game that Brown has coached in.

Reach Matt Lucas at 574-533-2151, ext. 240325, or at matt.lucas@goshennews.com.