Ranking The Irish: #17 - WR Javon McKinley

Breaking down expectations and potential for Notre Dame receiver Javon McKinley in 2020

The Top 25 players for Notre Dame in 2020 continues with a look at fifth-year senior receiver Javon McKinley.

This analysis for the Top 25 Irish players is a combination of talent, expected production, importance of that player’s role and also the value the player brings. The value aspect includes the position played and also the depth chart, meaning who can the Irish least afford to lose.

Let's look at why McKinley needs to be a top player for Notre Dame:

MAKING THE CASE

McKinley came to Notre Dame ranked as one of the top wide receivers in the country. Rivals ranked him as the 59th best overall player in the 2016 class after he dominated in his final two prep seasons. As a junior, McKinley hauled in over 50 passes for over 1,000 yards and more than 10 touchdowns ….. just in the playoffs!

McKinley was a top-notch pass catcher with excellent ball skills and a savvy route running skillset that made him hard to defend.

The California native has yet to turn his talent and high prep ranking into production. He made his first career catch in 2019, and while he showed some impressive moments in wins over Bowling Green and New Mexico, McKinley caught just 11 passes for 268 yards.

There were two reasons that give me reason to believe McKinley could have a similar senior year leap that we saw from Miles Boykin, who entered the 2018 season with just 18 career catches.

One was that four of his 11 catches went for touchdowns, and getting into the end zone was something McKinley thrived at in high school. Two was that even though his opportunities against the better teams were rare, he did show off enough one-on-one ability to remind me of what I thought he would be when he arrived at Notre Dame.

Consider this catch against All-ACC cornerback Caleb Farley:

McKinley has the physical tools to be an effective boundary player in the Irish offense. He’s physical, he can win contested routes and his athleticism is underrated. In each of the last two seasons, sources very close to the situation would mention to me behind the scenes that there were stretches where McKinley was Notre Dame’s best receiver in practice.

The talent is there, and if McKinley can show it consistently he could end his career with a very impressive campaign.

AREAS FOR IMPROVEMENT

There are really two things that have kept McKinley from doing more. Injuries and consistency.

McKinley has struggled to stay on the field throughout his career due to a number of different injuries. Even last season, McKinley’s promising season was cut short by another injury, and he missed the final four games of the season. If he can’t stay healthy you can’t depend on him as a coach, or a quarterback.

Consistency has been the other issue. The same source that said there were stretches where McKinley was the team’s best wideout also said the issue was he would then either get injured, or would disappear in other stretches.

McKinley needs to bring consistency to the practice field and stay on the field if he’s going to have an impact. If he does that do not be surprised if he is a big part of the Irish offense.

Past Breakdowns:

#25 - Third Linebacker
#24 - Kurt Hinish, DT
#23 - Jonathan Doerer, PK
#22 - Lawrence Keys III, WR
#21 - Shaun Crawford, CB
#20 - TaRiq Bracy, CB
#19 - Jafar Armstrong, RB
#18 - Houston Griffith, S

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