Notre Dame Football 2024: Things I'm Excited For - Overall Defense

Notre Dame's defense should be one of college football's very best in 2024

Oct 14, 2023; South Bend, Indiana, USA; USC Trojans quarterback Caleb Williams (13) is tackled by Notre Dame Fighting Irish linebacker Jaylen Sneed (3) and defensive lineman Howard Cross III (56) in the fourth quarter at Notre Dame Stadium. Notre Dame won 48-20. / Matt Cashore-USA TODAY Sports

We're still a few weeks from preseason college football polls being officially released but that doesn't mean excitement for the season isn't growing on just about every college campus nationally.

That's no different at Notre Dame where the Fighting Irish will undoubtedly be in the nation's top-10 to start the season.  Notre Dame has a new veteran quarterback in Riley Leonard and as exciting as that is, it's not the thing I'm most excited for regarding this team.

Notre Dame's defense has the chance to be downright scary in 2024.

Not just good and not just really good, but scary good.

Notre Dame Defense 2024 - Starts up Front

With any defense Notre Dame's will ultimately only be as good as its defensive line is.

The good news is that Notre Dame should feature one of the nation's very best defensive fronts.

Howard Cross III is coming off a year in which he played as well as any nose guard nationally and has an ever-improving backup in Gabriel Rubio who returns after sitting out the spring session.  Riley Mills took on a bigger role last season.  Mills could break out in his final year of eligibility and has a freakish body-type at 6-5, 295-pounds.  

On the edges are transfer defensive end RJ Oben who should offer at least what Javonte Jean-Baptiste offered at the end a year ago.  Jordan Botelho returns at the vyper spot even if he plays at the same level he did a year ago, this unit should be ahead of the very good place it spent 2023.

Notre Dame Linebacker Depth Grows

Senior linebacker Jack Kiser moves from being the rover to the weak side this season.  Kiser has been a mainstay on Notre Dame's defense in recent years and finds himself in a role that will put him on the field a good amount more in 2024.

In the middle, sophomore Drayk Bowen was the winner of the Butkus Award as the nation's top high school linebacker just two years ago.  With JD Bertrand off to the NFL, Bowen will have his chance to shine, but will be pushed immediately by incoming freshman Kyngstonn Viliamu-Asa.  Viliamu-Asa has a chance to be the next truly great Notre Dame linebacker at a place that has seen several in recent years.

Junior Jaylen Sneed has been a playmaker in small roles his first two years on campus but has the chance to be one of the nation's biggest breakout stars in 2024.  Sneed projects to start at the rover position and will see his most playing time to date.

Notre Dame Home to Nation's Best Secondary?

How many times could you look at a specific unit of a defense, see the reigning national defensive player of the year, and feel confident in saying he's not even the best player on that defense's unit?

That's the case with safety Xavier Watts, winner of the 2023 Bronko Nagurski Award for the nation's top defender.  Watts transitioned to defense after starting his Notre Dame career as a wide receiver but showed out last year in the biggest of ways.

Cornerback Benjamin Morrison is back for his junior year, which by all assumptions will be his final at Notre Dame.  The former freshman All-American projects to be a first round talent in next year's NFL draft and is on the shortest of lists when it comes to the best cornerbacks in the country.  The only worry with Morrison is how quickly he'll be back to his elite form after undergoing shoulder surgery and missing much of the spring.

Sophomore Jaden Mickey will start at the other cornerback position, something he probably would have done at almost all other Power Five programs in 2023.  Former Northwestern standout Rod Heard II adds versatility that will make it very fun to see how veteran defensive coordinator Al Golden uses him.

Put It All Together for Notre Dame

Add this altogether and you can see why its by no means a reach to view this as one of the nation's absolute best defenses entering 2024.

The defensive front was one of the nation's best a year ago, returns its biggest contributors, and in a couple of places could actually be better.

The linebackers lose veteran Bertrand to the Atlanta Falcons but the talent and depth across the position is remarkable.  This unit appears to be the weakest of the three levels on paper, but when it's all said and done, could ultimately be home to the most talent of any defensive group.

If the secondary doesn't enter 2024 being viewed as the nation's best it isn't very far down on the list.  Multiple All-American candidates are on it while skilled veterans and talented up-and-comers fill it out.

With a defense this good it's incredibly difficult to not start buying into Notre Dame in a big way in 2024, even if the Fighting Irish offense has catching up to do.

See Notre Dame's Projected Defensive Depth Chart Ahead of 2024 Season

See Notre Dame's Projected Offensive Depth Chart Ahead of 2024 Season