Notre Dame Football Defense Preview 2024: Irish Among Nation's Best Again

The Notre Dame defense was one of the nation's best last season. In 2024 it should be every bit as strong.

Oct 14, 2023; South Bend, Indiana, USA; Notre Dame Fighting Irish head coach Marcus Freeman celebrates with safety Xavier Watts (0) after Watts intercepted a pass in the first quarter against the USC Trojans at Notre Dame Stadium. Notre Dame won 48-20. Mandatory Credit: Matt Cashore-USA TODAY Sports / Matt Cashore-USA TODAY Sports

Notre Dame Football Preview 2024: Defense

Note: This is adapted from the CollegeFootballNews.com preview, taking a generalized view for a more national audience. We'll break down the 2024 Irish in far more granular detail here over the coming weeks as we ramp up to the start of the season.

- Al Golden is a whale of a defensive coordinator. The mediocre run at Miami - 32-25 in 4.5 years as the head man - overshadowed the success he had building up Temple into a winner for a few seasons.

After a few years as an NFL assistant, he came aboard at Notre Dame in 2022, and the defense went from 43rd in the nation to 21st in his first season, and then to fifth last year.

The pass defense gave up 14 touchdowns but picked off 14 passes and was third in the nation in yards allowed.

The run defense allowed fewer than three yards per carry six times, the pass rush was fine, and the 24 takeaways mattered.
Six starters have to be replaced, but there’s a whopper of a recruiting class coming in to boost the depth, and a few transfers are filling in the gaps, starting with …

Notre Dame 2024 Preview: Defensive Line

- The pass rush lost a few parts, but it’s not a problem with the pressure coming from several spots. Jordan Botelho is a big end who can get behind the line, but is best holding up against the run. Duke transfer RJ Oben is the key to the pressure, coming in after making 14.5 sacks and 20 tackles for loss over the last three seasons.

The tackles are terrific. Howard Cross - second on the team in tackles with 66 - and Rylie Mills aren’t huge, but they hold up, can move, and they should stay fresh with veterans Donovan Hinish and Jason Onye experienced enough to play bigger roles. Running inside on the Irish will be a problem.



Notre Dame 2024 Preview: Linebackers

-Leading tackler JD Bertrand is done from the linebacking corps after leading the team with 76 stops, Drayk Bowen is a slightly bigger option for the middle. He got in a little work last season, but he should be a statistical star.

The developed depth is thin, and Jaylen Sneed has to step up on the outside after making 14 stops in limited time. However, Jack Kiser - 185 tackles in the last four seasons - is a strong veteran to work around somewhere on the outside.

Notre Dame 2024 Preview: Secondary

- If the secondary isn’t the team’s biggest strength, it’s close. It lost corner Cam Hart to the Los Angeles Chargers, and safeties DJ Brown and Thomas Harper are done after combining for 86 tackles, but again, this bunch is good.

Benjamin Morrison is one of the nation’s top corners and a big-time pro prospect. He picked off nine passes and broke up 14 over his first two years. Now it’s up to Jaden Mickey to hold up on the other side - teams will stay away from Morrison.

Xavier Watts is a do-it-all safety who picked off seven passes last season and was fourth on the team with 52 stops.

Sixth-year senior Jordan Clark comes in from Arizona State after making 97 stops with 13 broken-up passes over the last two seasons, and Rod Heard will push for a spot after coming up with 194 career tackles with ten tackles for loss and eight broken-up passes for Northwestern.

Notre Dame Preview 2024
Notre Dame Football Preview 2024
Offense Preview: Irish O Will Take Off
Special Teams Preview: Kickers Have to Come Through
Keys to the Season: Top Player, Game, Transfer
Win Total Prediction: What to Expect This Season