Notre Dame Has Some Important Quarterback Decisions To Make
Notre Dame is down a quarterback after rising junior Tyler Buchner announced his decision to enter the transfer portal. Buchner clearly lost out to Sam Hartman in the battle for the starting job, which caused him to make the decision to enter the portal.
Losing Buchner puts Notre Dame in a position where it must make some decisions at quarterback. All of the options have merit, but they also present potential risks. The Irish staff must figure out what its next move will be and then do what it can to mitigate the risks.
HOLD STEADY
The reason Notre Dame must consider making a decision is that right now they only have three scholarship quarterbacks on the roster. Those three signal callers are obviously Hartman, and then sophomore Steve Angeli and freshman Kenny Minchey. Four scholarship quarterbacks is the ideal number, especially considering the lack of experience behind Hartman.
Notre Dame's first option could be to simply hold steady and go into the 2023 season with just three scholarship quarterback and walk-on Dylan Devezin.
The benefit is that it ensures that Angeli and Minchey get more reps this summer and in fall camp, which could help them develop a bit faster. Having another quarterback behind Hartman could mean they earn less reps, and at least one would then be forced to be the scout team quarterback. If they don't add another quarterback the odds are both will spend much of their time with the "varsity" offense.
The danger, however, is that Notre Dame is now an injury away from having a walk-on as the third string quarterback. No matter who earns the backup job, that player will have almost no experience. Angeli played just seven snaps last season and he didn't throw a pass, while Minchey is a true freshman.
This is a risky move and is unlikely to be the ideal option. Notre Dame might not be able to add a new quarterback and this is how things end up, but I doubt it's the ideal scenario.
RECRUIT BUCHNER BACK
Buchner noted in his social media release that he spoke with head coach Marcus Freeman, and that returning to Notre Dame was an option. The odds of Buchner returning seem quite slim, but it's an option that must be addressed.
Freeman, offensive coordinator Gerad Parker and quarterbacks coach Gino Guidugli could attempt to recruit Buchner to re turn to the team. His decision to bail out of the quarterback competition, to me, ensures what was already inevitable, and that is Hartman will be the starter for 2023.
The selling point for Freeman and his staff is that Buchner is just an injury away from being "the guy" in 2023, and he's in place to be that player in 2024 and 2025, should he stay. Hartman is done after this season, so Buchner would clearly be the guy to take over in 2024 even with the arrival of five-star CJ Carr.
Buchner already knows this, however, which makes it unlikely that he returns. Perhaps he doesn't like his options once he gets out there, but that is unlikely. I do believe this would be the ideal situation for Notre Dame as long as his teammates are willing to embrace that return. If the players signed off on it there is no better option for the program, or for Buchner in my opinion, then for him to decide staying at Notre Dame is what's best for him.
Should Buchner decide to return it would once again make the Notre Dame quarterback room deep and talented, and their backup quarterback would be a talented player coming off a Gator Bowl MVP performance. It would also mean the Irish are in position to stay away from the portal in 2024, assuming everyone else returns.
GO BACK TO THE PORTAL
Notre Dame could also consider going back to the portal to improve the depth in 2023 and possibly again in 2024.
For 2023, Notre Dame could consider trying to find a quarterback that is comfortable coming in and being a backup to Hartman. That player would obviously step into the starting lineup should Hartman go down. Finding a player willing to accept that role, and also talented enough to win a game could be quite challenging.
Notre Dame could reach out to former Cincinnati quarterback Ben Bryant, who Guidugli coached this past season. Would Bryant be okay being a backup to Hartman? That I do not know the answer to, but it would at least be worth trying to find out that answer.
The advantage to landing this type of player would be obvious, and that is it would add experience to the depth chart behind Hartman. If you land a player with multiple seasons of eligibility it would eliminate any need to dip into the portal again next year.
The disadvantage would be if the player is simply adding an experience upgrade, and not a talent upgrade over Angeli and Minchey it could stunt their development. Hartman is done after 2023, and if Angeli or Minchey are going to win that job they would benefit greatly from the practice reps they would receive as the backup to Hartman.
Stunting their development could force Notre Dame into dipping back into the portal for a starter in 2024, which isn't ideal. If they land a veteran that is okay not getting as many reps it would ease some of that problem, but why would a player want to step into that scenario? It would also greatly decrease the odds that the player added has the talent to really help if his name is called. If you could find a Hunter Johnson type of situation that would be ideal, but that type of player being out there is unlikely.
If you'll recall, Johnson transferred back to Clemson this past season to simply provide depth if needed, but the decision was more about Johnson helping the team and using it as an experience that would help him getting into a coaching career. This kind of option just doesn't make a lot of sense and doesn't really address the issue. At that point it would be better to just let the younger players and Devezin look to fill things out.
2024 QB OPTIONS
Notre Dame not only needs to make a decision about its 2023 quarterback depth chart, it must now find some answers in 2024. Hartman is done after 2023 and now the Irish won't have Buchner. That means they'll once again have just three scholarship quarterbacks in 2024 with Minchey, Angeli and 2024 commit CJ Carr battling it out.
Notre Dame could consider looking for another Hartman/Jack Coan type to bridge the gap to the 2025 starter, which would likely be Carr or Minchey.
Another option would be for the staff to consider bringing in another 2024 quarterback. It would have to sit down with Carr and make sure he understands what they would be looking for, and the staff would have to be smart about who it adds. The ideal scenario would be looking for a "program" type of quarterback, which is a young man with enough talent to help the room have competent depth, but also a player that understands that Carr is the future at the position.
I actually think this option might be the ideal scenario. Notre Dame could even enlist Carr in helping find this player based on all his experience being around other 2024 quarterbacks on the 7-on-7 circuit and at the Elite 11 events the last two seasons.
RE-ENGAGE CARR ABOUT RECLASSIFYING
Notre Dame initially had some conversations about Carr reclassifying and showing up in 2023. It never went very far, as Carr seems adamant about being with his Saline (Mich.) High school team for his senior season.
Buchner leaving could change the dynamic, as Carr coming early could give him a better chance at being in position to be the starter in 2024. I'm torn on this option. Carr playing his senior season would be a wonderful personal experience for him and it would allow him to play with his teammates one final time.
Reclassifying would take away that opportunity for Carr, but it would also allow him to be part of the Notre Dame program for a year. This would allow Carr to learn the offense, be in the Notre Dame strength program, possibly get some mop up opportunities and then go into next spring in a more legitimate situation to compete for the starting job.
I have no idea if Carr would be open to this, and it's definitely not something Notre Dame should push for if Carr doesn't want to do it, but I think it would at least be worth discussing with him now that the quarterback room has been shaken up in this manner. Notre Dame could then try and find a 2024 quarterback to help fill out the depth chart.
None of these options are no-brainers, and all come with risk for either Notre Dame or the players involved. This isn't an easy fix for Notre Dame, but with as many options at their disposal it does give the Irish a chance to find a fix.
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