Notre Dame Football Sees Two Selected to Outland Trophy Watch List

Notre Dame's defensive line should be one of the best in college football in 2024

Sep 30, 2023; Durham, North Carolina, USA; Duke Blue Devils quarterback Riley Leonard (13) tries to elude Notre Dame Fighting Irish defensive lineman Howard Cross III (56) during the second half at Wallace Wade Stadium. / Jim Dedmon-USA TODAY Sports

Notre Dame football has long been built in the trenches.

Dominate the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball and use that to pave the way to a lot victories.

That's exactly what Notre Dame has done for years and looks to do in 2024.

Tuesday saw the watch list for the Outland Trophy get released with two Notre Dame players making the cut.

Howard Cross III, who graded out as one of the very best defensive linemen in all of college football last year made the list.

Riley Mills, who went from being a freakish body who made occasional plays to a regular playmaker in 2023, also made the list.

Cross had a massive 2023 that saw him receive Second Team All-America honors from a variety of outlets, including the FWAA, Walter Camp, the Associated Press, and The Sporting News. He also was a semifinalist for the Bednarik Award while making 66 tackles, the second most of any Power Five front-four defensive lineman in 2023.

Mills is coming off a breakout year of sorts that saw him start all 13 games for the Irish. His 2023 concluded with 47 tackles, 5.5 tackles for loss, 2.5 sacks, four quarterback hurries, and a pair of recovered fumbles.

Notre Dame had those two make the list but if given the opportunity I would advise the Outland Trophy committee to quickly get an eye on center Ashton Craig. Notre Dame has had very good centers over the years, but Craig's wider build should help him become a very valuable part of Notre Dame's reworked offensive line in short order.

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