Notre Dame QB Riley Leonard: Why Irish Fans Should Be Worried

Notre Dame Fighting Irish on SI recently ranked Riley Leonard's five best games in three years at Duke. Rich Cirminiello tells us what this list might mean for Leonard's debut season in South Bend.

Notre Dame quarterback Riley Leonard (13) at Notre Dame spring football practice Thursday, March 7, 2024, at the Irish Athletics Center in South Bend. / GREG SWIERCZ / USA TODAY NETWORK

New Notre Dame QB Riley Leonard certainly had his moments in three seasons as a Duke Blue Devil. The Fairhope, Ala. native started 21 games in Durham and showcased unique dual-threat ability for a 6-4, 212-pounder. He was also a team captain and one of the main reasons the Blue Devils turned things around under Mike Elko.

But I recently looked at Leonard's five best games at Duke (I dropped a link to that article just below). And what I found could be cause for concern as he enters his first season in South Bend. These five games uncovered what's missing from Leonard's resume and what could get exposed now that he's making a big step up in weight class.

Notre Dame QB Riley Leonard: 5 Best Games at Duke

Big Takeaways From Riley Leonard's Best Games at Duke

1. Soft Competition

Leonard's best games were against Temple, North Carolina, Boston College, Virginia Tech, Wake Forest, and Northwestern. Not exactly a Murderers' Row of defenses. There's no signature moment against an elite D. And versus Clemson, ND, Florida State, and Louisville last year, Leonard completed just 45-of-99 passes for 499 yards, 1 TD and 1 pick.

2. Road Struggles

Yeah, every QB is better at home, but it might be a red flag that all five of Leonard's best games were at Wallace Wade Stadium. In fact, on the road during his career all of his production plummets -- completion %, yards per attempt, QB rating, and yards per carry. Remember, ND opens at Texas A&M (GULP).

3. Best Games Were in 2022

Leonard was peaking in November of his sophomore year, accounting for 13 TDs in the final four regular season games. While last year was supposed to be his breakout time, it never happened. Of course, he was limited by the bum ankle in Week 5, but he was hardly lighting it up before that point. Remove the Lafayette game and his passer rating for the season was a brutal 107.7.

4. Plenty to Prove as a Passer

What happens when defenses take away Leonard's legs? Can he deliver consistently as a pocket passer? He has yet to show he can be that guy, especially against tougher teams. In 17 career games against ACC opponents, he completed just 57.7% of his throws, and his passer rating of 119.4 would have ranked him 95th in the FBS a year ago.