Notre Dame Stars Named to Bruce Feldman's 2024 'Freaks' List

Notre Dame DT Rylie Mills and WR Beaux Collins have been named to Bruce Feldman's 2024 College Football Freaks List, a collection of the most athletically gifted players in the country.

Defensive lineman Rylie Mills during Notre Dame football fall camp Thursday, July 27, 2023, at the Irish Athletics Center in South Bend. / Greg Swiercz / USA TODAY NETWORK

Each August for the past 20 years, The Athletic's Bruce Feldman has meticulously pieced together his "Freaks List", a well sourced homage to the most phsyically gifted athletes in all of college football. Think of it as the perfect NFL Combine preview that details the intricate speed, strength, and explosiveness measurements that qualify for inclusion in the freakiest list in college sports.

Feldman's list, which began with just 10 players in 2005, has expanded in recent years to 100. The 2024 edition includes two Fighting Irish seniors, DT Rylie Mills and WR Beaux Collins, a newcomer who transferred in from Clemson. Mills is making a repeat appearance on the list, ranking No. 27 overall this year. This is what Feldman had to say about the Lake Bluff, Il. native:

"The Irish have a lot of talent on their defense and Mills (No. 10 on the Freaks List in 2023) and another freaky big man (who vertical jumps an impressive 32 inches weighing 290 pounds) anchor a very disruptive front. The 6-5 Mills had 47 tackles last season with 5.5 TFLs, 2.5 sacks and two recovered fumbles. He’s down 11 pounds from last year, to 295, but benches almost the same as he used to (445 pounds) and squats 580. This offseason, he vertical-jumped 32 inches and broad-jumped 9-0."

While not ranked in the Top 100, Feldman also made note of Irish LB Jaylen Sneed's explosiveness. The 6-1, 225-pound third-year player from Hilton Head Island, SC posted a vert of 38 1/2 inches and broad-jumped more than 10 feet.

Collins ranks as the 36th most freaky athlete in college football and should be an underrated addition for an Irish receiving corps that already has a high ceiling. Here's what Feldman had to say about Collins:

"The former Clemson receiver who had 91 catches for 1,290 yards and 11 TDs in 32 games (27 starts) with the Tigers should add some juice to the Irish receiving corps. The 6-3, 208-pounder from Los Angeles put up some dazzling numbers during the training program this offseason, vertical-jumping 41 1/2 inches and broad-jumping 10-11 1/2"

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