Marcus Freeman Expects The Notre Dame Receivers To Make Major Improvement
Heading into the 2023 season the biggest question mark on the Notre Dame offense is the wide receiver group. The lack of returning production and the lack of a proven number one has some questioning if there will be enough weapons for quarterback Sam Hartman.
The concern is that while the offense has improved at quarterback and should still be good up front and at running back, the lack of weapons on the perimeter could be limiting to the offense in the big games.
Those were issues last season as well, and for at least half the season the Irish receivers struggled. Although the unit improved quite a bit during the second half of the season, Notre Dame must replace its top wideout from a season ago (Braden Lenzy) and must also replace regular starter Lorenzo Styles.
Notre Dame's wideouts returned 79 career catches for 1,074 yards and seven touchdowns last season, and the proven production isn't much better this year. Notre Dame's wideouts head into the 2023 season with 101 career catches for 1,180 yards and 10 scores.
Despite the lack of proven production, Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman expects the unit to be much, much better, and it starts with coaching. Freeman praised position coach Chansi Stuckey before talking about what he sees from his players.
Of course, the player with the most returning pass game production wasn't even a wideout until the spring. That would be converted running back Chris Tyree, who impressed the Irish head coach.
Overall, Freeman likes the talent, potential and diversity of skills his receivers possess, especially with the added experienced they gained last season, even if the numbers don't reflect it.
"Chris Tyree's been a huge improvement," Freeman told Irish Breakdown. "Jayden Thomas, JT is not a rookie anymore. He's not a second year player, and Tobias Merriweather, he's not the freshman everybody wants to play more and more, but doesn't execute what we want. He's another year in the system and understands the expectations.
"We have that length with Deion Colzie," continued Freeman. "We have length, the confidence. That was something that we talked about in spring is that you still had a new quarterback in Hartman, so the timing and trust wasn't there, but it's, it's just continuously improved."
Freeman also praised the spring performance of the freshman class of Jaden Greathouse, Rico Flores Jr. and Braylon James, and the Irish also welcomed Kaleb Smith this spring.
"I think they will all play, they'll all help us," Freeman said of the freshman class. "The depth is better, so I feel good about it."
The nature of Notre Dame's offense in 2022, from both an emphasis on the run game standpoint, the lack of production from the quarterback position and the emphasis of Michael Mayer in the pass game kept the Irish receivers from producing at a higher level.
Despite the lack of touches, Freeman was impressed with the willingness of the wideouts to take pride in the dirty work.
"If our offense (last season), a lot of it was predicated at. 'Hey, if Mayer's one-on-one, throw it to him," Freeman explained. "That was tough for our wideouts. That's a tough position, because you can do everything right and get no reward for it."
Hartman's arrival has changed things for the wideouts during the spring. Over the last two seasons, no quarterback in college football attempted or completed more deep balls (20 yards or more past the line) than did Hartman. The wideouts will be the main beneficiary of that.
"Now it's like, 'Hey, I'm going to do everything right, I'm at least going to get the ball," noted the Irish head coach. "I think now Sam has the confidence in multiple positions to go through progression."
Hartman's confidence in the wideouts grew throughout the spring, and that is a big reason he finished the spring on such a high note.
"The best two practices he had was the Jersey scrimmage and then the spring game," Freeman explained. "He was throwing the ball around to whoever was open, and I just think he's gained confidence in our offensive scheme, in our players and even himself in terms of having confidence that we're going to make the plays that he produces up there."
Part of the optimism within the Notre Dame program is certainly about Hartman, but it's also a lot about the expectations that Notre Dame's wideouts will turn their potential into production.
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