Notre Dame QB Riley Leonard Receiving Major Heisman Hype
One of the biggest moves of the entire college football offseason came from the Notre Dame Fighting Irish.
Riley Leonard was landed via the transfer portal from the Duke Blue Devils. With Notre Dame desperately needing a quarterback following the departure of Sam Hartman to the NFL, being able to land a proven player like Leonard will keep the Irish in contention.
Looking ahead at the 2024 season, Notre Dame has the talent to contend at the highest level. If they get the kind of year that they are expecting from Leonard, a trip to the College Football Playoffs are a very real possibility.
Currently, On3 has ranked Leonard as a potential Heisman Trophy candidate. They had a lot of good things to say about the young quarterback.
"He definitely must see a huge uptick in production after totaling just seven touchdowns in an injury-riddled 2023 season, but Leonard will be surrounded by much better talent (especially at offensive line and receiver). Leonard did have 33 total touchdowns in 2022 when he led the Blue Devils to one of their best seasons in school history. If he leads the Irish back to the CFP, then he’ll be on the shortlist of candidates with a spot in New York City."
Leonard is a very dangerous and deceptive dual-threat quarterback. Notre Dame didn't have much mobility last season with Hartman. It will be interesting to see how they utilize that skill-set this year.
Obviously, the biggest key for Leonard to have a productive season in 2024 will be the performance of the offensive line. Too often during his career at Duke, Leonard had to play on the run.
Coming off of a tough season in 2023 due to injury, keeping Leonard upright and healthy will be one of Notre Dame's biggest priorities.
Not only has Leonard found success on the field and is now in a position to truly showcase his talent on a national level, he has also experienced great success in the NIL market.
At this point in time, Leonard is ranked as the No. 26 highest valued NIL athlete, according to the On3 rankings. He has an NIL valuation of $1 million.
The future is very bright for Notre Dame's talented quarterback. If he can put together a big 2024 campaign for the Fighting Irish, the NFL will become a true possiblity.
Ideally for the Irish, Leonard will prove these high expectations right and end up as a finalist for the Heisman Trophy. If that happens, Notre Dame should be in a great position to compete for a championship.
EVAN MASSEY
Evan Massey is a sports reporter and analyst who covers both the NFL and NBA. He has worked for ESPN, Yahoo! Sports, Forbes, Bleacher Report, NFLAnalysis.net, NBAAnalysis.net, and many other publications. In his free time, Evan enjoys spending time with his wife and son.