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It only took five games, but the Notre Dame Fighting Irish depth chart has finally been turned upside down for the upcoming game against the NC State Wolfpack- at least on defense.
| Position | 1st Team | 2nd Team (& OR) |
| Quarterback | DeShone Kizer | Malik Zaire |
| Running Back | Josh Adams | Tarean Folston OR Dexter Williams |
| W Receiver | Equanimeous St. Brown | Miles Boykin OR Chase Claypool |
| X Receiver | Torii Hunter Jr. | Kevin Stepherson |
| Z Receiver | CJ Sanders | Corey Holmes OR Chris Finke |
| Tight End | Durham Smythe | Nic Weishar |
| Left Tackle | Mike McGlinchey | Hunter Bivin |
| Left Guard | Quenton Nelson | Trevor Ruhland |
| Center | Sam Mustipher | Mark Harrell |
| Right Guard | Colin McGovern | Tristan Hoge |
| Right Tackle | Alex Bars | Tommy Kraemer |
| WDE | Andrew Trumbetti | Jay Hayes OR Daelin Hayes |
| Defensive Tackle | Jerry Tillery | Elijah Taylor |
| Nose Guard | Jarron Jones | Daniel cage OR Pete Mokwah |
| SDE | Isaac Rochell | Jonathon Bonner |
| WILL Linebacker | Te'von Coney | Asmar Bilal |
| MIKE Linebacker | Nyles Morgan | Geer Martini |
| SAM Linebacker | James Onwualu | Jamir Jones |
| Left Cornerback | Julian Love | Donte Vaughn |
| Strong Safety | Drue Tranquill | Jalen Elliott |
| Free Safety | Devin Studstill | Nicco Fertitta |
| Right Cornerback | Cole Luke | Troy Pride |
| Place Kicker | Justin Yoon | Tyler Newsome |
| Kickoffs | Tyler Newsome | Justin Yoon |
| Punter | Tyler Newsome | Jeff Riney |
| Long Snapper | Scott Daly | John Shannon |
| Holder | Montgomery VanGorder | DeShone Kizer |
| Punt Return | CJ Sanders | Chris Finke |
| Kickoff Return | CJ Sanders | OR Dexter Williams |
*It’s been a wild week at OFD HQ, so please forgive this late posting on the subject*
Notre Dame is in the middle of a youth movement in their secondary right now. For reasons due to injuries, suspensions, and just poor play, the Fighting Irish are the Fighting Freshmen in the backfield.
While it seems a little scary at first glance, I really like the way some of these guys have played when given a chance- like Donte Vaughn.
Although Devin Studstill is listed as the starter at free safety, he will be suspended for the first half of the NC State game because of the targeting penalty against Syracuse.
While I’m glad to see the shakeup on the back end, I’m almost shocked to continue to see Andrew Trumbetti at the top of the depth chart over Jay and Daelin Hayes. More than any other depth chart decision, this one makes me feel like bashing my head into a wall repeatedly. Like bashing my head into a wall repeatedly. Like bash- SEE?!
One other quick note here, because of Tarean Folston’s injury last week that kept him from playing, we saw more of Dexter Williams. In my opinion, he has looked like the best running back we have when given the chance. I would not be shocked (actually, delighted) if he got the bulk of the carries this week despite Josh Adams still sitting on the top of the depth chart. It’s still somewhat unknown as to how good or poor the field conditions will be on Saturday, and I don’t care how odd this sounds, but I like my running backs from Florida to carry the rock in hurricane weather (or even the edge of hurricane weather).