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Now that the college football rankings have officially put the Notre Dame Fighting Irish at #3 to match the AP and Coaches Polls, we can continue to look towards the Florida State Seminoles, and the possibility of being 10-0.
Notre Dame released their depth chart on Tuesday, and to no one’s surprise... it’s the same as last week.
OFFENSE
Notre Dame *way too early* Depth Chart — Offense
| WR | TE | LT | LG | C | RG | RT | WR | WR | RB | QB |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| WR | TE | LT | LG | C | RG | RT | WR | WR | RB | QB |
| 25 Braden Lenzy | 89 Brock Wright | 74 Liam Eichenberg | 69 Aaron Banks | 55 Jarrett Patterson | 78 Tommy Kraemer | 72 Robert Hainsey | 13 Lawrence Keys | 4 Kevin Austin | 8 Jafar Armstrong | 12 Ian Book |
| Fr Jordan Johnson | OR 24 Tommy Tremble | 73 Andrew Kristofic | 76 Dillan Gibbons | 61 Colin Grunhard | 56 John Dirksen | 75 Josh Lugg | 18 Joe Wilkins | Tr Ben Skowronek | 34 Jahmir Smith | 7 Brendon Clark |
| - | Fr Michael Mayer | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 20 C'Bo Flemister | Fr Drew Pyne |
| - | OR George Takacs | - | - | - | - | - | - | OR Fr Chris Tyree | - | |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | OR 23 Kyren Williams | - |
The biggest issue here is if the offensive line can improve. It was a pretty poor outing against Northwestern, and if this is the lineup moving forward, they need more focus and improvement to finish the season perfect. They’ll be tested again thios week against the Noles.
DEFENSE
Notre Dame *way too early* Depth Chart — Defense
| CB | FS | ROVER | DE | NG | DT | DE | BUCK | MIKE | SS | CB |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CB | FS | ROVER | DE | NG | DT | DE | BUCK | MIKE | SS | CB |
| 20 Shaun Crawford | 14 Kyle Hamilton | 13 Paul Moala | 9 Daelin Hayes | 41 Kurt Hinish | 95 Myron Tagovailoa-Amosa | 91 Ade Ogundeji | 6 Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah | 40 Drew White | Tr Isaiah Pryor | 28 TaRiq Bracy |
| 16 KJ Wallace | 12 DJ Brown | 24 Jack Kiser | 29 Ovie Oghoufo | 54 Jacob Lacey | 57 Jayson Ademilola | 19 Justin Ademilola | 2 Jordan Genmark Heath | 52 Bo Bauer | 3 Houston Griffith | 15 Isaiah Rutherford |
| 9 Cam Hart | - | - | 94 Isaiah Foskey | 55 Ja'mion Franklin | 90 Hunter Spears | 18 NaNa Osafo-Mensah | - | - | - | 4 Avery Davis |
Jordan Genmark Heath stepped in at BUCK for a hurt Drue Tranquill last week in the base defense, but Tranquill came in when they went to the Nickel. This week, I think we can expect Tranquill to get back to his full-time duties. TaRiq Bracy will probably see a return to action this week, as he missed the last two games on defense. That will allow Julian Love to shift to the NICKEL when needed (although Houston Griffith should still see time there as well).
SPECIAL TEAMS
Notre Dame *way too early* Depth Chart — Special Teams
| KICKOFF | PLACEKICKER | PUNTER | LONG SNAPPER | HOLDER | PUNT RETURNER | KICK RETURNER |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| KICKOFF | PLACEKICKER | PUNTER | LONG SNAPPER | HOLDER | PUNT RETURNER | KICK RETURNER |
| 39 Jonathan Doerer | 39 Jonathan Doerer | 19 Jay Bramblett | Fr Alex Peitsch | 19 Jay Bramblett | 18 Joe Wilkins | 25 Braden Lenzy |
| 98 Harrison Leonard | 98 Harrison Leonard | 98 Harrison Leonard | 65 Michael Vinson | 14 J.D. Carney | 23 Kyren Williams | 20 C'Bo Flemister |
After last week’s performance, you really wish this could be overhauled — but that would only bring worse results. The trio of Justin Yoon, Tyler Newsome, and Jonathan Doerer must find greater consistency, and the players around them have to lock in. There have been far too many “gaffes” this year which have led to points that have kept teams in the game. Reversing that trend this week sounds like a great idea.