It’s no secret that most people expect Notre Dame to have a very good defense heading into the 2024 season. Al Golden is back for year three, and he has a lot of talent to work with this fall. From Irish fans to national pundits, most believe the unit will be amongst the best in college football.
A big reason for that optimism are three big keys. Here are the strengths the unit has coming into the fall. It should allow them to sustain the success they saw in 2023.
It’s pretty crazy to consider how far the Notre Dame secondary has come. What was once a weakness of the team, has now become a big strength for the Irish. They are led by a couple of big time talents in cornerback Benjamin Morrison and safety Xavier Watts. That duo combined for 10 interceptions, 14 pass breakups, 6.5 tackles for loss and an interception.
That tandem has an argument as the top secondary duo in college football returning in 2024. The scary part is that Notre Dame is also very deep on the back end. That includes cornerback Christian Gray, who has superstar upside. Teams might target No. 29 a decent amount this season, which the Irish should be excited about with his ball skills. Add in players like Adon Shuler, Rod Heard, Jordan Clark, Leonard Moore and Luke Talich , and you have some impressive depth to work with.
Like the secondary transformation, something similar has occurred up front defensively. Notre Dame arguably has the best interior duo returning this season with Howard Cross III and Rylie Mills. Those two combined for 113 total tackles, 12.5 tackles for loss and 4.5 sacks. There is some younger talent behind those two that have potential as well.
The edge group is also very, very deep. Notre Dame is expecting former Duke transfer RJ Oben to bolster that group, while also hoping that Jordan Botelho takes a nice step. If he doesn’t, you have players like Boubacar Traore, Joshua Burnham and Bryce Young to get more opportunities. It’s an embarrassment of riches coming off the edge.
The linebacker position has some questions, strictly from a playing experience perspective. For what they lack in experience, the Notre Dame linebackers make up for with explosiveness, range and length. They will have a ton of that this season.
Jack Kiser is the elder statesman of the group, but is a good athlete. The younger group of Drayk Bowen, Jaylen Sneed, Jaiden Ausberrya and Kyngstonn Viliamu-Asa is really impressive. That is an explosive group with infinite upside. I’m excited to see all five run around next Saturday.
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