Newsstand: ESPN reveals post-spring sleeper candidate for Notre Dame football

The excitement surrounding the upcoming college football season is building, and ESPN added to it on Thursday. Several of the network’s reporters discussed sleepers for each post-spring Top 25 team , including Notre Dame.

In the article, ESPN’s David Hale chose Rylie Mills as a player to watch for the No. 5 Fighting Irish this fall.

“The defensive front for the Irish includes a genuine star in Howard Cross and a big-name transfer in R.J. Oben, but that shouldn’t mean Mills, a fifth-year senior, gets overlooked,” Hale said. “He has played the past four seasons for Notre Dame, racking up 16.5 career tackles for loss. But his impact isn’t always obvious on the stat sheet.

“When he was on the field in 2023, Irish opponents mustered a woeful 4.9 yards per attempt. When the Irish didn’t blitz, opponents averaged over two fewer yards per pass with Mills on the field than when he was absent.”

After a 2023 campaign in which he registered a career-high 47 tackles, MIlls passed on his NFL Draft aspirations to return to the Irish. The 6-foot-5, 295-pounder has played 48 career games for Notre Dame and projects as one of the program’s key contributors for a third consecutive season.

Notre Dame Posts of the Day

Mills threw out the ceremonial first pitch at Sunday’s Chicago White Sox game.

Stand-up comedian Shane Gillis played as the Irish while previewing the soon-to-be-released EA Sports college football game.

Lucedale (Miss.) George County four-star quarterback Deuce Knight , who is verbally committed to the Irish’s 2025 recruiting class, publicized the program’s efforts to land Las Vegas Bishop Gorman four-star wide receiver Derek Meadows .

Notre Dame Quote of the Weekend

“Entering his senior year, his upside is among the highest we’ve seen with the 2025 quarterbacks . We’re excited to see what he looks like this fall and if he can translate the strides he made over to his senior season.”

— On3 director of scouting and rankings Charles Power on Knight.

Notre Dame Headlines of the Weekend

• What we learned about ND from Shane Gillis game play of EA Sports College Football 25
• On3’s Charles Power details why ND commits Deuce Knight and Will Black received rankings bumps
• 48 days until ND football: Can Irish topple USC on the road?
• ND football in review: The best individual Irish performances of 2023
• ND football in review: The top five Fighting Irish plays of 2023
• ND football in review: The top five Fighting Irish players of 2023
• 49 days until ND football: Replacing Javontae Jean-Baptiste

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