No. 7 Notre Dame leaning heavily on new QB Riley Leonard to make expanded playoff field

SOUTH BEND, Ind. (AP) — Coach Marcus Freeman begins his third season at Notre Dame in a familiar spot. He has another new starting quarterback and another new offensive coordinator.

Changes in the college football landscape — the expanded 12-team playoff field and a veteran quarterback at the helm — could put the seventh-ranked Fighting Irish back in national championship contention. And they will find out quickly exactly where they stand.

Riley Leonard, a transfer from Duke, is expected to make his Notre Dame debut Aug. 31 at No. 20 Texas A&M.

“The best thing is he’s taking care of the football,” Freeman said of his third different opening-day starter. “We know he can do some things with his legs, but we’ve kind of forced him (to focus on the passing game). We’ve said, ’Hey, we know you can run the ball. Let’s continue to watch you progress in the passing game, making checks, being able to put the offense in great situations.’”

Notre Dame followed a similar plan last season when former Wake Forest quarterback Sam Hartman led the Irish to a 10-3 mark with a final ranking of No. 14 while averaging 39.1 points per game. Hartman signed with the NFL’s Washington Commanders when his eligibility ran out and last year’s offensive coordinator, Gerad Parker, is now the head coach at Troy.

Still, Freeman isn’t exactly starting over. He brought in Leonard, who hopes to make an impact similar to Hartman, and hired Mike Denbrock from LSU, where he oversaw the top offense in the Bowl Subdivision and played a critical role in Jayden Daniels’ Heisman Trophy-winning season.

Leonard’s strong start pushed the Blue Devils into the top 20 before an injured right ankle, suffered in a loss to Notre Dame and that required two offseason surgeries, hindered the rest of his season.

The result: Leonard threw for just 1,102 yards with three touchdowns and three interceptions while rushing for 352 yards and four scores in 2023 compared with 2,967 yards passing, 699 yards rushing and 33 total TDs in 2022.

Now, though, Leonard appears to be healthy. Plus, he’ll have a stronger supporting cast.

Clemson transfer Beaux Collins and FIU transfer Kris Mitchell will team up with talented returnees Jayden Thomas, Jaden Greathouse and Jordan Faison to form a deep, dangerous receiving corps. The Irish are also banking on Jeremiyah Love and Jadarian Price to replace running back Audric Estime.

Defensively, the Irish will be led by All-American safety Xavier Watts, defensive tackle Howard Cross II and cornerback Benjamin Morrison. Watts intercepted seven passes last season while Morrison has nine over the last two years.

Familiar foe

Leonard will see a familiar face on the sideline at Texas A&M in coach Mike Elko, who also left Duke to take the Aggies job. Though Leonard would rather the focus be on the game rather than the head-to-head matchup, he knows what to expect.

“Obviously, it’s going to be that way,” Leonard said. “To be able to play against him, it’s awesome. It’s not just him, it’s a lot of the coaching staff from Duke, and it’s a lot of people I’m really close with, and we’re all extremely competitive, so this game means a lot to me.”

Big concerns

One area of concern will be the offensive line.

All-American left tackle Joe Alt and starting right tackle Blake Fisher were both early-round picks in the NFL draft, and starting center Zeke Correll transferred to North Carolina State after starting the past 2 1/2 season with the Irish.

The Fighting Irish also suffered a setback when Charles Jagusah who was expected to replace Alt, suffered a shoulder injury that will keep him out this season.

The schedule

Notre Dame might not face its traditionally strong gauntlet of opponents, with a home game Nov. 9 against No. 10 Florida State appearing to be its biggest game. The Irish play both Army and Navy at neutral sites and visit Purdue on Sept. 14. Louisville, Stanford and Virginia all visit Notre Dame and the regular-season closing rivalry game is at new Big Ten member Southern California.

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