Riley Leonard is still Notre Dame’s starting quarterback - for now - but the struggling signal-caller will need to show significant improvements if he wants to retain the role.
Last Saturday, the Fighting Irish suffered a shocking 16-14 defeat to Northern Illinois on the heels of a promising 23-13 win over Texas A&M . Leonard has done little to impress over the two contests, completing 38-of-62 passes for 321 yards, no touchdowns and two interceptions.
Despite Leonard’s recent struggles, Notre Dame coach Marcus Freeman asserted that he wasn’t planning to make any significant changes to the quarterback hierarchy ahead of the Fighting Irish’s game against the Purdue Boilermakers.
"No one's roles have changed," Freeman told reporters during a Zoom meeting on Thursday. "Riley [Leonard] has had a really good week of practice."
Freeman did concede, however, that Leonard may have been overexcited for his first two starts at Notre Dame. "I think Riley was excited for the opportunity to go out there and compete," he continued. "It does take time. Like anything we've done, anything we do, with experience comes improvement."
Notre Dame’s top brass seemingly have no intention of benching Leonard, but the Fighting Irish can look to find ways to improve the Duke transfer’s game.
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Ahead of last week’s upset loss to the Huskies, Freeman revealed that he wanted Leonard to “play within the offense” and “do exactly what your coaches tell you to do,” adding: “Don’t try to do anything spectacular.” Unfortunately for Notre Dame, it appears as though the current system is not bringing the best out of its quarterback.
Leonard impressed most at Duke when he was given free range of the offense and allowed to improvise on the spot. This much was evident when he led Duke to a perfect 4-0 start last season - including an improbable win against Clemson - before suffering a high ankle sprain in a 21-14 loss to Notre Dame.
Though Leonard missed large chunks of the season with injuries, he still managed to finish the year with 58 rushes for 352 yards and four touchdowns. If the Fighting Irish are to unleash the best version of the 22-year-old, they’d be wise to tap into his rushing upside.
In week 1, Leonard flashed his legs against Texas A&M, rushing 12 times for 63 yards. He recorded double-digit carries the following week against Northern Illinois, tucking the ball 11 times for 16 yards and a touchdown.
It remains to be seen what Leonard will have to do to keep his starting job, but Freeman insisted that changes would have to be made. "I don't know if there is an exact parameter,” he said when asked what it would take to make a change at quarterback.
“We have to have success. We have to move the ball. We got to score points. If we're not able to do that, we got to make changes."
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