Looking for a sledgehammer in an offense that sometimes gets branded finesse? Look no further than tight end Tyler Luatua. The big-bodied thumper may not look like the rest of the tight end depth chart, but certainly will come in handy as the Irish do their best to transform into a run-to-win team in 2015.
Finding the field as a true freshman because of his physicality, Luatua showed very quickly that he’s unafraid to mix it up in the trenches, playing a key role against LSU in a game plan that went power-vs-power and came out the victor. Moving into his sophomore season, Luatua shed some weight and spent the spring proving he can do more, hoping to take advantage of a wide open tight end depth chart.
Let’s look at the Southern California native as we try to make sense of Scott Booker’s position group.
TYLER LUATUA
6'2.5", 250
Sophomore, No. 13, TE
RECRUITING PROFILE
Notre Dame beat out Alabama for Luatua’s signature, where his brother plays along the offensive line. Luatua’s recruiting ranking seemed to ebb and flow throughout the process, an elite offer list that didn’t quite mesh with a modest three-star ranking.
Still, Notre Dame was excited about landing a prospect who may not have been to their usual positional profile, but was someone they certainly viewed as an elite talent.
PLAYING CAREER
Freshman Season (2014): Played in 10 games, with the majority of his action coming as a second tight end. His largest contributions came against LSU in the Music City Bowl victory. Capable of serving as a lead blocker and H-back as well.
WHAT WE SAID LAST YEAR
No, it doesn’t look like Luatua is moving to linebacker or defense anytime soon. So I missed on that one. But partial credit for nailing the H-back use, and also zeroing in on a true freshman as a designated blocker.If you’re looking for a player that’s ripe for a position switch, Luatua could be an early candidate. Just about every coach that mentioned Luatua around Signing Day used the “big skill” tag, a compliment that tells you that Notre Dame sees a big, powerful football player who may be a tight end… or could play on the other side of the ball as well.
As the Irish offense continues to evolve, Luatua could turn into a versatile weapon. He has the ability to hold up at the point of attack, while also having the bulk and collision skills to play H-back. And for as good as Notre Dame has been at the position, the Irish haven’t had a tight end that worked well as a motion blocker, and then turned up field as a play action weapon.
Luatua’s career in South Bend might be dependent on his teammates. What the Irish get out of Durham Smythe, Huerman and classmate Nic Weishar will likely dictate Luatua’s role on offense. Just like sophomore James Onwualu, who played early at receiver and on special teams, Luatua could be primed to see the field now and find a position later.
FUTURE POTENTIAL
Any worry that Luatua’s lack of traditional size was going to put him in a Mike Heuerman situation was immediately thrown when we saw him early . Then he became a key piece of the offensive puzzle against LSU. Because of that, I think Luatua’s role in the Irish offense is almost assuredly safe.
No, he doesn’t look destined to be a major offensive weapon in the stat sheet. But there’s actually a ton of value in a player like Luatua, who’ll be a beast as a leadblocker and also could be deadly in playaction.
In goal line and 3rd-and-short, Luatua will be on the field. And as the Irish offense evolves with Malik Zaire, there’s only more room for a player like Luatua.
CRYSTAL BALL
Want a potential touchdown vulture in the red zone? Sound smart and consider Luatua one of your dark horse candidates. When Malik Zaire is bootlegging after a nice play fake, Luatua looks like the perfect candidate to haul in a pass in the flats, rumbling for a score.
As mentioned above, Luatua’s work won’t find the stat sheet all the time. But the fact that he shed some bad weight between the fall and the spring, and the fact that he’ll be working in a slightly different offense makes Luatua one of the offense’s more intriguing under-the-radar contributors.
Notre Dame knew what it wanted when it chased hard after Luatua in recruiting. And a thumping tight end who can punish you at the line of scrimmage and also be a very difficult body to tackle in space already looks like the baseline.
While the tight end depth chart is still mostly a mystery, if Luatua is healthy I’ve got him pegged for 13 games and a ton of good blocking. Throw in a few short catches or some damage in the playaction game and it’ll be fun to see how his career progresses.
THE 2015 IRISH A-to-Z
Josh Adams, RB
Josh Barajas, OLB
Nicky Baratti, S
Alex Bars, OL
Asmar Bilal, OLB
Hunter Bivin, OL
Grant Blankenship, DE
Jonathan Bonner, DE
Miles Boykin, WR
Justin Brent, WR
Greg Bryant, RB
Devin Butler, CB
Jimmy Byrne, OL
Daniel Cage, DL
Amir Carlisle, RB
Nick Coleman, DB
Te’von Coney, LB
Shaun Crawford, DB
Scott Daly, LS
Sheldon Day, DL
Michael Deeb, LB
Micah Dew-Treadway, DL
Steve Elmer, RG
Matthias Farley, DB
Nicco Fertitta, DB
Tarean Folston, RB
Will Fuller, WR
Jarrett Grace, LB
Jalen Guyton, WR
Mark Harrell, OL
Jay Hayes, DL
Mike Heuerman, TE
Kolin Hill, DE
Tristen Hoge, C
Corey Holmes, WR
Chase Hounshell, TE
Torii Hunter, Jr. WR
Alizé Jones, TE
Jarron Jones, DL
DeShone Kizer, QB