Notre Dame 99-to-2: No. 34 Osita Ekwonu, inside linebacker, consensus four-star

By Jun 18, 2019, 6:00 AM EDT
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Listed Measurements: 6-foot-2, 215 pounds.
2019-20 year, eligibility: An incoming freshman, Ekwonu has all four seasons of eligibility remaining, including 2019.
Depth chart: While Ekwonu will arrive to an ever-evolving puzzle at linebacker, but it is a puzzle he likely will not be a part of this season. Either junior Jordan Genmark Heath or sophomore Jack Lamb should handle nearly every snap at Buck linebacker, where Ekwonu presumably projects, meaning Ekwonu and classmate J.D. Bertrand will work either on the scout team or on the third-string.
Recruiting: A consensus four-star prospect, Ekwonu earned offers from Alabama, Auburn and Michigan, but the No. 15 inside linebacker in the country, per rivals.com, committed to Notre Dame just two months after his official visit, a commitment not surprising many.

WHAT WAS SAID WHEN EKWONU’S NATIONAL LETTER OF INTENT ARRIVED
“With athleticism to spare, Ekwonu could be a candidate at rover early in his career. Irish defensive coordinator Clark Lea can never have enough of those, but it is more likely Ekwonu stays inside to utilize his physicality, even if still needing a bit of weight to emphasize that.

“Notre Dame is about to lose two multi-year starters at inside linebacker, but it is hard to envision a freshman filling that role in 2019. Ekwonu may contribute, a la Bo Bauer this season, but much more than that would be a surprise.”

2019 OUTLOOK
When Bauer was mentioned in the previous paragraph, it points to special teams possibilities. Ekwonu could readily fill in on coverage units, perhaps even matching Bauer’s 10 tackles from a year ago. Some may deem such a foolish way to use up a season of eligibility, but that is to underrate special teams’ impacts as a whole. Ekwonu’s length and general athleticism may make him an even more natural fit in the duty than Bauer was.

DOWN THE ROAD
The springtime shuffling and reshuffling at linebacker puts the futures of the incoming freshmen, as well. Ekwonu fits the profile of someone who will make his presence felt at some point, it is just difficult to predict that will occur at Buck, where Lamb has four years remaining, or Mike, where Bauer and sophomore Shayne Simon each have three seasons of eligibility left.

To default to what little is known of any incoming freshman, the No. 232 recruit in his class has too strong a pedigree to expect to wait out three years. In Ekwonu’s case, his long frame and quick hips make him suited to both keeping blockers off him, and thus filling run gaps, as well as to working in coverage. He may not yet be mentally ready to cover collegiate routes, but the skill set should be there, part of why he projects at Buck more than Mike.

WHY NO. 34?
For little other reason than the dozen incoming freshmen reported to campus this week and it seems fitting to squeeze one into the first half of the week. Many Notre Dame linebackers have taken to wearing numbers in the 30s these days, including Lamb and junior Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah.

NOTRE DAME 99-to-2:
Introduction
No. 95: Myron Tagovailoa-Amosa, defensive tackle
No. 94: Darnell Ewell, defensive tackle
No. 91: Ade Ogundeji, defensive end
No. 90: Hunter Spears, defensive tackle, early-enrolled consensus four-star
No. 89: Brock Wright, tight end
No. 88: Javon McKinley, receiver
No. 87: Michael Young, receiver
No. 85: George Takacs, tight end
No. 84: Cole Kmet, tight end
No. 83: Chase Claypool, receiver
No. 80: Micah Jones, receiver
No. 78: Tommy Kraemer, right guard, three-year starter
No. 77: Quinn Carroll, offensive tackle, early-enrolled consensus four-star
No. 76: Dillan Gibbons, offensive guard
No. 75: Josh Lugg, offensive lineman
No. 74: Liam Eichenberg, left tackle, two-year starter
No. 73: Andrew Kristofic, offensive tackle, early-enrolled consensus four-star
No. 72: Robert Hainsey, offensive tackle, three-year starter
No. 71: John Olmstead, offensive lineman, early-enrolled consensus four-star
No. 69: Aaron Banks, left guard
No. 60: Cole Mabry, offensive tackle
No. 57: Trevor Ruhland, veteran backup offensive lineman
No. 57: Jayson Ademilola, defensive tackle
No. 56: John Dirksen, offensive lineman
No. 56: Howard Cross, incoming freshman defensive lineman, consensus four-star
No. 55: Jarrett Patterson, starting center
No. 55: Ja’Mion Franklin, defensive tackle returning from injury
No. 54: Jacob Lacey, consensus four-star defensive tackle, early enrollee
No. 54: John Shannon, long snapper
No. 53: Khalid Kareem, senior defensive end
No. 52: Zeke Correll, consensus four-star center, early enrollee
No. 52: Bo Bauer, linebacker, sophomore
No. 50: J.D. Bertrand, consensus four-star linebacker
No. 47: Kofi Wardlow, junior defensive end
No. 45: Jonathan Jones, senior inside linebacker
No. 44: Jamir Jones, senior defensive end
No. 42: Julian Okwara, senior defensive end
No. 41: Kurt Hinish, junior defensive tackle
No. 40: Drew White, junior inside linebacker
No. 39: Jonathan Doerer, junior kicker
No. 35: TaRiq Bracy, sophomore cornerback
No. 34: Jahmir Smith, sophomore running back

Notre Dame AD Jack Swarbrick to step down in 2024, to be succeeded by NBC’s Pete Bevacqua

By Jun 8, 2023, 12:21 PM EDT
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Notre Dame director of athletics Jack Swarbrick will step down in early 2024 after more than 15 years in the role, the University announced Thursday morning. NBC Sports Chairman Pete Bevacqua will succeed Swarbrick, first joining Notre Dame this July as a special assistant to University President Fr. John Jenkins, focusing on athletics.

Sports Illustrated’s Pat Forde first reported these plans.

“It speaks volumes about Notre Dame and Father Jenkins’ leadership that we can implement such a well-conceived succession plan and attract someone of Pete’s talent and experience,” Swarbrick said in a statement. “I have worked closely with Pete throughout his time at NBC and based on that experience, I believe he has the perfect skill set to help Notre Dame navigate the rapidly changing landscape that is college athletics today and be an important national leader as we look to the future. I look forward to helping Notre Dame’s student-athletes and coaches achieve their goals in the months ahead while also helping Pete prepare for his tenure as athletics director.”

Swarbrick took over the role in the summer of 2008. Since then he hired football head coaches Brian Kelly and Marcus Freeman, as well as women’s basketball coach Niele Ivey and men’s basketball coach Micah Shrewsberry, navigated Notre Dame’s partial entry into the ACC and kept the Irish actively engaged with the twice-expanded College Football Playoff.

Swarbrick told Sports Illustrated he would “love to do one more thing in the industry,” suggesting this is not an outright retirement for him, but it was important to him for Jenkins to choose the next AD.

“There’s a sense that it’s the appropriate time,” Swarbrick said. “It’s important for Father John to make the selection of the next AD, because I don’t know how much longer he’s going to go.”

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A 1993 alumnus of Notre Dame, Bevacqua has worked at NBC since 2018, securing a Big Ten partnership that goes into effect this summer, as well as extending NBC’s deals with the NFL and the PGA Tour.

SiriusXM PGA TOUR Radio At 2018 PGA Merchandise Show - Day 2
Pete Bevacqua, left, with former Notre Dame head coach Lou Holtz in 2018. (Photo by Gerardo Mora/Getty Images for SiriusXM)

“This is an unbelievable honor for me and a dream come true,” Bevacqua said in a statement. “With the exception of my family, nothing means more to me than the University of Notre Dame. As a Notre Dame alum, I have a keen understanding and deep appreciation of the lifetime, transformational benefit our student-athletes receive in a Notre Dame education, one that is unique and unlike any other institution in the world.”

NBC has broadcast every Notre Dame home game since the 1991 home opener with the current deal running through the 2025 season.

Notre Dame 99-to-0: No. 75 Chris Terek, incoming freshman offensive lineman, four-star recruit

By Jun 7, 2023, 12:30 PM EDT
Chris Terek Notre Dame
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Listed measurements: 6-foot-6, 295 pounds
2023-24 year, eligibility: An incoming freshman, Terek has all four seasons of eligibility remaining.
Depth Chart: Terek will come nowhere near Notre Dame’s two-deep this season, needing to focus more on strength and conditioning while also getting a better feel for the idea of a move to an interior, something the Irish will at least consider with Terek.
Recruiting: A long-time Wisconsin commit, Terek reconsidered his college destination when the Badgers abruptly and rather surprisingly fired Paul Chryst. The rivals.com four-star joined Notre Dame’s class right about the exact same time Wisconsin was announcing the hiring of Luke Fickell.

“Notre Dame, they’ve got a pretty crazy track record,” Terek told Inside ND Sports. They do very well with their O-linemen. (Former Irish offensive line) coach (Harry) Hiestand is awesome. And they seem like they’re really building something there.”

WHAT WAS SAID WHEN TEREK SIGNED IN DECEMBER
“His massive lower body — which Notre Dame strength and conditioning coordinator Matt Balis should enjoy molding — gives Terek ample power, something that Hiestand could turn loose on many Irish running plays. …

“Give Terek some time to develop physically before locking him into the two-deep anywhere.”

NAME, IMAGE, LIKENESS

2023 OUTLOOK
Do not expect to hear Terek’s name again until the spring. That is not a knock on him, not in any regard. Rather, it is an acknowledgment of what to expect from most freshmen offensive linemen and, in particular, what to expect from them when Notre Dame has 17 scholarship offensive linemen on the roster.

Five of them are freshmen, and while early enrollee Sam Pendleton could perhaps crack the paper version of a three-deep at center, none should press for playing time in 2023.

Terek, perhaps more than the others, will need the year with no expectations. He played right tackle in high school, and the Irish are likely to try him out on the interior. At 6-foot-5, he is not yet too long to play inside, but much more vertical growth could change that.

Learning the interior footwork will be enough of a task for Terek as a freshman, along with the usual strength and conditioning work.

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DOWN THE ROAD
With 17 scholarship offensive linemen knocking around, and three already committed in the next class, position competitions will be the norm moving forward, though there will naturally be front runners.

Current sophomore Billy Schrauth and fifth-year Andrew Kristofic should emerge as the starting guards this season. If Kristofic spurns his final year of eligibility in 2024, current junior Rocco Spindler should get next crack at a starting role.

Both Schrauth and Spindler could be around in 2025, with current junior Pat Coogan supplementing them if he has not grabbed hold at center. Only then can names like Terek, classmate Joe Otting and sophomore Ashton Craig begin to be considered.

All of which is to say, Notre Dame is in an enviable position. Offensive line talent is scarce on the transfer market. Individual players need to be staring at uphill trajectories like this if the program wants to be a genuine contender instead of just the 10th team into the expanded Playoff.

WHY No? 75?
Terek wore No. 77 in high school, but current sophomore Ty Chan owns those digits in the Irish locker room. With offensive linemen largely focused on numbers in the 70s, 75 is one of just two available numbers (along with No. 71).

Perhaps Terek drops to No. 67, but for this penciling him into the content calendar, 75 fits well enough.

NOTRE DAME 99-TO-0
The summer countdown begins anew, Rylie Mills to Deion Colzie
No. 99 Rylie Mills, senior defensive tackle, moving back inside from end
No. 98 Devan Houstan, early-enrolled four-star defensive tackle
No. 97 Gabriel Rubio, junior defensive tackle, one of three Irish DTs with notable experience
No. 95 Tyson Ford, sophomore defensive tackle, up 30 pounds from a year ago
No. 92 Aidan Keanaaina, a senior defensive tackle now ‘fully healthy’ after a 2022 torn ACL
No. 91 Aiden Gobaira, sophomore defensive end, former four-star recruit
No. 90* Brenan Vernon, incoming freshman defensive end, four-star recruit
No. 90* Boubacar Traore, incoming freshman defensive end, four-star recruit
No. 88 Mitchell Evans, the next starter at ‘TE U’
No. 86* Cooper Flanagan, incoming freshman tight end, four-star recruit
No. 85 Holden Staes, sophomore tight end, up 20 pounds in a year
No. 84 Kevin Bauman, senior tight end coming off a torn ACL
No. 83 Jayden Thomas, junior receiver, probable No. 1 target in 2023
No. 79 Tosh Baker, senior tackle, again a backup but next year …
No. 78 Pat Coogan, junior interior offensive lineman
No. 77 Ty Chan, sophomore offensive tackle, former four-star recruit
No. 76 Joe Alt, first-team All-American left tackle
Rhode Island transfer safety Antonio Carter gives Notre Dame desperately needed backline depth
Penn State RB transfer Devyn Ford gives Notre Dame newly-needed backfield depth, experience

Notre Dame adds four-star RB and in-state OL after biggest recruiting weekend of summer

By Jun 6, 2023, 3:00 PM EDT
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Following its biggest on-campus recruiting weekend of the summer, Notre Dame has already added two pieces to its future rushing game. First, consensus four-star running back Kedren Young (Lukin High School; Texas) committed to the Irish late Monday night, and then consensus three-star offensive lineman Styles Prescod (Hamilton Southeastern H.S.; Fishers, Ind.) followed suit midday Tuesday.

The No. 16 running back in the class and No. 213 overall prospect, per rivals.com, Young chose Notre Dame over Missouri, Texas A&M, Texas and Michigan. In total, eight Division I programs from his homestate of Texas offered Young scholarships.

At 5-foot-11 and 210 pounds, he runs angry before running away from defenders, who have a hard time squaring him up on the rare occasions they get a chance at a tackle. Young’s highlight reel borders on tedious it is filled with so many breakaway runs, scoring 19 touchdowns and averaging more than seven yards per carry as a junior.

He is the second running back in Notre Dame’s class of 2024, joining consensus four-star running back Aneyas Williams (Hannibal H.S.; Mo.). The Irish need such a duo given the distinct likelihood current junior Audric Estimé heads to the NFL after this season, leaving Notre Dame with only three unproven ball carriers in the backfield.

Either sophomore Gi’Bran Payne or Jadarian Price could break through as Estimé’s complement in 2023, but both have worrisome injury histories, making a sheer numbers approach to the position prudent.

Both Young and Prescod were at Notre Dame for the so-called Irish Invasion this past weekend, a camp the Irish coaching staff uses as a chance to evaluate many top prospects in person while also giving them an opportunity to see campus before possibly taking an official visit this fall.

For Prescod, it was a shorter trip. From a suburb north of Indianapolis, he had about a two-hour drive to South Bend, the rare prospect close enough to Notre Dame to give the Irish a geographic advantage, even as half the Big Ten chased the offensive lineman, including Iowa, Michigan and Indiana.

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Notre Dame first sought the 6-foot-6, 265-pound Prescod when Harry Hiestand was still the Irish offensive line coach, with new position coach Joe Rudolph finishing the push.

Prescod plays tackle in high school, and while Indiana high school football is not the stiffest of competition, he looks the part of a collegiate tackle, as well. Most notably, Prescod sets a clean edge even if he is not yet fully grown. He also has some power to his blocks, while still needing to add 20-30 pounds of muscle.

If that day comes, Hiestand’s, Rudolph’s and Notre Dame’s expectations of Prescod as a prospect should become reality.

The third offensive lineman in the class, he joins four-star Peter Jones (Roswell; Ga.) and three-star Anthonie Knapp (Malvern Prep; Penn.).

The combination of Young and Prescod brings the Irish class of 2024 to 19 total commits, the most in the country at the moment. Notre Dame ranks No. 2 in class rankings, per rivals.com, behind only Georgia (with 17 commitments) and ahead of Michigan (17), LSU (16) and Penn State (17).

This is the second year in a row the Irish have spent the summer in the top three, falling to No. 11 when all was said and done last cycle. There are obviously no assurances another such late drop will not befall Notre Dame, but regardless, the summer momentum furthers the Irish coaching staff’s recruiting pitch.

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Notre Dame 99-to-0: No. 76 Joe Alt, first-team All-American left tackle

Notre Dame 99-to-0: No. 76 Joe Alt, first-team All-American left tackle

By Jun 5, 2023, 4:00 PM EDT
Clemson v Notre Dame
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Listed measurements: 6-foot-8, 315 pounds.
2023-24 year, eligibility: A junior, Alt has two years of eligibility remaining.
Depth Chart: Alt will be the Irish starting left tackle this fall, not surprising given he will be the first-team All-American left tackle in most, if not all, preseason considerations.
Recruiting: Notre Dame recruited Alt as an offensive lineman when he was a 240-pound tight end. He was up to 280 pounds by the time he signed with the Irish in December of 2020, still needing to add weight as his frame continued to grow.

Throughout that entire process, he remained a three-star prospect despite his father’s NFL pedigree, a 13-year NFL tackle. Few three-star recruits are drafted, even fewer are surefire first-round draft picks, and fewer yet are All-Americans as sophomores.

CAREER TO DATE
Alt’s career hit the fast track when injuries to three young tackles ahead of him in the first month of the 2021 season left Notre Dame with no choice but to throw him into a starting role; less than two years after Alt was a high school tight end, he was the starting left tackle following in the footsteps of Zack Martin, Ronnie Stanley and Mike McGlinchey.

There is obviously no way to ever know how long it would have taken Alt to blossom on Saturdays if not for the back-to-back-to-back injuries of Blake Fisher’s torn meniscus, Tosh Baker’s concussion and Michael Carmody’s sprained ankle in September of 2021, but it is an entertaining parlor wonder.

Instead, Alt will go down as a three-year starter at left tackle, not missing a game in 2022. Counting this coming season, Alt will be the fifth consistent starter at left tackle for the Irish in the last 14 seasons. Three of those previous four were drafted in the top 20 with Liam Eichenberg going No. 42 overall in 2021.

2021: 13 games, 8 starts.
2022: 13 starts.

NAME, IMAGE, LIKENESS
Logically, Alt is likely making more this year than all but one or two other players on Notre Dame’s roster. Given he has proven himself and will consistently be a headline player in 2023, even as an offensive lineman, that should not surprise anyone.

Much of that income will not be noticed publicly, but some of it will come from the most obvious of sources, working with the next generation of players.

This space has said it before, and it will say it again. The NCAA’s prohibiting players from working in camps like that up until a few years ago was the most obtuse of its many obtuse policies.

Alt will also profit off sports cards and signing them. Again, an obvious thing that was never going to harm anyone except the NCAA’s monopoly and schools’ control of players, which is why it was outlawed for so long.

QUOTES
When Harry Hiestand retired, it was generally understood Irish head coach Marcus Freeman would have his pick of offensive line coaches from across the country. Notre Dame returns three veteran starters up front, including a clear first-round draft pick in Alt. That line should make its position coach look good the next couple of years. Pulling Joe Rudolph out of Virginia Tech, where Rudolph had made a long-term commitment just a year ago, proved that understanding to be true.

“Some guys just have amazing talent,” Rudolph said of Alt in mid-April. “Amazing athleticism, amazing size.

“And then there’s some guys that just have the quality of leadership and the grit and the way they’re going to get it done in the moment. They’re going to be a great leader and make guys around them better. You don’t always find that all in one guy.

“He’s as close as I’ve got to see all of that in one guy. He brings it from all facets, and it’s much appreciated. … Very unique young man.”

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WHAT WAS PROJECTED A YEAR AGO
“If Alt was able to help solidify the Irish line, along with left guard Andrew Kristofic stepping in for Zeke Correll, with his size after just one summer in a collegiate strength and conditioning program, then all expectations should be fast-forwarded even further. It defies logic to think someone once projected as a possible 2024 contributor could now be a stalwart on the Notre Dame line in 2022, but Alt has made that a potential reality.

“That is not meant to jump the proverbial shark or to move the figurative goal posts. It is just the possible continuation of Alt’s rapid ascent.

“At the absolute least, he should start throughout the season, barring injury. His length was what made Alt an intriguing prospect as a recruit, along with his lineage. Taking so well to adding weight already should make him durable, as well.

“He will give up some sacks, just as he did early in his first start, but that is the inevitability of the position. Under returned offensive line coach Harry Hiestand’s eye for fundamentals, Alt should correct those mistakes shortly after he makes them. That could make for a very impressive November.”

2023 OUTLOOK
Alt ended last season as a first-team All-American. Remember: He was recruited as a project, not as a three-and-done, multi-year All-American first-round draft pick.

Walter Camp has already named him a preseason first-team All-American for 2023, and a pile more of those nods should come before the season. So his 2023 will be marked by three possibilities: unanimous All-American, Outland Trophy, Joe Moore Award.

If Alt pulls off those first two, Notre Dame will be in good position for the third, the honor given to the best offensive line every season. If that becomes reality, then the Irish ceiling in 2023 ticks toward Playoff contender.

There are few other ways to genuinely track a left tackle, but Ohio State’s primetime visit on Sept. 23 will shine a light on Alt. Buckeyes junior defensive end J.T. Tuimoloau could be a top-15 pick in the spring. Alt faced a similar prospect last season, not giving up a pressure to Clemson defensive end Myles Murphy on 15 snaps matched up against each other. Worth noting: Murphy went No. 28 in the NFL draft.

DOWN THE ROAD
There is an easy way to judge the veracity of a 2024 mock draft right now: Is Alt in the top 15? If not, find a more in-touch analyst.

Not much else needs to be said here. If Alt is looking at a top-15 projection, and that is on the low end, no one in South Bend should try to dissuade him from jumping to the NFL. Tosh Baker or Blake Fisher should assuage most 2024 worries about the left tackle position.

Some pieces of context to Notre Dame left tackles in the NFL draft to remember when Alt hears his name called:

2014: Four-year starter Zack Martin goes No. 16 overall.
2016: Two-year starting left tackle Ronnie Stanley goes No. 6 overall.
2018: Two-year starting left tackle Mike McGlinchey goes No. 9 overall.
2021: Three-year starting left tackle Liam Eichenberg goes No. 42 overall.

NOTRE DAME 99-TO-0
The summer countdown begins anew, Rylie Mills to Deion Colzie
No. 99 Rylie Mills, senior defensive tackle, moving back inside from end
No. 98 Devan Houstan, early-enrolled four-star defensive tackle
No. 97 Gabriel Rubio, junior defensive tackle, one of three Irish DTs with notable experience
No. 95 Tyson Ford, sophomore defensive tackle, up 30 pounds from a year ago
No. 92 Aidan Keanaaina, a senior defensive tackle now ‘fully healthy’ after a 2022 torn ACL
No. 91 Aiden Gobaira, sophomore defensive end, former four-star recruit
No. 90* Brenan Vernon, incoming freshman defensive end, four-star recruit
No. 90* Boubacar Traore, incoming freshman defensive end, four-star recruit
No. 88 Mitchell Evans, the next starter at ‘TE U’
No. 86* Cooper Flanagan, incoming freshman tight end, four-star recruit
No. 85 Holden Staes, sophomore tight end, up 20 pounds in a year
No. 84 Kevin Bauman, senior tight end coming off a torn ACL
No. 83 Jayden Thomas, junior receiver, probable No. 1 target in 2023
No. 79 Tosh Baker, senior tackle, again a backup but next year …
No. 78 Pat Coogan, junior interior offensive lineman
No. 77 Ty Chan, sophomore offensive tackle, former four-star recruit
Rhode Island transfer safety Antonio Carter gives Notre Dame desperately needed backline depth
Penn State RB transfer Devyn Ford gives Notre Dame newly-needed backfield depth, experience