Leftovers & Links: On Notre Dame’s poor drafts, undrafted free agents and QB transfers

05.05.2023 - 12:05 nbcsports.com

Welcome to the offseason. No, really. In an era with a seemingly non-stop transfer market, college football now enters as much of an offseason as it ever enjoys.

Notre Dame may pull in a transfer or two in the coming weeks — safety jumps to mind after Irish head coach Marcus Freeman identified it specifically before spring practices when 2023 signee Brandyn Hillman was released from his National Letter of Intent and Notre Dame currently expects to have just five safeties on its roster in August — but otherwise, three months of quiet await.

Relative quiet, because there is no true offseason in college football. Eventually, the Pac-12 will sign a television deal, and that will spark a litany of think pieces about how it affects conferences’ alignment moving forward, not to mention Irish independence and talks about a contract extension with NBC.

Bookmakers will begin populating season win totals any week now and, soon after that, genuine early lines for next fall’s biggest games.

Football Sporting athletics on Marcus Freeman Ireland state Ohio

Notre Dame will host two preseason top-25 teams, possibly both top-10 teams, in back-to-back home games in prime time in 2023, the Irish and NBC announced Wednesday afternoon. Ohio State’s Sept. 23 visit and USC’s Oct. 14 arrival will both kick off at 7:30 ET.

Notre Dame 99-to-0: No. 84 Kevin Bauman, senior tight end coming off a torn ACL

Listed measurements: 6-foot-4 ½, 252 pounds. 2023-24 year, eligibility: A senior, Bauman has three years of eligibility remaining. Yes, he could end up playing a sixth year somewhere in 2025, if he so chooses. The universal pandemic eligibility waiver meant Bauman’s injury-shortened 2022 could serve as his traditional season preserving eligibility. Depth Chart: A year ago, Bauman was considered Notre Dame’s second tight end, but he may be as low as No. 4 entering 2023, in part due to his injury and in part due to junior Mitchell Evans and sophomore Holden Staes making the most of their opportunities last season. Recruiting: Bauman had the misfortune of being the same age as Michael Mayer, the latter ranked No. 3 among tight ends in the class of 2020 while Bauman was the No. 5, per rivals.com. Michigan gave late pursuit to Bauman, but the New Jersey native stuck with the Irish, the only program he genuinely considered.

Notre Dame 99-to-0: No. 85 Holden Staes, sophomore tight end, up 20 pounds in a year

Listed measurements: 6-foot-4 ¼, 242 pounds. 2023-24 year, eligibility: A sophomore, Staes has three seasons of eligibility remaining. Depth Chart: Staes was one of just two tight ends healthy this spring, along with junior starter Mitchell Evans. Staes may be jumped by classmate Eli Raridon once the latter is fully recovered from an October ACL tear, but it is more likely Staes’ health keeps him as Notre Dame’s No. 2 tight end in 2023. Recruiting: The recruiting rankings industry can be hard to understand. Staes signed with the Irish in December of 2021 as the No. 23 tight end in the class, turning down offers from Alabama, his homestate power Georgia and Texas. He had previously broken a six-month commitment to Penn State, one made in the midst of the recruiting dead period in the pandemic.

Notre Dame 99-to-0: No. 86 Cooper Flanagan, incoming freshman tight end, four-star recruit

Listed measurements: 6-foot-6, 240 pounds 2023-24 year, eligibility: An incoming freshman, Flanagan has all four seasons of eligibility remaining. Depth Chart: Notre Dame stockpiles tight ends, meaning Flanagan will be on the scout team this entire fall, with four names ahead of him on the depth chart. Even if injuries plague the Irish tight ends again, two would need to be out for the season for Flanagan to sniff any version of genuine playing time. Recruiting: A consensus four-star prospect and the No. 17 tight end in the class, per rivals.com, Flanagan did not pay attention to offers from Alabama, LSU or Michigan after he committed to the Irish 15 months before he could sign his National Letter of Intent. From an Oakland suburb, he also spurned Cal, Utah and Oregon.

Notre Dame 99-to-0: No. 88 Mitchell Evans, the next starter at ‘TE U’

Listed measurements: 6-foot-5 ⅛, 260 pounds. 2023-24 year, eligibility: A junior, Evans has two seasons of eligibility remaining. Depth Chart: Evans will be Notre Dame’s starting tight end when the Irish head to Dublin, a weighty honor as every tight end to open a season as the Irish starter has been drafted since Anthony Fasano started in 2004. If Evans maintains that streak, he will be the 12th straight starting Notre Dame tight end to hear his name in the NFL draft. Recruiting: The No. 26 tight end in the class of 2021, Evans turned down offers from Iowa State, Michigan State and Pittsburgh to join Cane Berrong in the Notre Dame class of 2021. That sentence elicits two thoughts: First of all, neither Berrong nor Evans was exceedingly well-regarded as a recruit — Berrong the No. 35 tight end in the class, per rivals.com — but Berrong had a bit more hype given he was an Under Armour All-American. Regardless, the Irish chasing them should have elevated their respective statuses a bit more, simply given Notre Dame’s track record with tight ends under Brian Kelly. After injuries derailed his time in South Bend, Berrong transferred to Coastal Carolina this winter, and he could be a ripe benefactor of Chanticleers quarterback Grayson McCall returning for one more season.

Notre Dame 99-to-0: No. 90 Boubacar Traore, incoming freshman defensive end, four-star recuirt

Listed measurements: 6-foot-4, 254 pounds 2023-24 year, eligibility: An incoming freshman, Traore has all four seasons of eligibility remaining. Depth Chart: To quote the penciled depth chart this space put together following spring practices, “No idea which end he should go to, just getting him on the depth chart [at Vyper end].” Traore is likely to be so far from playing time in 2023 that assigning him to either Vype or “Big” end would be merely an exercise in semantics. Recruiting: Notre Dame began chasing Traore while he was committed to Boston College, and it did not take long for the Massachusetts native to forget about his six-month pledge to the Eagles when the Irish offered. The No. 24 strongside defensive end in the class of 2023, per rivals.com, and a consensus four-star prospect, Traore also received an offer from Michigan, but he never wavered once he joined Notre Dame’s class.