This Saturday welcomes another edition of the Blue-Gold game as Notre Dame kicks off their annual spring game in front of an assembled crowd inside Notre Dame Stadium. The latest weather report expects a warm 80 degrees and partly cloudy skies so hopefully a lovely day for everyone coming to campus.
It’s been a quiet spring with only 1 full practice viewed by the media. Usually, the tendency is to take the spring game with a pinch or two of salt. Coming in with less information on players than usual, perhaps we’ll need more salt this weekend.
Also, remember that the program will be doing a player draft starting at 8 AM ET on Wednesday morning breaking the squad up into 2 teams. With former star running back and NFL Hall of Famer Jerome Bettis serving as the commissioner I’m sure it will be fun.
Blue–Gold Game
Notre Dame Stadium
South Bend, Indiana
Date: Saturday, April 23, 2022
Time: 1:00 PM ET
TV: Peacock
As has been the case in recent history, the Blue-Gold Game will be shown on NBC’s Peacock streaming service as well as archived on the Fighting Irish TV app afterwards. I’ve yet to read any information on who will be announcing the game, but you can expect a lot of Notre Dame alums to be featured especially with a ton of former players coming to town to celebrate the beginning of the Marcus Freeman era.
Injury Report
WR Avery Davis (ACL)
WR Joe Wilkins (foot)
TE Cane Berrong (ACL)
OL Jarrett Patterson (pectoral)
OL Pat Coogan (meniscus)
OL Billy Schrauth (foot)
OL Joey Tanona (concussion)
DT Jayson Ademilola (shoulder)
NG Aidan Keanaaina (ACL)
CB Cam Hart (shoulder)
The injuries to Davis, Berrong, Schrauth, Ademilola, and Hart all pre-date spring practice. In certain cases, like with Davis, there’s a possibility for them to dress and go through warmups but I don’t believe anyone from this group is playing in the game.
The rest of the injuries all occurred during the spring. News broke recently that true freshman Joey Tanona was in a pretty bad car accident and he is dealing with brain/concussion issues, in addition to other possible injuries. At this point, it looks very unlikely he’ll be prepared to play in 2022.
Recruiting Visits
TE Holden Staes (2022 signee)
TE Eli Raridon (2022 signee)
OT Aamil Wagner (2022 signee)
Edge Keon Keeley (2023 commit)
DL Brenan Vernon (2023 commit)
DB Peyton Bowen (2023 commit)
DB Adon Shuler (2023 commit)
LB Drayk Bowen (2023 commit)
RB Sedrick Irvin Jr. (2023 commit)
LB Preston Zinter (2023 commit)
RB Jayden Limar 2023 – 0.9069
WR Rodney Gallagher 2023 – 0.9539
WR Jaden Greathouse 2023 – 0.9529
OL Monroe Freeling 2023 – 0.9622
OL Sullivan Absher 2023 – 0.9033
CB Christian Gray 2023 – 0.9496
DB Caleb Downs 2023 – 0.9943
RB Davion Gause 2024 – 0.9267
LB Kyngstonn Viliamu-Asa 2024 – 0.9695
CB Eli Bowen 2024 – 0.9074
DB Peyton Woodyard 2024 – 0.9924
DB Marquis Gallegos 2024 – 0.8678
ATH Emmett Mosley 2024 – 0.9454
There are some big-name visitors coming to town, although maybe not a big commitment splash expected in the aftermath. The Irish feel good about their place with Jayden Limar and coming off yesterday’s verbal from Braylon James are also in a nice spot with Rico Flores (0.9225) who visits in early June.
Christian Gray and Caleb Downs are top-of-the-board type recruits for this class and are players to keep an eye on following these visits.
It’s been an unusually slow start for offensive line recruiting but that is about to pick up, it seems. Notre Dame is the favorite to land North Carolina tackle Sam Pendleton (0.8992) this upcoming Monday and we’ll see where things go from there on some blue-chips.
We’re still waiting for the first commit of 2024. Who will it be?
15 Things to Watch
Tyler Buchner’s Decision Making Process
From the brief snippets of action it appears things are going well for perceived starter Tyler Buchner. The tools are there, he’s been able to flash his arm strength, works the ball down field, and hasn’t shown too erratic of accuracy issues. During the spring game we’ll be looking at how comfortable he looks running more of a wide swath of the offense and how he handles making decisions after his primary read(s).
Drew Pyne’s Turnovers
Pyne doesn’t have the explosiveness or wow skill-set to win this job with fireworks. Like most backups who have come in and done well, he’ll have to show a consistency of performance. And if the whispers are true, not throw bad interceptions.
Logan Diggs and a Lack of Patience
As a true freshman we often saw Logan Diggs receive the ball at the mesh point with the quarterback and effectively stop moving. Some like the immense amount of patience. According to Marcus Freeman, don’t expect to see that style of running from Diggs anymore. With Harry Heistand coaching the offensive line once again we should see more of a quick down-hill running style from Diggs and others.
Chris Tyree in the Slot
We can safely assume all of the running backs will be used liberally in the slot during the spring game with the lack of bodies at receiver. Tyree is the veteran of the group, someone who doesn’t need a ton of handoffs, and has shown big-play ability in the passing game. He’s the perfect guy to rotate in as a receiver for the first half.
Jadarian Price as a Weapon
Our true freshman running back will give us his first glimpse of his talent on Saturday. No pressure! Running back is a position where a young player can come in and make an impact immediately, though. If he’s able to show a little bit of promise we may have to prepare ourselves for Price being a key piece to 2022.
A future Heisman Campaign Beginning for Michael Mayer
You don’t have to win the award to have a campaign. Although I’m being a little bit tongue in cheek it’s very possible Mayer could have his own school-approved Heisman PR, especially if there’s a national story coming out of Columbus, Ohio in week 1. He’s not likely to play very much on Saturday, yet I’m not ruling out a 3-catch 79-yard performance in the 1st quarter before taking a seat.
The Comfort Level of Zeke Correll at Center
Correll has started 8 games for the Irish in his career and the 6 at the guard spot last year didn’t go particularly well. With the injury to Jarrett Patterson it’s been a spring with a fresh start for Correll moving back to his more comfortable position. We’ll be hoping he excels with the starters again snapping from the middle.
The Progress of Rocco Spindler at Guard
If Rocco Spindler read some of the internet headlines and message boards last year it might have been difficult to go through a season where he only played sparingly in 2 games. Heading in to the Blue-Gold Game he’s still not expected to be in position to start. However, he is expected to be pushing hard for playing time at either guard spot. He’s one of the more intriguing young players to watch on the roster.
This is all we were allowed to see during practices.Â
Depth at Vyper
Notre Dame is more than good with its top two pass-rushers at Vyper. They are also assured of losing both after 2022 and searching for new blood to be ready for 2023. On Saturday, we’ll get our first glimpses of anyone ready to be the future at this position, which could include freshman linebacker Josh Burnham who is reportedly getting some reps as an edge rusher.
Gabriel Rubio’s Place in the Interior Pecking Order
The Irish have done exceedingly well in continuing to pump out good defensive lineman to replace starters that inevitably move on. Given his recruiting hype combined with a quiet freshman season, we are focusing on Gabriel Rubio’s progress as one of the players to come through as a future starter.
Year 2 Beginnings for Prince Kollie
Kollie got his feet wet in 2021 but was far away from being a rising star some thought he could reach as the National Butkus Award Winner coming out of high school. Now, the depth chart has opened up a little bit and will give him more opportunities to show what he can offer.
The Size and Speed of Jaylen Sneed
The early word on Sneed is that he’s super fast but also very under-sized for a linebacker. As we know, speed kills though. I’m sure many Irish fans are eager to see Sneed moving around in a Notre Dame uniform for the first time.
Ryan Barnes and the Progress for Young Corners
Starting corner Cam Hart has been out for the spring and so far redshirt freshman Ryan Barnes has been the one to step up into that void. Who knows how much they’ll throw the ball during the spring game with so few wide receivers available. Still, this is a good chance to look at some of the young corners on the roster. There are a combined 24 years of eligibility remaining for the 2021-22 corners!
Ramon Henderson and New Faces at Safety
The last check in we had with the media it looked like Northwestern transfer Brandon Joseph had grabbed a starting spot along side rising redshirt sophomore Ramon Henderson, although nothing was even close to set in stone. With the loss of Kyle Hamilton perhaps this will be an all-new look at safety?
One Doerer Closes, Another Door Opens
This team needs a new kicker! Notre Dame has redshirt freshman Josh Bryan on scholarship at kicker but it doesn’t end there. He’ll be tested by the diminutive grad transfer Blake Grupe in what is shaping up to be a close battle. Also, the team did have preferred walk-on Harrison Leonard (although he does not appear on the current 2022-23 roster) and brought in 2022 PWO kicker Zac Yoakam out of Ohio.
The Shirt unveiling on Friday.
I’m on team small front left chest graphic, big graphic on back. We’re an old school team, grew up in the 80s with our T&C surf shirts and just can’t get with the times. But we still have hope that one day, our The Shirt style will return!
Buchner is OUT for the spring game. Brace on his ankle.
Welp.
Crappy news, but at least he got most the spring in. Way more concerned about injury than even performance for him, and he always seems to have some sort of leg injury. Not the best for a running QB!
It would have been nice to see him have a great spring game and everyone feel good going into summer, but oh well. Keeps less on tape for the start of the season, I guess.
How many games is Pyne going to have to play in because of Buchner injury this year?
Might depend on if they can build all ramps for the building in the next 4 months.
Wow. I’m not sure if that’s more or less comforting that it wasn’t football related!
Freeman said he would be playing if it was a regular season game, so probably not really that big of a deal. Optics of him never being healthy aren’t ideal though.
I mean I think that’s true that it’s not really a big deal. The jury is out on his durability – but it’s hard to count this injury against his durability too much.
Optics of getting injured by stair is also not ideal.
Some guys will do anything to get out of running the stadium steps. One little slip in the Gug gets you off for the rest of the year.
I assumed we were going to platoon them anyway.
Good thing Pyne didn’t transfer, if he was ever considering it.
I think CMF has unlocked something in Buchner but wants to keep it hidden until it’s unveiled at the horseshoe.
Convince me otherwise. Nothing’s getting through this tinfoil.
The draft sounds fun, and Jerome Bettis content is sure to be entertaining. Public draft and with the “challenge everything” mentality, Freeman sure is making any and every aspect a competition that he can use to increase competitive spirit. Wouldn’t be shocked if he’s timing them at lunch to see who can finish their meals the fastest.
I stay salty.
https://twitter.com/EMMurtaugh/status/1516759645423026183?s=20&t=Sk9ADd9BEXsi7P1rcfQgNw
It’s on Peacock but does one need a subscription to watch it?
I couldn’t find out.
Yea I had tried to look around myself and couldn’t tell. Though now with Buchner out I care less and am willing to miss a part of it at the beginning figuring it out (or miss it altogether – not sure I’m willing to pay whatever it is for this game without Buchner).
I guess it’s premium.
Doug Farmer is telling people it’s on premium only, but PeacockTVCare says:
FTR I am not Adam.
That’s exactly what an Adam would say.
So why did you tell them your name was Adam?
PeacockTV really doesn’t care.
[announcer voice] It was *not* free on Peacock, and many citizens were Capital-Pea Pissed.
Is Justyn Rhett really visiting? Isn’t he the one that just de-committed?
We can take him out, nice catch.
I scheduled a business trip to columbus ohio this week just to be within driving distance for the game. Stoked to see the boys play!
Get some Rest Ice Compression Elevation Tyler!
Eric, are you just not making score predictions for the 2022 season? I’ve got Gold, 31-24
That’s a ridiculous prediction.
The Buchner injury moved the line to Gold -7.5. Gold is 10-2 all time against the spread when a starting QB can’t walk down a flight of stairs. Blue is 9-1 when a Hall of Famer supervises the team draft. Hard to quantify what this means for this game.
What the white coaching staff isnt accounting for is a 340lb QB attempting a jump pass TD in the red zone. Advantage blue, easily moves the line, and an easy pick on the over of 60.5
RIP irish chocolate
How did this whole Blue/Gold draft work? Did they really make the Bus draft a 40 person team? Or did they break it up and do position groups or something?