Every head coach has a strategy to keep their players in the program for a long time. Be it Deion Sanders‘ ‘band of brothers’ strategy or Ryan Day diving deep into his coffers. But even then, there’s no guarantee that players won’t jump ship. The NIL and portal have come up with such a situation that in one moment, you are practicing in your program’s spring practices, and the next, you miss the practice and are sipping coffee at a different program. Well, a similar conundrum has now presented itself to Marcus Freeman.
After the departure of their stalwart QB Riley Leonard, there would always be doubts about the QB room in Irish’s roster. The team started with three QBs: Steve Angeli, CJ Carr, and Kenny Minchey. But three? That was almost too much. Even Marcus Freeman knew it wasn’t going to work, as he said in a recent press conference. “…It’s hard to have a true three-quarterback battle in fall camp because there’s not enough reps to go around.”
So, amidst the scarcity of reps, the battle of QBs, and the never-ending media hype, Steve Angeli left for Syracuse just last week. Now the QB battle becomes even: CJ Carr and Kenny Minchey. But still, Marcus Freeman isn’t too keen on playing evens. That’s why there’s a third quarterback in the pipeline. But this isn’t any ordinary quarterback. This guy plays lacrosse, plays on special teams, and also plays as a wide receiver, and he has even left the Irish’s camp once (to Alabama), only to come back later.
Yes, we are talking about the much-touted QB3, Tyler Buchner, that Freeman is trying to convert to QB from WR. But why the need? Well, Tyler Wojciak, the host of ‘Locked on Irish,’ provided just the reason.
“I think he’s going to move over and basically take Steve Angeli’s spot in the room. Because I don’t think the coaching staff wants Blake Hebert to play at any meaningful moment this season. So, if a disaster occurs and Carr and Minchey somehow end up getting hurt, at least, you know, when you bring in Tyler Buchner, he’s not going to be afraid of the moment.”
Well, we have already seen enough of Tyler at Alabama and Notre Dame to say that he isn’t going to challenge the QB1 or QB2 spot. So, the player becomes essential if either of the two QBs gets injured. Moreover, he has played enough snaps to be the stopgap QB when needed. In addition, his red-zone rushing ability provides an added benefit to Mike Denbrock’s offense, just as Riley Leonard did last year. His more than 1,000+ passing yards are enough to back his case up.
Injury concerns for Marcus Freeman resurface?
Well, as discussed earlier, injuries could be an issue for Marcus Freeman this year, too, just as they were last year. Rylie Mills‘ injury on the D-line was a major blow in the Fighting Irish’s playoff run. This season, players like Guerdy Lambert (OT), Jeremiyah Love, and Cole Mullins are also recovering from their injuries from the previous season. So, Marcus Freeman might need to plan for even the worst-case scenario.
Now, in a recent revelation, two players have also suffered an injury this offseason and may be sidelined for the fall camp, too. The defensive end, Brenan Vernon, has undergone an MCL surgery after the junior injured his knee in a non-contact practice. The other player is the junior tight end Cooper Flanagan, who suffered an Achilles injury against Georgia and will be sidelined for the whole summer camp after undergoing surgery.
The loss of both players through injury is a concern for both Notre Dame and Freeman. After being sidelined for two years, Vernon was already in the pipeline to break into the first team. But now the defensive end will only be back after July. On the other hand, Cooper Flanagan’s injury is more concerning since the nature of his injury is a slight worry and could also recur if not treated properly. All in all, Marcus Freeman needs to ensure his roster depth, along with roster health, to make sure he has another dream natty run this season.
The post Real Reason Behind Marcus Freeman’s Tyler Buchner Call Exposed After HC’s Tough Notre Dame Update appeared first on EssentiallySports.
