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Why Notre Dame football won’t be portal shopping for a transfer quarterback this year

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Why Notre Dame football won’t be portal shopping for a transfer quarterback this year

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SOUTH BEND — Notre Dame football coach Marcus Freeman didn’t hesitate when the subject was raised on Early Signing Day.

“We have no plans,” Freeman said Wednesday, “on going to the transfer portal for a quarterback.”

Even as Duke transfer Riley Leonard prepares to take the fourth-ranked Irish to the inaugural 12-team College Football Playoff, the Irish won’t be looking for their fourth transfer quarterback since 2021 when the portal opens on Dec. 9.

Jack Coan (Wisconsin) went 11-2 as the starter in Brian Kelly’s final season, and then Sam Hartman (Wake Forest) went 9-3 as the starter in 2023 before opting out of the Sun Bowl. With Leonard at 11-1 and counting, the transfer QB route has produced a 31-6 (.838) mark for a program that had never gone down that path before.

That trio has accounted for 84 touchdowns, rushing and passing, while combining for 20 interceptions.

Third-year quarterback Steve Angeli, who led the Irish to a 40-8 Sun Bowl win over Oregon State, is the presumed frontrunner heading into spring practice, although four-star freshman CJ Carr and second-year man Kenny Minchey will push for the job as well.

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Notre Dame football GM Chad Bowden on charisma of QB signee Blake Hebert

Notre Dame football general manager Chad Bowden notes the way QB signee Blake Hebert’s Brunswick School teammates light up when he’s around

Angeli has taken 93 snaps across nine games this season with his most extensive playing time coming in the blowout wins at Purdue and against Army at Yankee Stadium. Angeli, the Westfield, N.J., product, is 18 of 28 passing for 224 yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions this season.

Blake Hebert, the former Clemson commit who flipped to Notre Dame in October, is a 6-foot-3, 215-pounder from Boxfield, Mass. One of three Irish signees this cycle from Brunswick School in Greenwich, Conn., Hebert will join left tackle Matty Augustine and safety Ethan Long among 13 early enrollees in January.

“I feel really strong about the guys we have in our quarterback room right now with Steve and Kenny and CJ,” Freeman said. “All possess different talent. All do things well. All have areas of (needed) improvement, like we all do. But I feel really strong about the quarterback room as a whole.”

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In a sign of the times, at least six quarterbacks Notre Dame faced this fall have announced their intentions to enter the transfer portal.

Ethan Hampton of Northern Illinois pulled off the epic upset on Sept. 7 for Notre Dame’s only regular-season loss, but Conner Weigman (Texas A&M), Ashton Daniels (Stanford), Justin Lamson (Stanford), Zach Pyron (Georgia Tech) and Anthony Colandrea (Virginia) all tasted defeat against the nation’s top-rated pass efficiency defense.

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Unlike this time last year, when Leonard’s dual-threat heroics from a late September loss against Notre Dame were a daily topic, the Irish won’t be obsessing over any of the aforementioned former foes.

Should any of Notre Dame’s current holdovers opt to transfer, walk-on wideout and lacrosse midfielder Tyler Buchner could easily be added to the mix.

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A three-game starter for Notre Dame in 2022, including a memorable turn as Gator Bowl MVP after coming back from left shoulder surgery, Buchner made one start at Alabama in 2023 before making a U-turn to South Bend.

Freeman has praised Buchner’s work as the weekly sideline signaler as well as the scout-team quarterback ahead of facing triple-option challenges against Navy and Army. Twice this season, at Georgia Tech and at USC, Buchner has converted fourth downs on special-teams fakes.

Buchner, who appeared in 10 games in relief of Coan in 2021, has one remaining year of eligibility.

Hebert, Freeman noted, “presents almost a dual threat, a guy that can extend plays with his legs” while also flashing solid arm strength. Hebert’s leadership qualities also drew mention from Freeman and Notre Dame general manager Chad Bowden.

“What I love most about Blake in the short time in being able to get to know each other is his competitive spirit, his leadership,” Freeman said. “You don’t have to be in a room long with him to understand the leadership values that I believe quarterbacks must have, and he definitely possesses that leadership and competitive spirit that we look for.”

Bowden noted the way Hebert “lights up the room” with his personality.

“There’s something about that kid that you just see it,” Bowden said. “You can see it on the field. You can see it with his teammates. They just light up when they’re around him. They love it. They love playing for him. That’s what really attracted us to Blake.”

As for eschewing the quarterback market in this year’s transfer window, Bowden echoed Freeman’s sentiments.

“We feel great about the quarterback room,” Bowden said. “We feel great about going into next season with what we have. I know that and really believe in the guys that we have recruited.”

He paused a beat before adding: “And that’s really all I have to say about that.”Mike Berardino covers Notre Dame football for the South Bend Tribune and NDInsider.com. Follow him on social media @MikeBerardino.

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