Notre Dame Football: Offensive line will continue to be a strength for Irish
Reeling in two four-star recruits during the morning of National Signing Day 2018 contributes to Notre Dame Football finishing out strong for this cycle.
Notre Dame football landed three huge commitments in the early portion of National Signing Day 2018. They started the day by flipping three-star running back C’Bo Flemister from the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets.
Flipping an underrated rusher from a program that always features opportunity to shine in the spotlight of the ground game in Georgia Tech shows the prowess of head coach Brian Kelly. That was not even close to all that the Irish did to build up the 2018 class.
The other two commitments that Notre Dame added on NSD included three star cornerback (Under Armour All-American participant) D.J. Brown and four-star offensive tackle Jarrett Patterson. However, Patterson was the only four-star commitment of the morning for the Irish.
Two losses along the offensive line are tough for Notre Dame to replace. Projected first round picks in the 2018 NFL Draft from the offensive line in Mike McGlinchey and Quenton Nelson are huge departures to deal with for the Irish. Good news is that Patterson is a quality lineman that can come in and make a difference in his freshman or sophomore season.
The additions along the offensive line
Patterson is not the only addition along the offensive line that can help Notre Dame in the next four years. There’s a few other three-star offensive tackles that Notre Dame has committed including John Dirksen, Cole Mabry, and Luke Jones. In fact, Jones is the only one of the four tackle prospects that has not signed officially to play for Notre Dame.
Adding the level of depth to just one position along the offensive line is the type of move that will help Notre Dame’s success continue on for a long time. There’s still some returning talent along the offensive line to help these four commits along, and manage the losses from 2017.
It’s not likely that any of the three-star tackles will get much playing time in 2018, but Patterson could see the field some. The 2018 slate is not any easier for the Irish than it was in 2017 as they underwent one of the toughest schedules in the nation.
How this impacts the offense in the coming years
A slam dunk commitment for the Irish on NSD was four-star wide receiver Lawrence Keys III. That adds another four-star prospect to a potential top eight class in the nation for Notre Dame. Equanimeous St. Brown and Kevin Stepherson were two of the best and most productive receivers for the Irish in 2017, and they’re both gone now.
Notre Dame is building another great offense around a solid offensive line. That will allow the rest of the skill positions to come together. Star running back Josh Adams also has to be replaced. Adams had a lot of holes to run through in 2017, and the same could be said for the next crop of Irish running backs in 2018.
Next: Notre Dame commits who will have an instant impact in 2018
Of the now more than two dozen commitments in this class for the Irish, seven of them are four-stars that fall onto the offensive side of the ball. That’s a huge boost for an offense that does have a few question marks entering the 2018 season.