Notre Dame football: 5 position battles to watch this spring

3. Defensive End

With the interior of the defensive line locked down thanks to the returns of Jonathan Bonner and Jerry Tillery, the main position battle can be found on either side of the line. The Irish have plenty to work with on the outside, but each player boasts a different skill set, making the decision a difficult one for Lea.

As for now, Notre Dame brings four realistic candidates to the table. The two starters last year were current fifth year senior Jay Hayes and junior Daelin Hayes. While neither of them were necessarily dominant last season, they were effective enough to earn first shots at their respective spots along the line.

The other two candidates are juniors Khalid Kareem and Julian Okwara. The two are very similar in terms of experience as Kareem played in every game last season while Okwara only missed one. In terms of production, Kareem recorded three sacks and 21 total tackles while Okwara compiled two and a half sacks along with 21 total tackles as well. Okwara also recorded an interception and forced fumble.

With Daelin and Jay recording 41 and 39 total tackles, respectively, there isn’t a whole lot of separation between these two either. Both were equally active in the turnover battle, again providing little separation. In this case, I can see any combination of the four starting, but we’ll know more regarding where everybody stands as Kelly releases more information.