Notre Dame Football: Top 5 position battles to watch in spring 2018

1. Safety

Notre Dame’s safety group boasts plenty of talent, but the differences in skill sets between players makes deciding on starters a tall task. While the addition of Navy transfer Alohi Gilman has made the decision at free safety somewhat easier, a year on the scout team still poses some difficulties for the junior.

In terms of the strong safety position, there really isn’t a whole lot of clarity at all. Junior Jalen Elliott is currently taking first team snaps, but pressure from the likes of senior Nick Coleman and junior Devin Studstill are keeping things close. Sophomore Isaiah Robertson’s move to rover seemed to have cleared some things up, but his spot was quickly taken by freshman Houston Griffith.

Assuming Gilman lands the free safety job, Coleman, who started all but one game last season, will either back him up or compete for the starting strong safety role. If that’s the case, things will be tight between him and Elliott. Studstill is a few rungs down on the ladder, but there’s no reason to believe that a jump in play won’t put him on the same level as his teammates.

As for Griffith, the true freshman has already caught his coach’s eye. Kelly has already committed to playing Griffith in 2018, and has also hinted that he will have a role outside of special teams. If that’s the case, then another monkey wrench has officially been thrown into the mix. It’s hard to tell who will win the job at this point, but the starters for the Blue-Gold game should offer some clarity.