Notre Dame Football: 5 signees who will have instant impact in 2019

1. Harrison Leonard, K

Before getting into Harrison Leonard’s place on the team, it’s important to note that this list has its fair share of honorable mentions. Osita Ekwonu and JD Bertrand could make some noise at inside linebacker, Kyle Hamilton and Isaiah Foskey have all the talent in the world on defense, and Litchfield Ajavon has the versatility to contribute in numerous aspects of the game.

These players, among others, are part of a young Notre Dame core that will shape the team in years to come. It’s hard to tell at this point how each will develop throughout camp, but what is certain is the amount of talent the Irish will have to work with over the course of the 2019 season and beyond.

As for Leonard, the Connecticut native will be competing with last year’s wildcard Jonathan Doerer for the starting kicker job. Doerer, who went five for six on extra point attempts while knocking through his lone field goal try in 2018, was extremely inconsistent in his intended role as a kickoff specialist.

Given Doerer’s inconsistencies in the more refined aspect of his game, it’s reasonable to expect that the same might hold true when it comes to field goals. There are videos online of Leonard kicking pretty far in a practice setting, but there’s little to no way of knowing how that will translate to the college level. Regardless, a little push might go a long way for both Leonard and Doerer.