Let’s not buy into the Sam Hartman hype just yet

Just how hard did Sam Hartman fall in 2022?

The Demon Deacons, after going on a promising 6-1 tear, entered the Louisville game ranked 10th in the AP Top 25, once again hitting a threshold that is so rarely seen by the historically troubled program. But it all came crashing down in a 27-point loss that saw the Deacs turn the ball over to the Cardinals a staggering eight times. And how many was Hartman involved in? Six, three picks—doubling his count for the season at that time—and three lost fumbles.

That many turnovers mixed with an unimpressive completion percentage of 57.1% (which would go on to be his lowest of 2022) means his performance was not just bad, but inexcusably pathetic. And that was just part of it, as the very next week had him throwing three more picks before falling to NC State (the first of the three “Tobacco Road” rivals they faced) by two scores.

Now look, I get it: In none of these instances was Sam Hartman the only Demon Deacon to make mistakes, and all of the teams I named deserve some serious credit for their performances. However, each of them were big opponents for the Deacs for one reason or another, whether it be due to facing them at a pivotal point in their schedule (thanks to something like an unfamiliarly high ranking), being an important rival, or both.

Hartman having multiple run-ins with both turnover concerns and statistical drops under those kinds of circumstances paints him out as a QB that is difficult to trust for the long haul, as he could seemingly fall apart at any moment that is bigger than the average game. This is especially frightening when considering that said moment doesn’t even have to be against that great of a team.

There were flaws in every team that downed Hartman’s Deacs

In total, I mentioned five different ACC schools over the course of two seasons: 2021 North Carolina, 2021 Clemson, 2021 Pittsburgh, 2022 Louisville, and 2022 NC State. Of those five, none finished with less than three losses. That means they, at most, were good, not great—and certainly not postseason contenders. Can the same be said about Notre Dame’s upcoming foes? Let’s see.

Upon observing the remaining slate that awaits the 2023 Irish, I notice two things in particular. One is that it does include a couple of CFP hopefuls (Ohio State and USC) that are bound to be more difficult to overcome than any of the ACC teams I just listed. The other thing is that four of those same teams are on the schedule as well, with the Irish having to go on the road to meet three of them.

Lastly, they are also set to take a trip to Durham to face Duke (a nine-win ACC squad that beat Sam Hartman last year) and host Wake Forest (a name that should turn heads for obvious reasons). All in all, not an easy path by any stretch of the imagination.

I hate to be such a party-pooper here, as Sam Hartman truly does deserve praise for how well he showed out in his Notre Dame debut. It’s just that he also had hot games at Wake Forest, days that we would always painfully learn were never meant to last.

Based on the schedule that the coming months have in store for him and the Irish, I’m going to need more than a pretty win over a subpar Navy before I’m ready to put my trust back into the hype train.