The Notre Dame football program should send a Christmas card to Duke.
When former Duke defensive end R.J. Oben announced Wednesday his commitment to transfer to Notre Dame, he became the second former Blue Devil to choose the Irish out of the transfer portal this week. Former Duke starting quarterback Riley Leonard also shared his pledge to Notre Dame on Tuesday.
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Notre Dame’s biggest transfer portal additions last offseason came at quarterback and defensive end with Sam Hartman from Wake Forest and Javontae Jean-Baptiste from Ohio State, respectively. Duke provided one-stop shopping for what the Irish hope will be two of their most important acquisitions from the portal this offseason.
Just like Jean-Baptiste’s commitment to Notre Dame brought fewer national headlines than Hartman’s, Oben’s commitment to the Irish won’t be discussed nationally as much as Leonard’s. But the potential impact Oben could make on Notre Dame’s defense shouldn’t be overlooked.
The 6-foot-4, 260-pound Oben was a hot commodity in the transfer portal with the likes of Florida State, USC, Oklahoma, Penn State, Louisville, Missouri and Auburn among those reaching out to recruit him. That’s because Oben carved out a significant role in Duke’s defensive line each of the past three seasons with at least 4.5 sacks per year.
Oben’s traditional statistics from the 2023 season aren’t overwhelming. He totaled just 17 tackles in 12 games, but five of his six tackles for loss went down as sacks. Pro Football Focus credited Oben with 27 quarterback pressures, 14 hurries and eight hits.
Notre Dame had three defensive linemen in 2023 with at least 27 quarterback pressures, per PFF: nose tackle Howard Cross III (36), Jean-Baptiste (35) and defensive tackle Rylie Mills (27). Jean-Baptiste won’t be back next season, so Oben will have the opportunity to replace his production. Cross announced Sunday his return for a sixth season. Mills has yet to share whether he’ll return for a fifth season.
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Oben, who will complete a graduate transfer to Notre Dame, finished his Duke career with 67 tackles, 14.5 sacks, 20 tackles for loss, five forced fumbles and one interception across five seasons. He signed with Duke as a three-star recruit in the 2019 class out of Jersey City (N.J.) St. Peter’s Prep. That’s the same high school that sent quarterback Brandon Wimbush, linebacker Shayne Simon, defensive tackle Jayson Ademilola and defensive end Justin Ademilola to Notre Dame in recent years. Oben was one class behind Simon and the Ademilola twins at St. Peter’s Prep.
That gave Oben a connection to Notre Dame’s program, but head coach Marcus Freeman, defensive coordinator Al Golden and defensive line coach Al Washington needed to sell Oben on what the Irish could do for him specifically. He liked what he heard on his visit this past weekend.
“Obviously, there's familiarity with former Prep guys who had success there,” Oben told Inside ND Sports, “but I loved the defensive philosophy and coaching staff. Coach Golden and Coach Washington conveyed a great plan to help me improve as a football player and be more productive in 2024 on runs and passing downs.”
Oben said at Notre Dame he found a culture under Freeman that has everyone caring about each other’s success and wanting to win as a team. He was able to connect with Cross, a fellow New Jersey product who has thrived playing for Freeman, Golden and Washington. He spoke with former Notre Dame defensive end Justin Tuck (2001-04) about the impact the university had on him and met former Notre Dame defensive tackle Chris Zorich (1987-90) during his visit.
Oben should have a well-informed perspective on what he needs to set himself up for a professional career from his father, Roman Oben. The elder Oben played 12 seasons in the NFL as an offensive tackle after being a third-round selection of the New York Giants in the 1996 NFL Draft following his college career at Louisville. Roman Oben currently works for the NFL as its vice president of football development.
R.J. Oben has a skill set that could apply at either of Notre Dame’s defensive end positions in 2024, though he's more likely to play field defensive end rather than than vyper.
The vyper position, which Jordan Botelho started in this season, has a more experienced depth chart. Botelho is eligible to return next season, sophomores Junior Tuihalamaka and Joshua Burnham have both taken snaps at the position and freshman Boubacar Traore has a bright future there.
The opportunity at field end, Jean-Baptiste’s role in 2023, is wide open. Both Jean-Baptiste and backup Nana Osafo-Mensah, who has already committed to transfer to TCU, won’t be back next season. Burnham or Tuihalamaka could move over. Sophomores Tyson Ford and Aiden Gobaira and freshman Brenan Vernon should be in line for rotational opportunities as well, though the Irish could opt to move someone inside to defensive tackle.
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