SOUTH BEND, Ind. — The media viewing window of Notre Dame’s first spring football practice Thursday inside the Irish Athletics Center revealed so little about the impending quarterback competition that the most noteworthy observation may have been where sophomore-to-be Tyler Buchner lined up for stretching.

Buchner was at the front of one of the 12 lines of players for the warmup session at the start of practice. That’s a spot typically reserved for veteran leaders on the team. At Thursday’s practice, Buchner was in the same front-line position as experienced players Isaiah Foskey, Bo Bauer, Josh Lugg and Justin Ademilola.

Perhaps Buchner moved to the front of the line because veteran starters Jarrett Patterson, Avery Davis, Jayson Ademilola and Cam Hart weren’t practicing due to injuries. But at the very least his alignment hinted at the importance Buchner will play for Notre Dame this spring as he battles junior Drew Pyne for the starting spot.

At this stage of the spring, the competition is less about who leads for Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman and more about figuring out what he can do to help the group led by offensive coordinator Tommy Rees.

"It's a unique group,” Freeman said. “You look at it, and you have two guys that have playing experience. And those are the two guys that are getting reps with the ones in Tyler and Drew. And so it's going to be a great competition, but I've been spending a lot of time with the quarterbacks just as a whole to try to continue to earn their trust and then get to know them.

“So it's a really, really unique group with (sophomore) Ron (Powlus III) and (freshman) Steve (Angeli). They're exceptional in groups. They're extremely smart.”

“I'm learning as a head coach that playing the quarterback position is extremely difficult and they have a lot of pressure on their shoulders. And so I want them to know the head coach supports them and I'm with them, and I want to learn everything that's on their plate.”

Buchner played more in his freshman season last year than Pyne played in his first two seasons combined. In Buchner’s 10 game appearances, he totaled 336 rushing yards and three touchdowns on 46 carries and 298 passing yards and three touchdowns on 21-of-35 passing (60%) with three interceptions. His role as a change-of-pace quarterback became a regular part of the offense for much of the season but was curiously absent in Notre Dame’s 37-35 loss to Oklahoma State in the Fiesta Bowl.

Pyne appeared to have a chance of replacing Jack Coan as the starter heading into the Virginia Tech game last season, but former head coach Brian Kelly and Rees stuck with the veteran graduate transfer. Pyne showed glimpses of potential in helping Notre Dame finish off Wisconsin after Coan was hurt and led an ill-fated comeback effort against Cincinnati after Coan and Buchner struggled. Those were Pyne’s lone appearances of the season in which he completed half of his passes (15-of-30) for 224 yards and two touchdowns and netted a loss of six yards on six rushing attempts.

Freeman isn’t going to be the one offering pointers on throwing mechanics, but he wants to be available to the quarterbacks.

"I'm no quarterback guru,” Freeman said. “I'm not afraid to admit that. And so my role as the head coach is to let those guys know I understand how difficult a position you all are in. Use me as a resource to help you. That's why every week we spend time together, we have a quarterback meeting with just me and the quarterbacks, because I want them to know I'm a teammate.

“I'm going lean on Tommy Rees as somebody who is deciding who is the starting quarterback. He's played the position. He's the offensive coordinator.”

That doesn’t mean Freeman doesn’t have opinions. He knows what he wants Notre Dame’s starting quarterback to possess.

“You have to take care of the football,” Freeman said. “You have to be able to put the football where it belongs. You have to be able to make sure the offense is in the right position to have success. Make the right checks, the right calls, but also there's a leadership to it. It's the credibility of, ‘Hey, I'm the leader of the offense,’ and for the most part, a lot of times the quarterback is the leader of the team.

“Obviously, I believe in a quarterback that, yes, makes good decisions, but also has an ability to escape. We don't need a dual threat as much as a quarterback that's able to escape bad situations. And so that's the things I'm going to look for.”

The 40-minute viewing window open to reporters Thursday included mostly fundamental drill work and no competitive reps. Freeman admitted that he naturally wants to track how the linebackers are doing, but he's also drawn to the quarterbacks because their drills are the most fun.

A starting quarterback decision doesn’t have to come soon. As long as Buchner and Pyne are improving, the Irish will be in good shape when the time comes to make that call.

And for the record, Pyne was taking drill reps ahead of Buchner on Thursday. But don't read too much into that.

“It's going to be a great battle. The challenge for myself, coach Rees, is to make sure that we continue to create a room that has healthy competition,” Freeman said. “We continue to create a room that everybody wants to be the starter. But these four guys in this room are my brothers and whoever's on that field represents us all."

Freeman’s to-do list for Notre Dame’s 15 spring practices, which will conclude with the Blue-Gold Game on April 23 is more intangible than tangible.

The blueprint is pretty standard.

“I have a vision, an identity I want for our team,” Freeman said. “And that’s to be a team that can run the ball and stop the run. I believe in our O-line and our D-line being the foundation of our team, and so I’m excited to see if that can become our identity. That's my vision.”

But how the Irish get there is more about meeting mantras and mindsets than measuring progress.

“I want to see a team that’s aggressive. That’s one of our mantras,” Freeman said. “Challenge everything. What does that mean? It means do not play timid. Do not play scared. Think outside the box offensively and defensively, schematically. Be OK with taking chances.

“The second thing is based off the Golden Standard — unit strength. I want to see a group of guys that are tough. And how do you become tough? How do you get tougher? Because you sacrifice for the guy next to you. So, I want to see how much this group is willing to sacrifice for each other.

“And the third thing is just the competitive spirit. We have to have a mindset — every drill, every rep — we have to win. If we don’t win, we’re devastated. But then the next part of that is — one play, one life.

“You’re going to hear me say that all the time. I don’t remember what happened in the last rep. I don’t remember what happened the last play. One play, one life. Let’s move forward.”

• Running back C’Bo Flemister is no longer on Notre Dame’s roster, Freeman confirmed Thursday, and won’t be returning. Flemister played in just four games last season as a senior and should have two seasons of NCAA eligibility remaining with a COVID exemption.

Notre Dame has four scholarship running backs on the roster this spring: junior Chris Tyree, sophomores Logan Diggs and Audric Estime and freshman Jadarian Price. Flemister, who finished his Notre Dame career with 110 carries for 471 yards and 10 touchdowns, would have likely been third on the Irish depth chart at best.

• Cornerback TaRiq Bracy didn’t make a social media announcement about his return this winter, but Freeman confirmed he will be back and using the extra year of eligibility granted by the NCAA during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Bracy started 11 games in the past two seasons for the Irish and will provide experience as an outside cornerback and nickelback option.

• Wide receiver Joe Wilkins Jr. has been cleared to practice this spring ahead of his graduate senior season. Wilkins went down with a season-ending knee injury in the fifth game of the season last year. Prior to tearing his MCL, Wilkins caught four passes for 61 yards across those five games including a 23-yard, contested touchdown catch in the season opener at Florida State

Wilkins has had a statistically quiet career at Notre Dame — 11 catches for 124 yards and two touchdowns — but his availability will be important as the Irish currently have seven scholarship wide receivers until four-star signee Tobias Merriweather joins the program in June.

• Offensive lineman Josh Lugg, who will play his sixth season at Notre Dame in the fall, also made his return from injury. Lugg missed the Fiesta Bowl following a minor knee surgery, but he’s already back in the mix for the Irish this spring. His leadership will be valuable with center Jarrett Patterson sidelined with a torn pectoral.

• None of the seven injured players sidelined at Thursday’s practice are expected to participate this spring, Freeman said. That included Patterson and fellow offensive linemen Pat Coogan (knee) and Billy Schrauth (foot), wide receiver Avery Davis (knee), defensive tackle Jayson Ademilola (shoulder), cornerback Cam Hart (shoulder) and tight end Cane Berrong (knee).

All of them should be available in the fall if their rehabs don’t hit major snags.

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