Notebook: With Devyn Ford out, Notre Dame turns to new return options

Returning kickoffs for Notre Dame has gotten off to an inauspicious start for Penn State grad transfer Devyn Ford.

In Notre Dame’s Aug. 26 opener with Navy, the Mids kicked away from him on both of their kickoffs, to up-man Gi’Bran Payne. Ford’s first chance to return a kickoff then came this past Saturday against Tennessee State. But eight yards into his first-quarter return, he suffered a blow to the head and lost a fumble, which the visiting Tigers recovered at the Irish 12-yard line.

He sat out the rest of ND’s 56-3 romp, and Irish head coach Marcus Freeman confirmed Thursday Ford will continue to be out for this Saturday’s road matchup against NC State (1-0) in Raleigh, N.C.

“[He’s] still in concussion protocol from the last game,” Freeman said during his weekly Zoom call with the media.

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► Notre Dame depth chart projection for NC State

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Sophomore Jadarian Price and freshman Jeremiyah Love were the two players Freeman mentioned as replacements for Ford as the 10th-ranked Irish (2-0) chase their 29th successive victory against ACC competition.

Freeman said Tennessee State was not flagged for targeting, the officials explained to him, because the hit on Ford was not made with the crown of the helmet, but rather the forehead.

Also remaining out of the two-deeps is sophomore linebacker Nolan Ziegler, who remains at Notre Dame but left training camp in August and has not been practicing since that time.

“Nolan Ziegler is continuously dealing with a personal issue that really relates to mental health,” Freeman said, “and so he's progressing but he's just dealing with a personal issue.”

Freshman Drayk Bowen moved up into the No. 2 spot on the depth chart at middle linebacker, though he missed the Tennessee State game because he was in concussion protocol. He is expected to be available for Saturday’s game.

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The position group largely deemed to be Notre Dame’s strongest and deepest heading into the season, the cornerbacks, are off to a relatively quiet start. But hardly ineffective.

In fact, NC State quarterback Brennan Armstrong — a sixth-year collegian and a three-year starter at Virginia before transferring — will face the Power 5’s top-ranked pass-efficiency defense and sixth overall among all the 130 FBS teams.

The 56.0 rating — which includes safety and linebacker coverage as well — translates to yielding 11 completions in 29 attempts for 110 yards with no passing TDs and two interceptions against, admittedly, underwhelming pass offenses to this point.

Underwhelming no more.

The last time Armstrong and NC State offensive coordinator Robert Anae worked together, in 2021 at Virginia, the Cavs averaged 392.6 passing yards per game, second most in the FBS that season.

Anae was with Syrcause last season after the Virginia coaching staff was fired at the end of the 2021 season. The 64-year-old from Laie, Hawaii — the same town that produced former Irish players Manti Te’o, Robby Toma and Alohi Gilman — then joined the Wolfpack this offseason. And Armstrong — with a huge statistical drop-off under the new Cavs coaching staff in 2022 — followed him.

Notre Dame preseason All-American Benjamin Morrison didn’t even start the opener against Navy and its triple-option-heavy offense, though he did play 30 of the 55 defensive snaps in that 42-3 victory in Dublin, Ireland. And the corners’ Pro Football Focus grades have been so-so, but Freeman has seen them staying sharp and excelling in practice, including 1s-vs.-1s practice periods against Irish QB Sam Hartman.

“They've been really doing a great job,” Freeman said. “We're going to need them [this week]. We know they'll be challenged down the field this week. And again, I love the depth of the room with Cam Hart, Benjamin Morrison, Jaden Mickey, you'll see Christian Gray, obviously [nickel] Clarence Lewis.

“So it's a deep room that, again, you all might not see the production that really relates to that room in terms of doing their job, but they've been doing a really good job.”

One of the targets Armstrong will likely be throwing to Saturday against the Irish is the third eighth-year senior in FBS history, 25-year-old wide receiver Bradley Rozner.

A late portal addition from Rice just before the start of training camp, the 6-foot-4, 200-pound Needville, Texas, product caught one pass for 14 yards last Thursday in NC State’s 24-14 season-opening road win at UConn.

He was a zero-star prospect, per Rivals, coming out of Needville High and a two-star prospect when he signed with Rice after three seasons at Cisco (Texas) Junior College. At Cisco and Rice combined, Rozner missed four seasons due to injury.

Last year was not one of them. He led the Owls with 876 receiving yards and 10 TDs while catching 44 passes.

One of the nation’s top linebacker prospects as a high school senior, Notre Dame sophomore Josh Burnham was quickly converted to vyper end and spent his freshman season mostly watching. His playing time on defensive consisted of one play in 2022, and yet had assisted on a three-yard tackle for loss on it.

This season the now 6-foot, 248-pounder has worked his way into a three-way timeshare with senior starter Jordan Botelho and classmate Junior Tuihalamaka, also converted linebackers who were Rivals250 prospects.

His six tackles are just four off the team lead, and he leads the Irish with two tackles for loss and two QB hurries, and is one of three players who have a sack.

“His factor level, so far, has been high,” Irish defensive coordinator Al Golden said. “So, your number of plays divided by factors, that’s your ratio. His is high, whether it's quarterback sacks or tackles or whatever the case may be. I think that's a good sign for him moving forward.”

So what did Golden see in Burnham that led him to believe he’d be a fit at vyper end?

“Have you stood next to him?” Golden said with a smile. “I mean, he would have to diet for four years. He's an incredible specimen. He's long, takes care of his body. I mean, he’s 250 without trying, as a redshirt freshman.

“So he's got a lot of years in front of him. And there's no doubt he's going to settle into that 260-65 range. He's a big man and can move well and is smart.”

And finally loving the move.

“The first initial time playing, it was definitely frustrating at times to try and make that switch,” Burnham said. “Coach Golden saw something. I'm super grateful. I trust him with everything. He's a great coach. He made it to the Super Bowl and has done all these amazing things. He knows what he's talking about. So, when he gives you an opportunity like that, you have to take advantage of it.”

Remember the Miami turnover chain? NC State defensive coordinator Tony Gibson has come up with the Wolfpack version of the concept — the Takeaway Bone.

Like the turnover chain, the bone shows up on the sideline when an NC State defensive player recovers a fumble or makes an interception. The difference is the Wolfpack player then signs the bone, and the player with the most signatures on it at the end of the season gets to keep it.

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