Eric Hansen: Welcome to Notre Dame Football Live Chat, “halfway through spring football” edition.
There are scads of women's basketball questions in the queue today. And while I welcome some of those, I really want to keep the focus of this chat primarily on football. So here's what I'll do … Most of them are similarly themed, as in what the hell is going on? I'll address a couple of them today. And if there's enough interest, I'll do a chat specific to women's hoops once we get past the April 12 Blue-Gold Game.
Now some quick programming notes beyond that …
► If you missed the last episode of our aspiring-to-be-viral Notre Dame Football YouTube show, Football Never Sleeps, what are you doing with your life? Seriously, the show keeps its shelf life long after the live presentation, so you can catch up now or later on YouTube. This week we’ll have a special Friday (today) recruiting-oriented show at 4:30 p.m. ET with longtime recruiting analyst Tom Lemming. As far as our normal presentation, we are back in our normal Monday night 7 ET spot for the live presentation and will be on Monday, April 7, as well.
► Finally, at WSBT Sports Radio 96.1, we’re rolling through a busy and newsy Notre Dame spring football practice season. Darin Pritchett and I were together this week on Wednesday and Thursday, and each week moving forward on Weekday SportsBeat (960 AM, live streaming at wsbtradio.com). The weekday shows run from 5-6 p.m. ET. You can download all episodes as podcasts.
As far as this week's chat …
PLEASE include your NAME and HOMETOWN along with your question(s).
Here are the rules …
Eric Hansen: The No Drinking rule remains suspended indefinitely.
Except for me. I chug coffee instead.
OK, off we go ...
Terry from Huron, S.D.: Hi Eric, it was great to meet and visit with you after ND women took down Michigan. If nobody transfers this spring, what does ND’s scholarship numbers look like heading into the fall? Speaking of transfers, what the heck is happening with all the transfers in the women’s program?
Eric Hansen: Hi Terry. Thanks for coming over to press row and saying hello. It was great meeting you too! We are ever so close FINALLY to having an answer to the scholarship-limit question ... we think. ... Federal judge Claudia Wilken granted preliminary approval of the House v. NCAA settlement on Oct. 7. The final approval hearing is scheduled for MONDAY. This hearing has great potential to bring clarity to where college football and the college sports model in general are headed in this era of seismic changes. The scholarship/roster limits is just one aspect, but it's the one you asked about. So let's run the numbers. The current scholarship limit is 85. That could be raised to as many as 105, but it also might eliminate walk-ons. Where does ND stand at the moment? The Irish are sitting at 95, which isn't a bad place to be considering the range of where this could head.
Let's say it goes to 105, then ND could conceivably add from the transfer portal, which opens up again for 10 days from April 16-25. If the limit stays at 85, then look for there to be players leaving ND during that portal window. But there is some wiggle room with NIL money. ND got down to 86 last year, but was able to make the numbers work. As far as the women's transfers, I don't think any of the four in the portal for ND had the same reasons for transferring. Olivia Miles, for instance, was a business decision. I think Emma Risch needed/wanted a fresh start and may not be healthy enough to play college BB. Hopefully, after two hip surgeries in two years she can. Even if the portal losses had been fewer, there's a real challenge for ND to bring in five, six transfers in one cycle. And if they're all grad transfers, then it's even going to be more chaotic next offseason potentially.
Bob from Oxnard, Calif.: Losing to NIU changed the mentality of our team and fueled subsequent success. How does the team re-create the eye of the tiger @ Miami 2025, especially without our loudest leader from last year (Coogan)?
Eric Hansen: Hi Bob. New leaders emerge and new circumstances will emerge to drive dreams, goals, etc. I would think one motivation would be how close the Irish came to winning a national title. And knowing now this is a program that could legitimately compete to actually win one -- and not just get to the playoff and get blown out -- would be a major motivation for the returning players especially.
Sean from Schaumburg, Ill.: Great FNS on Monday. I liked how you talked about Onye and how much support he received. Glad he's staying. How can the coaching staff/personnel dept utilize this to show recruits they care about the person not, solely, the player? Sometimes it's those instances on the margins that make a difference in convincing a player to commit and stay until getting that degree. Similar to DeVonta Smith transferring to be closer to his child. He said having those close relationships with Freeman/Mickens previously helped convince him Notre Dame would have a positive impact on him. Anything to gain an advantage in recruiting is beneficial, no?
Eric Hansen: Thanks Sean. Notre Dame's current players are such a big part of the recruiting process once players come on campus for visits. And I think they can be the most convincing purveyors of that message. And I think it matters too in what you mentioned about roster retention. And roster retention is REALLY OVERLOOKED by a lot of fans when it comes to the recruiting/portal/roster management equation. So thanks, for recognizing that and bringing it up.
Jules from Joliet, Ill.: Eric: Thanks for hosting these chats. It sounds like the press will have access to the full practice on Saturday. What four or five things are you most interested in seeing during that time?
Eric Hansen: Hi Jules. Thank you and some of this is based on who's available and what's realistic ... No. 1 ... what the quarterbacks look like in actual competitive situations. 2. Really curious about the interior defensive line and how they compete, especially Onye and the two transfers. 3. Who sticks out among the young safeties. 4. The sophomore and freshman wide receivers. 5. Kevin Bauman and the tight ends.
Damon from Nashville: Eric, I hope you are having a great week and thank you for taking time out of your busy schedule for doing these chats. This question seems silly with a 3-headed quarterback competition, but, can any of our running backs throw the ball? And, with our plethora of running backs and RB Coach Seider with a QB background, do you foresee some wildcat formations and more 2 back sets this fall? Would be a nice trick play to see one of them throw a TD pass. Thanks!
Eric Hansen: Damon, thank you, hanging in there this week and appreciate you. And I'll be honest when I first started to read your question, I thought you were taking full advantage of the no-drinking rule being rescinded, but as I finished it, I thought "this guy is really on top of things." So, brilliant question actually. Now let's see if I have an answer to match. ... The part of your question that got me was about Wildcat formations, which Penn State did some last year with its tight end, Tyler Warren, and also had a backup QB who often took snaps in the red zone. ND didn't see him in their playoff, because he was in the transfer portal by then. But the possibility of direct snaps is real given the difference between having someone with the prolific running prowess of Riley Leonard and how to replace the dimension in the offense.
That could take many forms. You could do it with just using the traditional running game more. You could possibly use a changeup QB like Kenny Minchey in the red zone. You could use a running back with director snaps ... but which one? You could also do that with Jordan Faison, who did throw a pass on a 2-point conversion. I think those are more practical uses for the concept you were digging at. If you just wanted to use a one-a-season trick play, I would think Jeremiyah Love could execute that, but something tells me that's up Aneyas Williams' alley.
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Mike from Phoenix: Eric, Happy Friday! I’d like to ask you about Jadarian Price. Overlooked and underrated. Big time runs vs A&M, Purdue, USC, etc. Last week you said he is on pace to graduate. Do you think he might want to come back next year after J. Love moves on to the NFL? IMO, I think he would be the man next year even with a loaded RB room and would improve his NFL stock. Do you think TE Rioridon has the ability to be a top 3 TE next year? He looks the part. Cheers! 🍻 I know you are a Cardinals fan but I have removed the no drinking rule for today as it is Cubs opening day. Hard to believe that we have been chatting for at least 10 years!!
Eric Hansen: Hi Mike, well first of all, I'm glad I didn't scare you off during that decade of you joining the chat. I would be surprised if Jadarian Price comes back for a fifth year -- and yes he does have that option because of the medical redshirt year he had as a freshman. He did have 120 carries last year, just 43 fewer than Love. Running back is one position where longevity (and tons of carries) doesn't necessarily help your pro career. ... When you talk to TE Eli Raridon's teammates, they describe him as a freak still after two ACL surgeries. His production hasn't matched that ... yet, so this is a big offseason for him to start to push hard in that direction. ... And good luck to the Cubs and your choice of beers!
Ryan Frankfort illinois: Good afternoon Eric How has Donavan hinish Looked in Practice GO IRISH ☘️☘️☘️🏈🏈🏈
Eric Hansen: Hi Ryan. I know you are a big Hinish fan, and we've really only seen him in drills and stretching, but tomorrow we'll see a lot more. So ask me again in the next chat, and I'll have a useful answer for you!
Manny from San Pedro: Eric!!!! Love being referred to as the godfather of the !!!!!!!! For ND to return to the NC title game. What position group would have to make the biggest jump?
Eric Hansen: Manny!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! You deserve it. With the construction of this team, for me, it's wide receiver.
Len from the Jersey Shore: Hello Eric. Great answer to my O line question from last week. Sometimes reality is something no one would of thought of. Point 1, a year ago the O line had six total starts for experience for the beginning of the 2024 season. Point 2 for 2025 ND has the following: 3 interior linemen with many starts combined leave for other programs, 2 interior linemen who were 2024 day 1 starters recovering from injury, one 2024 starter on limited Spring practice being the only O linemen to play all games in 2024, and the starting LT recovering from injury, with a LT/RG who played well in limited action in 2024, and at least three talented players waiting for an opportunity. Is this type of situation an anomaly or the new standard for the program?
Eric Hansen: Len, well thanks for the compliment. I think the most difficult thing to predict is injuries, the severity and how many. So factoring that into outlier vs. a new normal is difficult. But losing experienced players to the portal, when you have a lot of talent and its not a position that lends itself to rotational play, seems to be something that's going to happen on a semi-regular basis.
Espi: If the O Line goes with Lambert and Wagner. How do you like at LT?
Eric Hansen: As long as Aamil Wagner would be comfortable moving from right to left, that's who I would put there. Guerby Lambert, to me, profiles more as that mauler kind of right tackle. But again you didn't include Charles Jagusah or Anthonie Knapp in your question and those are still probably the most likely candidates.
Glenn from Santa Monica, Calif.: Eric, How does Ash implement his defense when most of the starters are resting in Spring? Walking thru a new defense is different than practicing it.
Eric Hansen: Hi Glenn, if I've given the impression that MOST of the starters are resting this spring, I've done a lousy job of giving you the information. And those who are limited, like transfer safety Jalen Stroman, for example, are engaged ... in mental reps, in meetings, in film study .. and have a whole summer and fall camp to actually practice at full speed with that foundation. And keep in mind, Chris Ash's scheme/system is more similar than it is different from Al Golden's, so it's not the heavy lift it could have been.
Kevin from Sleepy Eye, Minn.: Eric!!!!!! Let's talk a future opponent. At Miami, then Texas A&M at home. How much better will the Aggies be in year two under Elko? And the "why" behind your answers:)
Eric Hansen: Kevin!!!!!! I think we're still learning a lot about those two teams, so giving you a whole lot of detail is too far down the BS avenue for me to try to pull of in early April. Texas A&M is No. 22 and Miami No. 23 in ESPN's Way-Too-Early Top 25. That's not a huge departure from where both teams finished up last season. We still have another transfer portal cycle that could affect the rosters of those two teams. After that and some time to do research, I could give you a much better assessment.
Don from Scottsdale, Ariz.: Eric, Hope all is well in Indiana. With the women done your down to 2 sports! What are you doing with your spare time...HA! I know the media hasn't seen a lot in the open practices but who are the guys who've been under the radar that may flash in the fall? Keep up the great work, you and Tyler are the best!!!
Eric Hansen: Spare time? That is a good one. Thanks Don. Something that's difficult for me to define is under-the-radar, because I don't have a great feel for who's on and off it for the average fan. For me, everyone's on the radar. But let me try to define my answer by players who maybe didn't get a lot of playing time in 2024 who have the opportunity and potential to do so in 2025? For me, that's TE Kevin Bauman, OL Sullivan Absher, freshman WR Elijah Burress all three of the soph WRs, DL Jason Onye, DE Loghan Thomas, S Luke Talich. And thanks for the compliment and the multiple exclamation points!!!
Ray from E. Wenatchee, Wash.: Thanks for hosting these chats. You and all the participants do a great job! There has to be something seriously wrong that caused the women’s bb team to so catastrophically underachieve and more recently disintegrate. No one seems to be forthcoming with any explanations. Coach Ivey needs to step forward and explain what happened as well as her proposed fix if she expects anyone to support her. What is your take on the situation? Thanks
Eric Hansen: Hi Ray. That's why I write columns. There's more to unravel, but hopefully, this gives you some of the answers you are looking for:
Question Everything needs to be Notre Dame WBB coach Ivey's mantra, too
Jack from Strongsville, Ohio: Eric. Please indulge me in one more round of WBB questions. I hope you don't consider this a manifesto. I read your article on Tuesday titled Question Everything three times. It was excellent. Do you think not reaching the final four is a major disappointment given the talent and experience of this team? Sonia Citron said this team had too much talent. Is that code for saying there were not enough balls for Hannah and Olivia to share and that is why Olivia is leaving the program. She did not want to be second fiddle to Hannah? Lastly, how crucial is this year to Niele Ivey with only one returning starter coming back and having to reach deep into the transfer portal. Thanks as always for your great work.
Eric Hansen: Hi Jack. Thanks for reading the piece and for the feedback. Yes, I do think not reaching the Final Four was a major disappointment for the reasons you stated. No, I don't think that's what Sonia Citron was trying to say. Olivia Miles would have been the No. 2 or 3 pick in the draft had she come out and she was a second-team All-American. Hannah Hidalgo is one of just four players in women's college hoops who's been a first-team All-American as both a freshman and sophomore. So to argue there weren't enough balls to go around, doesn't hold water. Niele Ivey is at a inflection point in her career. That could mean crisis, but it could also mean opportunity. It depends on how she handles it. Because what she does this offseason not only affects next season but the trajectory of seasons to come after that.
Jeff from Phoenix: Hey Eric, hope you are doing well. This is something I have wondered about for a while, it’s somewhat sensitive, but I hope to get your perspective. It seems like it has been 10+ years (at least) since I heard of an ND football player being declared 'academically ineligible' and having to sit out some part of the year. I know ND has a crew of academic advisors that help the athletes manage their studies - I assume this is a contributor. There are several other potential reasons for why this designation may have largely disappeared, and I don’t want to lead your answer but rather get whatever perspective you have. Much thanks for the consistently great content and chats.
Eric Hansen: Hi Jeff. This is a really interesting question and one that deserves some poking around to give you detail, and I will do that ... but I can't today. But I will try to give you something for now that might make sense. When a player misses a semester for "personal reasons" sometimes it is academics and sometimes not. It could be for mental health, for a violation of team or university rules, for academics. And sometimes the player is open about what that is eventually, and sometimes they are not. Alizé Mack, for instance, came out immediately and stated why he was about to miss time. Dexter Williams eventually shared his violation of university policy leading to an announced suspension. Sometimes a player will transfer out and land at a Juco instead of sitting out at Notre Dame. But I do think the great supports in place and that ND does a great job with finding fits are a big part of it.
Marie from Atlanta: Hi Eric, I hope you’re having a great week. It looks like neither of us will have any bragging rights for our NCAA brackets this year. In case you haven’t looked, we are tied in lowly 19th place. Do you think that Cam Williams could potentially play the boundary? What do you think is a better fit for him field or boundary? Now that the Stanford Exodus is starting do you see ND going after either David Bailey or Emmett Mosley? Which three freshmen have you heard the most about this spring? Changing topics to women’s basketball, I loved your article about questioning everything. What are the three most important things that Neile needs to do in the next 3 to 4 months to get this program back on track? Thanks for hosting the chat and for all the great insights. Enjoy the jersey game this weekend.
Eric Hansen: Hi Marie. It was funny. I had one stretch where I jumped into the top 10 and had all eight Elite 8 teams correct, but it didn't last LOL. Let's move on to less painful topics. I think Cam Williams could potentially play the boundary. He's at 6-2, 200 now ... not the ideal size there, but not ridiculous either. But with Malachi Fields still at Virginia until June and Micah Gilbert out with a broken hand, he can get a lot of reps there this spring and still move back to field receiver over the summer if that makes more sense. So I like this spring experiment. I do think he fits better on the field side at this point. ... When we potentially get the answer Monday on roster/scholarship limits in the court hearing, that might inform whether ND is adding or subtracting in the next portal window. I think both of those are good players, but I would think they'd want to go somewhere where they could be starters. ... Freshman I've heard about the most this spring? Elijah Burress, Madden Faraimo and JaDon Blair.
As to the women's hoops three things ... 1) Be open to learning how to be more versatile offensively 2) Kill it when it comes to 2026 recruiting, and they have zero commitments so far. 3) Kill it with portal additions, knowing you'll need some underclassmen, which is a tough fit with admissions.
Ced walker from Saginaw, Michigan aka sagnasty Saginaw pride: I really believe Marcus Freeman will go with Steve angeli as the starting quarterback at Miami god bless this football team here come the irish trust the process the golden standard rally we are nd god country go irish love thee notre dame our mother pray for us
Eric Hansen: OK Ced, thanks for your prediction.
Tom F from Kennesaw, Ga.: Hi Eric. Happy Friday!!! Will you be able to view any of the Spring scrimmages?? I'm sure you get a lot more out of scrimmages than just drills. We hear so much about the OL picking the 5 best players and then figure out where they fit to best help the team. Why doesn't this apply to WR's?? I think the consensus is that Greathouse and Faison are our two best WRs. But, are they both aligned as Slot receivers?? Also, isn't the Wisconsin transfer considered more of a Slot guy too??? If so, why would you have so many of your top receivers at one position and not be able to have all of them on the field at the same time like OL??? Finally, regarding WBB, there is certainly a lot of turmoil and uncertainty with the program right now. It seems apparent we are going to have to hit the transfer portal hard to have any kind of competitive team next year. When should we expect to start to see any announcements of portal players coming to ND??? Thanks for all your great insight on both FB and WBB. Go Irish!!!
Eric Hansen: Hi Tom. Thanks for your questions. The media gets to watch a full practice tomorrow (Saturday). We do not know yet what the format will be. Last year we saw a full scrimmage the week before the Blue-Gold Game and it was INCREDIBLY informative. That is what I am rooting for. ... There are receivers you can play anywhere in the formation (Michael Floyd) and some you cannot. But let me allay your concern about Faison. ND moved him out of the slot receiver logjam last offseason to the field receiver position. So he's out there with KK Smith, Elijah Buress and Scrap Richardson. Jaden Greathouse, Will Pauling and Logan Saldate are the slots. Jerome Bettis Jr. and Cam Williams are practicing in the boundary, with Malachi Fields and Micah Gilbert joining them this summer.
The reason different receivers play different positions is to play to their strengths and to stress the defense. For instance, if you have a field receiver (thank Will Fuller) who can take the top off a defense with elite speed, that's what you want on that side. If you put a possession receiver over there, it doesn't put the opposing defensive coordinator in much of a dilemma in terms of whether to bring safety help or not, for instance.
The slots and the outside receivers tend to be more interchangeable but not necessarily. The boundary receivers tend to be big physical receivers who can operate in less space and can win the 50-50 battles. As far as WBB, the portal opened for that sport on March 25 and closes April 23, so the first you'll read about from me are portal visitors before we start to see commitments. This is going to be an ongoing storyline for a while.
Paul from Knoxville, Tenn.: Ciao Eric: Really liked your "question everything" article about Lady Irish WBB; I think it is spot on. I'm curious about your assessment of what may, or may not, have contributed to Koval, Risch, and Watson going into the portal. In particular, I find it somewhat surprising that both remaining post players decided to leave, and I wonder whether it may be a result, at least in part, of how the front court was required to play. My perception is that none of them -- Karlin, Koval, or Westbeld -- looked consistently comfortable with what they were assigned to do on the offensive end, and their progress offensively over the course of the season appeared rather modest. I also seem to recall that Karlin and Koval were presented as capable of stretching opposing defenses by popping out and hitting jump shots, but they seldom did so, especially the latter. Anyway, enough of my mini-rant; I'd welcome your thoughts. And thank you again for hosting the chat.
Eric Hansen: Paul, thank YOU! We've covered some of this ground in previous questions, but I wanted to include yours, because you came up with some really astute observations that I think are relevant. The fact that ND had the personnel to toggle between an elite transition team and one that could function well in the half court and didn't take advantage of that was an incredible miscalculation and missed opportunity. And your mini-rant provided some context as to why, so thank you ... and thanks for the compliment on the column.
Tim from Nantucket, Mass.: Hello all, want to get a question in before Nantucket secedes and digital traffic will be tariffed. One player who has always intrigued me is Dylan Devezin. I think he started as a walk-on QB, switched to RB on scholarship. He appears to have the perfect size for fullback/ hybrid blocking tight-end and because he was a QB maybe a holder for trickeration plays on field goals, extra points. Is this simply a depth-chart issue or was the expectation that he would be special teams and practice squad? Thanks.
Eric Hansen: Hi Tim. Dylan did not get converted to scholarship from walk-on, which is why perhaps you saw him as a player who might bet into the mix. It is not trending that way for the 6-2, 216-pounder. If he was viewed as a future position player option, the first sign of that would likely be a special teams role. He was not used there this past season and actually got demoted as the holder on field goals, etc., in 2023. If the Irish want to do trick plays with the holder, they could do that with Tyler Buchner, and actually did do that last season. But right now there's just not a fit for him in terms of a path to meaningful playing time.
Pete from Erie, Pa.: Eric!!! Thank You for your hard, tireless work!! You are truly committed to the Fighting Irish! Any relation to Tom Hansen? Know him? Couple questions. ... Women’s Hoops, just about 5 weeks ago they were #1, looking strong, marching toward a title... and then marched right off a cliff! Massive disappointment doesn't do it justice! Agree to question everything but it's not going to be easy to move on from this terrible collapse, especially with so many abandoning the sinking ship. This ain't your average off-season. Any off-court drama in play here? Football, QB job, would it be fair to say it's Angeli's job to lose? I mean, from a fan's pov, for the last 2 years he's always been the 1st guy off the bench and always performed well.
Eric Hansen: Hi Pete!!! Thanks for your questions. If Tom Hansen has a lot of money and thinks he has a long-lost brother or nephew, then yeah, I'm up for being related to him. ... I'll save the WBB question for next time. Let me get to the football question. I DON'T think it's Steve Angeli's job to lose, but I think he has the opportunity to win it. You have to weight upside into the equation and keep in mind, CJ Carr was not healthy enough to go into a game from October through December of last year. I still think CJ Carr will emerge. I am eager to see all of them compete tomorrow.
Rick from Altadena, Calif.: When the phrase, "they need to take a leap" during camp is used, what does that mean in simple terms? Describe for us what a "leap" entails. In the classroom, field, both?
Eric Hansen: Rick if and when I would use that phrase, for me it's a player ON THE FIELD who needs to show progress if it's going to lead to additional playing time or to keep from being jumped over on the depth chart. Often it's because a window of opportunity is open, but won't stay open forever. So, Brenan Vernon comes to mind. The three sophomore receivers come to mind. Someone like Ben Minich at safety, Preston Zinter at linebacker. Those are examples. An example of players who maybe took that leap last year ... Junior Tuihalamaka, Jaylen Sneed are examples.
Eric Hansen: OK, I've got a hard out at 3, because of the live recruiting show I'm doing with Tom Lemming at 4:30 ET on YouTube I've got to set up. Thanks for all the great questions. We'll be back sometime next week to do it all again. And I will schedule a WBB chat sometimes after the April 12 Blue-Gold Game so we can get into that a little deeper. By then we'll have a better feel of what might be shaping up in the transfer portal. Thanks again.
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