2019 Notre Dame Football Look Ahead: Special Teams

Nathan’s Take 

The Notre Dame staff will likely lean toward the two scholarship athletes when it comes to winning these kicking battles. That means, Jonathan Doerer and Jay Bramblett are likely the favorites. As mentioned, Doerer needs to prove the accuracy is there, because it has been sketchy on kickoffs and in limited attempts on field goals. Doerer’s leg is one of the strongest in the country though, and that will certainly appeal to the staff for both kickoffs and long field goals.

Jay Bramblett was one of the top punter recruits in the country during this past cycle, and was also a talented high school quarterback — good enough that he probably could have played lower level football as a college quarterback. Surely, the staff has this mind for trick plays down the road. If Bramblett can prove to be an accurate and powerful punter, it is his job to lose.

Jake Rittman and Harrison Leonard are talented kickers in their own right, Leonard as a place kicker and Rittman possibly at both punter and kicker. At the very least, they provide solid depth at a position where competition should bring the best to the top. If these two guys prove to be better than Doerer and Bramblett, the staff won’t hesitate to use them.