Notre Dame football: Breakout candidates-Defense

These two weren’t as much of a need as the above-mentioned defensive tackles, but much like Ademilola and Lacey, they flashed while on the field. Ovie Oghoufo originally signed with Notre Dame as an off-ball linebacker, but his twitchy athleticism and length always screamed Vyper in Notre Dame’s defensive scheme to me – and after stepping foot on campus it didn’t take long for that position change to occur.

I’ll toot my horn a little bit with Oghoufo because A.) I was higher on him than most, and B.) I begged for him to play drop end and many said he couldn’t. He appeared in eight games last year, and his snaps went up after the Okwara injury.

However, he made a name for himself in practice and in summer/fall camp. With Daelin Hayes and Ade Ogundeji returning for the 2020 season, the coaching staff will be able to put Oghoufo in favorable matchups next season, and I look forward to witnessing his speed off the edge on third downs.

Isaiah Foskey is essentially what the staff would have loved to do with Lacey if they had the opportunity. Was he ready to contribute as a freshman? Yes. The depth at the defensive end position gave the coaches an opportunity to utilize the four games redshirt rule strategically, and thus he still has four years left if he needs it.

Foskey should be able to play a role similar to Ogundeji the past few years-quality depth and insurance for injuries as well as other factors. One thing is for sure though, the Irish defense should have a formidable 1-2 punch at defensive end for many years.