Notre Dame football: Breakout candidates-Defense

It has been an interesting path for Houston Griffith dating back to his high school days. Originally from the Chicago area and what looked like an Irish lean, he transferred to IMG Academy in Florida to finish off his high school career.

While there, he committed to play at Florida State. Late in the process, he flipped to Notre Dame and was considered their highest-rated recruit by the 247sports composite rankings.

During his freshman year, he was essentially the starting nickel for the Mike Elko led the defense, and while he struggled, he was definitely looked like a key piece for the future. Switching from safety to corner and now back to safety, Griffith didn’t see much time in 2019 behind Elliott, Gilman and stud freshman Kyle Hamilton.

The good news, he has two years of eligibility left to make his mark. He will need to compete with graduate transfer Isaiah Pryor, but the staff was able to support three safeties with big snap counts last year – and that looks to be a safe bet for 2020 as well. Get your best athletes on the field and figure out the rest.