Notre Dame Football: 3 biggest questions on defense for Irish in 2021
By Andrew Hall
Can the Notre Dame football coaching staff rebuild the secondary and add depth?
The Irish lost cornerback Nick McCloud and safety Shaun Crawford to graduation, and the Notre Dame coaching staff must now replace these players with talent from the weakest part of the Notre Dame football team. The task is extremely difficult.
Also, the Irish must add depth to the cornerback and safety spots.
Junior safety Kyle Hamilton and sophomore cornerback Clarence Lewis are locks to start for the Irish in 2021. The pair of other spots remain open but senior safety Houston Griffith and senior cornerback Tariq Bracy are frontrunners.
Griffith, who originally entered the transfer portal, returned to Notre Dame after discussions with new defensive coordinator Marcus Freeman. The defensive back from Chicago has played sparingly in major situations each of his three seasons on campus.
However, he never cracked the starting lineup. Griffith will face competition from senior D.J. Brown, sophomores KJ Wallace and freshman Justin Walters and Khari Gee.
Bracy started six games in 2020 and played significant snaps during his freshman (2018) and sophomore (2019) campaigns. He has shown in big games that he possesses the talent necessary to start. Against Georgia in 2019, Bracy broke up two passes while notching three tackles.
Confidence decreased for the junior cornerback at the end of the 2020 season, though, and a fresh start with Marcus Freeman may turn his career around. A huge influx of freshman and redshirt freshman will compete for playing time as well. Freshman Philip Riley, a four-star recruit, played against elite wide receivers in the Tampa area during high school and is considered a college-ready prospect.
There is a major possibility that the Irish coaching staff seeks help from the transfer portal. A graduate transfer, similar to Nick McCloud, would help the Notre Dame football team tremendously.