Why Notre Dame Football needs to land WVU safety transfer Tykee Smith

Outside of Kyle Hamilton, the Notre Dame Football team has issues at the safety position, and Tykee Smith would be a welcome addition.

While the Notre Dame Football team does stand to lose a bunch of talent on both sides of the ball heading into the 2021 season, there is still a lot of talent coming back. One player, in particular, Kyle Hamilton, is an early All-American candidate and could be a very high pick in the 2022 NFL Draft.

As a safety, he will play a key role for the Irish this upcoming season, as they look to make a return trip to the College Football Playoff. Outside of Hamilton, the position group is a bit thin but could get a real shot in the arm by adding West Virginia transfer Tykee Smith.

Smith left West Virginia after being very productive for the Mountaineers, racking up over 100 tackles in 22 games, as well as four interceptions.

Notre Dame Football needs help at safety

After the 2020 college football season, Houston Griffith went into the transfer protocol, as he was a non-factor this past year after being beaten out by Shaun Crawford. However, he decided to return to the Irish after speaking with Marcus Freeman, and with a new staff in South Bend, he is going to have a fresh slate.

If Griffith can be a dominant player alongside Hamilton, the Irish are in good shape, but it would still make sense to bring in Smith. You can never have too much talent in the defensive backfield, and a defensive coordinator like Freeman is going to find a way to get the absolute best out of every player, every play.

The Irish do have two exciting young true freshmen coming in this year, as Khari Gee and Justin Walters are expected to be big-time players down the line. In Smith, they would get a proven player to play alongside Hamilton in 2021, paving the way for the younger guys to make their impact next season.