Notre Dame Football: How much experience should Tyler Buchner get in 2021?

The Notre Dame Football program has a special young talent in Tyler Buchner, but how much experience should he get in 2021?

Ian Book was the winningest quarterback in Notre Dame Football history, but his career was largely unappreciated in its time, as he couldn’t match the elite quarterbacks in college football on a statistical level. So, for many fans, they still go back to the awe-inspiring numbers that Brady Quinn put up when they think of the last great Notre Dame quarterback.

Now, a blend between the wins of Book and the stats of Quinn is what many fans expect of Tyler Buchner.

Those probably aren’t fair expectations to put on someone who is just entering their freshman year of college, but this is Notre Dame Football, and the scrutiny quarterbacks receive it is never fair.

As of now, the plan is to have transfer quarterback Jack Coan act as the bridge between Ian Book and Tyler Buchner. This will give Buchner time to adjust to college while providing an experienced quarterback who has proven he can win in the past.

Coan did take Wisconsin to the 2019 Rose Bowl before missing 2020 with an injury.

Still, for as sensible as that plan may sound, the hype around Buchner is tangible. His high school tape was fantastic, albeit against weaker competition, and he steadily improved during spring ball. By the Blue & Gold Spring Game, Buchner was the only quarterback to get the ball into the end zone.

That has gotten people calling for him to see significant playing time in 2021-much more than the Jack Coan bridge would call for.

Notre Dame Football: How much experience should Tyler Buchner get in 2021?

Now, there should always be competition for the job. Frankly, there should for every single position. It makes no sense to play inferior players because they’ve been around longer, or are a coach’s favorite player. Still, there is really no reason why Coan shouldn’t be the starting quarterback.

Buchner didn’t play his senior year, due to the pandemic. That means you can be sure that there is rust on the wheels there, along with a speed adjustment for the college game. In other words, if you put Buchner in against Florida State, you could shoot his confidence down, watch him struggle, and possibly cost yourself a game that you should win.

At the same time, Buchner needs to be the guy for 2022. For those who don’t know, 2022 includes games against Ohio State and Clemson. Week 1 will be at the Horseshoe in Columbus. You want him to have some college experience before that, but there is the question of how much experience for the future should Buchner get?

You can’t put a guy without any experience, and two years without a game, out to start against the Buckeyes in Week 1. It’s just bound to fail. In other words, Buchner does need to have experience for 2022, but that shouldn’t be at the expense of 2021.

So, you’re going to need to find time to play Buchner. In games like Toledo or Navy, you can try to give Buchner significant time. Other games where you can manage to build a big league, or Coan struggles, will show up and give opportunities for Buchner to play.

I also wouldn’t worry about using more than four games and burning his redshirt. Three years is a long time to have one quarterback, and the Irish should be able to find suitable replacements for him by then.

It’s also important that Brian Kelly takes advantage of the time Buchner spends in games, and he doesn’t go overly conservative. That was an issue last season, and it wastes good game time to develop players with. So, run the offense the way you normally would.

It’s a delicate balance to find, but it’s also important for the Irish going forward beyond 2021.