Notre Dame football: 10 most important players in 2021

Notre Dame football: 10 most important players in 2021

10. Braden Lenzy, Wide Receiver

It’s not a secret that Notre Dame football has had a lot of issues at wide receiver in the past couple of years. Part of that was that no one stepped up after Chase Claypool moved on, and even when Claypool was around, he was mostly on his own on the outside.

Last season, Braden Lenzy was expected to step up, but largely due to injuries, that never happened. Instead, Notre Dame tried to get by without any help on the outside, which cost them during the postseason.

The truth is that Lenzy hasn’t given anyone a reason to think he’ll be the next great Notre Dame receiver. He does, however, have the skillset to become their most impactful receiver in 2021. That’s a big deal, because if Notre Dame can open up the offense on the outside, then players like Michael Mayer and Kyren Williams will have a lot more success.

For Notre Dame to open up and make sure that their offense thrives in 2021, Lenzy is going to be vital. He has sprinter speed on the edge and can blow the top off the defense.

This will force corners and safeties to respect the edges of the field and make it easier to run the rest of the offense. Without Lenzy stepping up, then 2021 could be a very long season for Notre Dame’s offense.