Something strange is happening in the world of college football analysis as the summer steps on deck. Suddenly, Notre Dame's odds-on favorite to win the Heisman Trophy is getting quite a few doubters. CJ Carr has quickly gone from the golden boy to someone who is barely among the Top 100 players in the country and has a lot of work to do before he heads to the NFL.
During a recent episode of the Football 301 podcast, Nate Tice and Cory Kinnan discussed Carr. The consensus between the two experts is that the Irish signal-caller is obviously very talented, but that some of his shortcomings have been glossed over. Kinnan broke down what he thinks the quarterback needs to do to live up to the first-round hype.
"The interception numbers don’t really do justice to how sometimes reckless I think he was with the football in his hands," Kinnan said about the Notre Dame star. "And I think a lot of it stems from trying to do too much. So you’ll see it once every other game instead of throwing the ball away he goes back the other way and the other way, and then try something. Just throw it away man, throw the football away."
"I watch the game and he didn’t see a nickel breaking off and threw the ball right to the defense so I do think there are some issues picking up some pressure and rotations."
CJ Carr gives Notre Dame football a clear chance to silence fresh QB doubts
Kinnan added that some of the numbers that look so good for Carr are because he wasn't asked to do all that much in his freshman season. That argument has some merit, considering Notre Dame could lean on Jeremiyah Love and Jadarian Price when it needed a bunch of yards last season.
The analyst added that it's not like he doesn't believe Carr can be a special player for the Irish this season or a special player at the next level when he decides to go there. He does believe there are things the QB1 can work on.
"He definitely has the tools to be a strong quarterback. I just need to see more put on his plate. Talk to some people close to Notre Dame; they say he’s pretty hard on himself, too, and that’s hard for you. Gotta be able to go back out there mentality.
It's an interesting and harsh take on a quarterback that many NFL analysts believe could be a Top 10 pick in 2027. Some ND fans will take Kinnan's comments as a "hater." However, he seems to be helping Carr know what he has to do in the 2026 season to convince everyone he's as good as the hype says he is.
At the same time, Notre Dame will lean heavily on CJ Carr this fall, considering that he won't have veteran running backs to fall back on if the passing game struggles. This season is all on the star quarterback. He needs to meet the moment. If he does, he'll prove any naysayers very wrong.
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