Notre Dame gets awesome news on Mitchell Evans

The Notre Dame offense got some major good news on Friday afternoon. Not only do the Irish expect Mitchell Evans to be back in time for the season opener, but he should be back for the start of fall camp. 

When talking to the media in a short press conference, Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman talked about a number of injuries. The worst news of the bunch was the announcement that Benjamin Morrison might not be back for the game against Texas A&M. 

However, Evans, who is recovering from an ACL injury that forced him to miss the middle of last season, is expected to be back by the opening of fall camp. We’re almost exactly two months away from that day, as the Irish will start things off on July 31.

Evans wasn’t the only tight end that got some very good news today either. Freeman expects Evans, backup tight end Kevin Bauman and sophomore defensive tackle Armel Mukam to return for fall camp. Bauman, like Evans is recovering from a torn ACL. Mukam is coming back from a torn labrum.

Notre Dame football is getting tight end reinforcements by the start of fall camp

None of the three are out of the woods entirely and they won’tl be 100 percent cleared for summer workouts. However, Freeman expects them all back and ready to go when fall camp kicks off.

“Kevin is a little bit ahead of Mitch, just because the surgery was before his, but they should all be ready for fall camp,” Freeman told the assembled media.

The return of Evans early enough to make sure he’s starting against Texas A&M is huge. Before he went down, he was putting together quite a nice 2023 season, even in an offense that struggled to find its rhythm in the passing game. 

Evans finished the year with 29 catches for 422 yards and a touchdown. Even while missing Notre Dame’s spring practice, he was considered one of the best prospects for the 2025 NFL Draft.