Notre Dame Fighting Irish News: Aneyas Williams eyes starting role, more
- Williams impressed coaches with his dedication.
- Jaden Greathouse seeks redemption after setbacks in 2023 season.
- Hannah Hidalgo earns Dawn Staley Award for top guard in the nation.
Notre Dame Fighting Irish running back Aneyas Williams knows that he’s in for a fight when it comes to playing time. The position has a ton of talent and it also no longer has its returning starter in Audric Estime. That’s why the former 4-star prospect in the 2024 class is glad that he was able to be an early enrollee and get to work this spring.
“I’m very, very pleased that I made the decision to come in early,” Williams told Irish Sports Daily. “Especially with the new OC, the new offense, you really got to sit back and take that slowly, one step at a time with that. Just being able to come in with Coach D (Deland McCullough) and work with these older guys, JD (Price), G (Gi’Bran Payne) and J-Love (Jeremiyah Love). I have three great leaders in front of me. I have people to watch and people to learn from, so that’s really nice for my journey.”
Williams has been impressing his coaches. Especially his position coach, which is always a good thing when someone is contending for a starting spot.
“Aneyas is an ascending guy right now,” McCullough told the media this past week. “This is a different deal. But he came here for that. He didn’t come here to get coddled or to be told how great he was in high school. That’s in the past. He’s embraced the criticalness in a positive way that’s associated with being a great running back.”
With such a log jam at his position, Aneyas Williams is a real contender for carries. Don’t be shocked if he’s vying for the starting job this fall.
More Notre Dame Fighting Irish news
Jaden Greathouse was expected to have a big 2023 season. Then injuries and an offensive coordinator that no one had any confidence in came along. While his freshman season wasn’t a lost cause, he wants to regroup and really show what he can do.
On Friday, the receiver spoke to the media about a number of topics including Mike Brown’s style, how comfortable he is on special teams and his desire to play outside in Mike Denbrock’s offense. You can watch his entire session above.
Your 2024 @dawnstaley award recipient, @HannahHidalgo!!#GoIrish☘️ pic.twitter.com/zqRZFwXUPb
— Notre Dame Women's Basketball (@ndwbb) April 5, 2024
As if Hannah Hidalgo didn’t get enough plaudits this season. This past week she won the Dawn Staley Award as the best guard in the country. In doing so, she beat out some truly impressive players including none other than the career leader in points, Caitlyn Clark.
Hidalgo finished her freshman season averaging 22.6 points, 6.2 rebounds, 5.5 assists and 4.6 steals per game.