While many major programs elected to cancel their spring football games, Notre Dame went ahead with its annual Blue & Gold exhibition. Coaches have become protective of their players and no longer want to showcase them in public. Indeed, roster piracy has reached a crescendo this year. Free agency and bidding wars for top players will continue until Congress produces a better way forward. This may happen before the 2025 season kicks off, however several complex legal hurdles remain.

Teams also want to protect this season’s key depth pieces who will become starters in 2026. Power Five rosters have been gutted in recent years as talented athletes no longer want to wait behind veterans. Marcus Freeman shares these concerns but chose to preserve a tradition for the loyal fan base. We are glad he did. Fans turned out in droves despite a rather truncated format. This was largely due to the lack of healthy players available to participate. Freeman wisely erred on the side of caution as many of his starters are recovering from injuries. Despite these limitations, we did learn a few things about the 2025 Fighting Irish.

The three-way quarterback competition was reason enough for any Notre Dame fan to tune in. Steve Angeli, Kenny Minchey, and CJ Carr all provided ample evidence of growth and development under the coaching staff. One could make a case for any of them to win the starting job based on the small subset of action we saw. Besides, this is the first spring in several years where the job is truly up for grabs.

We learned today that Angeli has removed himself from the competition and is entering the transfer portal. Perhaps he was running behind Carr and Minchey, or he may simply want to finish his career as the unquestioned starter at another program. Either way, Angeli will leave with a Notre Dame degree in hand and warm wishes of success from all of us. He has displayed nothing but class and dignity throughout his time on campus. His love for the school and his teammates was always obvious.

Angeli was effective on Saturday when he had adequate protection. Minchey got my attention with improved decision making and accuracy. Also, his athleticism is a weapon that the coaches cannot ignore. Carr appeared to be as polished as advertised. His throws were pure and accurate. Until he threw a late interception, Carr appeared to be the best overall option.

Since we did not witness the other 14 practices this spring, we cannot make any firm conclusions regarding who should start. Freeman and his staff, however, may have held an honest conversation with Angeli regarding where he stood as the spring sessions came to a close. That would be the honorable way to handle the situation.

It is preferable to narrow the quarterback competition to two players heading into the summer. Each will get more reps in practice, which should pay dividends. A final decision needs to be made well before the season opener on August 31.

Another aspect of the three quarterback situation is an unfortunate outgrowth of the current NIL and transfer environment. Most teams cannot afford to hold onto all of their starters and quality backups. Quarterbacks command a larger commitment of funds than other positions on the roster. It is literally impossible to keep three potential starters without inviting devastating attrition in other areas.

Even so, rival programs are coming after Irish players. Highly regarded safety Kennedy Uhrlacher is reportedly being poached by the USC Trojans. Will other players follow to greener pastures? (pun intended). This is likely as more of them have those heart to heart talks with the coaches. They all deserve to know where they stand on the depth chart heading into fall camp.

Here are a few notes regarding other players who stood out during the Blue & Gold game:

• Jadarian Price was impressive and showed he can be an effective inside runner
• All of the other backs who participated performed well. Gi’Bran Payne and Kedron Young moved the pile several yards forward on each carry. It will be challenging to find each of them sufficient playing time to satisfy their desire to play.
• Young wide receivers such as Elijah Burress, Scrap Richardson, KK Smith, and Cam Williams enjoyed a measure of success. The competition for spots behind veterans Jaden Greathouse, Malachi Fields, Jordan Faison and Will Pauling will be fierce.
• Tight end Jack Larsen helped his case to see significant action behind starter Eli Raridon. Transfer Ty Washington will join them this summer.
• The patchwork offensive line held up fairly well. Most starters played sparingly if at all but the backups competed hard.
• Armel Mukam, Bryce Young, Jason Onye, and Jared Dawson stood out along the defensive front. This group also boasts Gabe Rubio, Junior Tuihalamaka, Josh Burnham, Cole Mullins, Sean Sevillano, Loghan Thomas, and transfer Elijah Hughes. Ends Boubacar Traore and Jordan Botelho are working their way back from injury. Notre Dame’s front four ended last season in a severely depleted state but are absolutely loaded in 2025.
• Linebacker is an area that is teeming with talent. Jaylen Sneed is bigger and stronger while Kyngstonn Viliamu-Asa is leaner and meaner. Preston Zinter flashed on Saturday while freshman Madden Faraimo looks physically ready to play. They are joined by stalwarts Drayk Bowen and Jaiden Ausberry along with several promising sophmores.
• Leonard Moore and Christian Gray rested at cornerback but Karson Hobbs and Cree Thomas stood out. Transfer Devonta Smith and a resurgent Ben Minich look solid at the nickel spot. Tae Johnson is a talented swing man who can play both corner and safety.
• There are plenty of candidates to earn a spot next to Adon Shuler at safety. Luke Talich put his best foot forward while transfer Jalen Stroman joins the team this summer. Taebron Bennie-Powell impressed while freshmen JaDon Blair and Ethan Long saw action. Brandon Logan will soon join them. Uhrlacher’s main competition for playing time was Talich, but Luke is equally fast, five inches taller, and 20 pounds heavier.
• Kicker Noah Burnette did not exhibit a strong leg on Saturday. His kicks came off like low velocity knuckleballs. We will see how he progresses in August.

In summary, the team appears to be loaded barring further significant defections in the portal. Chris Ash must be salivating at the prospect of coaching this defense. Mike Denbrock will have an more experienced offensive line to work with this season. His main job is to select a quarterback and tailor the attack to what he does best. There are still unknowns at receiver but the overall position will be stronger in 2025.