5 college football teams who have raised their QB ceiling for 2024
By John Buhler
3. Former Duke QB Riley Leonard to Notre Dame
Not to say that Sam Hartman was a bad quarterback for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish a year ago, but he was a seasoned veteran from his time at Wake Forest who wanted to prove to everyone that he was not just a product of the slow mesh. That may have happened, but Hartman faced unrealistic expectations during his one year at Notre Dame. He might get drafted this spring, or he may not...
Replacing him under center in South Bend next season will be former Duke Blue Devils quarterback Riley Leonard. Early last season, Leonard shined under on-the-rise head coach Mike Elko, who left Durham after last year to take over for his former mentor Jimbo Fisher at Texas A&M. While Leonard to Texas A&M seemed like an inevitability, he really seems to be a good fit for the Fighting Irish now.
Marcus Freeman's team is probably good enough to make the College Football Playoff most seasons in the expanded playoff. However, having a potential first-round quarterback under center in Leonard changes the entire dynamic. If, and when, Notre Dame makes the playoff again, the Irish will now have a quarterback who can get them to the summit, not just to the base of it. This is such a huge pickup.
The only thing that can slow the Irish down is another injury-plagued year for Leonard at quarterback.