JD PicKell: Notre Dame offense might need 'calibration period'

Notre Dame‘s offense definitely has a few question marks going into the 2022 season, they lost some big pieces including starting quarterback Jack Coan and 1,000 yard rusher Kyren Williams. The Fighting Irish bring back a combination of sound experience and young talent, which On3’s JD PicKell believes might require a calibration period.

“They’ve got Tyler Buchner playing quarterback, he’s not Jack Cone, he’s a dual threat, a really good athlete, they’re going to incorporate him in the run game a little bit to allow him to get going. Got a really strong offensive line, they’re going to run behind them, and they got Michael Mayer who’s an All-American kind of tight end, he’s going to be a stud for them yet again this coming season, expect him to be a high draft pick when that time comes,” PicKell said.

Buchner will have to compete with junior Drew Pyne, and both have only made limited appearances for the Irish in their careers and never started before. But whoever starts will be well protected, as Notre Dame brings back center Jarrett Patterson (who easily could’ve been drafted in the 2022 NFL draft but decided to come back), Blake Fisher, and freshman All-American Joe Alt.

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Michael Mayer undoubtedly be a big player maker for the Irish and a key factor in their offensive attack, but PicKell is curious how other pass catchers and playmakers will come along.

“Now in terms of of playmakers, in house they like what they have. They like the talent level, however they’re just not necessarily, they haven’t proven it yet on Saturdays. They’re ready for them to prove it, but they understand it might be a calibration period. So defensively, gonna lead the charge. Offensively, we’ve got some guys, Michael Mayer is a stud, breaking in a new quarterback we’ll see what happens there. We’re going to figure it out, but it might just take a second and a half for us to get this ball rolling.” PicKell said.

Notre Dame brings back their leading receiver in Mayer, but also brings back the graduate student duo of Avery Davis (who’s returning from an injury that ended his season in 2021) and Braden Lenzy who are the number two and three leading returning receivers from last season. Lorenzo Styles also returns after a promising freshman campaign where he made the most of his playing time, tying for second on the team in yards per catch and having a monster game in the Fiesta Bowl versus Oklahoma State with eight catches for 136 yards and a touchdown to close out the season.