Marcus Freeman announces Notre Dame transfer QB Riley Leonard staying with Duke through bowl game

Quarterback Riley Leonard, who recently committed to Notre Dame as a transfer from Duke, will be remaining with his Blue Devils teammates through the bowl game, according to Irish head coach Marcus Freeman. Leonard is injured and will not play in the bowl.

How this affects Leonard’s timeline for joining the Irish program remains to be seen, as Notre Dame is also prepping for a bowl. Either way, Leonard will eventually join the Irish come January, and Freeman was happy to accommodate Leonard in finishing out this season with Duke.

“That speaks volumes to who he is as a person,” Freeman said on Wednesday.

Leonard will have one year of eligibility remaining at Notre Dame.

Duke plays in the Birmingham Bowl on Saturday, Dec. 23. Notre Dame plays in the Sun Bowl on Friday, Dec. 29. With offseason workouts likely to begin shortly after the spring semester begins in January, Leonard will still have plenty of time to get to South Bend and acclimate with his surroundings prior to spring practice later on.

Notre Dame has high hopes for Leonard

It’s the second straight year Freeman and the Fighting Irish landed a talented ACC quarterback after bringing in Sam Hartman last offseason.

There are some parallels, according to On3’s Andy Staples, who said the goal for Leonard now will be taking Notre Dame back to the College Football Playoff.

“This is following in the footsteps of Sam Hartman, who did the same thing. Starter for an ACC program, played very, very well at that program, now going to Notre Dame as a one-year rental, and the hope is that he leads Notre Dame to the College Football Playoff,” Staples said on Andy Staples On3. “Now, it’ll be a very different College Football Playoff than the one Sam Hartman was trying to lead the Fighting Irish to. That was a four-teamer, this is a 12-teamer, and it is more set up for an independent Notre Dame to get in. … So this is Notre Dame running it back one more time.

“The results from Sam Hartman were pretty good, but not exactly what they wanted. They wanted a little bigger pop. They wanted to double digit win season, which perhaps they can get with a win in the Sun Bowl against Oregon State. But that’s not going to be with Sam Hartman. So Notre Dame will try again with another ACC quarterback.”