Duke transfer QB Riley Leonard to officially visit Notre Dame this week
Both On3’s Pete Nakos and ESPN’s Pete Thamel reported Monday night that former Duke quarterback Riley Leonard will be officially visiting Notre Dame on Wednesday and Thursday of this week.
Back in mid-November, Fighting Irish head coach Marcus Freeman informed the media that his program planned to take a transfer portal quarterback for the 2024 season, and his staff has zeroed in on Leonard. When news broke Nov. 29 that Leonard was entering the portal, Blue & Gold and other outlets reported that Notre Dame would be the team to watch. And that’s certainly remained the case.
To Blue & Gold’s knowledge, the Irish are not tied with other transfer portal quarterbacks at this time.
Earlier on Monday, news broke that the Irish will have two other transfer portal receiver targets on campus, and Leonard’s visit coincides with both. Ex-Clemson wideout Beaux Collins will also be on campus Wednesday and Thursday, while former Washington State pass catcher Josh Kelly will be in South Bend starting on Tuesday.
The Irish are overhauling their receiver room for the 2024 season with a few players at the position already entering the portal and the staff looking to bring in at least two new transfer portal additions along with three high school recruits. Florida International receiver Kris Mitchell was on campus over the weekend and seems to be trending towards the Irish.
More details on Riley Leonard
Leonard only has one year of college football eligibility remaining. He began his college career in 2021, so he does not have the “COVID year” option, and he did not redshirt in any of his three seasons.
His announcement to the transfer portal came three days after ex-Notre Dame defensive coordinator Mike Elko, his head coach with the Blue Devils for the past two seasons, was hired as the head coach at Texas A&M. Elko engineered a massive turnaround at Duke, going 16-9 over two seasons after the Blue Devils went 3-9 in 2021, the year prior to his arrival.
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Leonard shined in his breakout 2022 season as a sophomore at Duke. He threw 391 times, completing 250 passes for 2,967 yards (7.6 yards per attempt), 20 touchdowns and 6 interceptions, but his biggest strength proved to be his legs.
As a runner, Leonard carried 124 times for 699 yards and 13 touchdowns in 2022. He followed that up with 58 carries for 352 yards and 4 scores in 2023. At 6-foot-4, 212 pounds, Leonard is incredibly difficult to bring down.
Heading into the 2023 season, Leonard was considered a potential top prospect among NFL Draft circles. The Athletic’s Dane Brugler ranked him in August as the No. 4 draft-eligible underclassman quarterback in the nation, only behind USC’s Caleb Williams, North Carolina’s Drake Maye and Michigan’s J.J. McCarthy.
This year, as a junior, Leonard went 95-of-165 for 1,102 yards, 3 touchdowns and 3 interceptions. He only played in two games after suffering an ankle injury Sept. 30 against Notre Dame and a toe injury Oct. 28 against Louisville.
After injuring his ankle, Leonard’s numbers took a dive. Against Florida State and Louisville, he went a combined 16-of-39 for 190 yards with no touchdowns and 2 interceptions. He only tallied 26 rushing yards and he was sacked 4 times.
