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Tim Hyde identifies five burning questions for Notre Dame spring football

Singer headshotby:Mike Singer•about 11 hours•

MikeTSinger

Charles jagusah
Notre Dame offensive tackle Charles Jagusah. (Chad Weaver, Blue & Gold)

During a Blue & Gold YouTube live show Tuesday night with Mike Singer and Tim Hyde, the guys both gave five burning questions they have for Notre Dame for spring football that begins next week.

Below is what Hyde gave as his five questions and his thoughts on each of them.

Where do Anthonie Knapp and Charles Jagusah line up this spring?

“If Jagusah comes out and is playing tackle, then Knapp will be on the inside. You’re prepping and planning on where they’re going to play in the fall. If for practice No. 1, Lambert goes out at left tackle, and Jagusah is your right guard, then it’s a Knapp and Lambert battle for the left tackle spot. That’s pretty obvious to me.

“How the O-line shakes out comes down to these two guys. Wagner is solid [at right tackle], and you know where Ashton Craig is going to play (center). Billy Schrauth will play guard. It’s going to come down to where Knapp and Jagusah line up.”

Who emerges as the third cornerback?

“Does Tae Johnson stay at corner where he practiced at the end of last year? You need that third cornerback … Depth matters. You don’t want to play in the Pop Tarts Bowl, so you need depth. And it could be in the summer when Dallas Golden and Mark Zackery get here, but there are bodies on campus in Johnson and Karson Hobbs who could step up. If they don’t, could Freeman go get one in the portal?”

Who replaces Xavier Watts?

“He’s on the Mount Rushmore of best Notre Dame safeties of all time. He had two of the greatest seasons in Notre Dame history at the position. Who can handle all the adjustments and leadership with him gone? And now that the VaTech guy (Jalen Stroman) is missing the spring, who the heck is going to step up? There’s a hodgepodge of Luke Talich, Kennedy Urlacher, Ben Minich, Ethan Long and JaDon Blair. You have five safeties trying to establish themselves in the two deep.”

What about the wideouts?

“Who in the heck is playing wide receiver this spring? The top four wide receivers are not going to be here (or will be limited) during the spring. Greathouse, Faison and the two transfers — those are the best ones. So now it comes down to Cam Williams, Micah Gilbert, KK Smith, all three freshman and Logan Saldate. It’s all about the receivers. There are some talented dudes in that room.

“Cam Williams has been talked about a ton. Does he rise up as a super sophomore and take ownership of all the reps he’ll get in March and April?”

Which QB takes the first reps at the end of spring ball?

“There’s usually one practice for the media to watch late in the spring; which quarterback goes out there first? Does someone establish themselves over the three weeks to be the guy? Whoever that is probably has the lead for starting. This isn’t so much about the Blue-Gold Game; that’s just for fun. You’re not picking a starter based on that.”

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