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Notre Dame football injury report: Irish slated to get starting LB back

IMG_9992by:Tyler Horka•11/14/22•

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Notre Dame linebacker JD Bertrand (27). (Chad Weaver/Blue & Gold).

Notre Dame was without its top-tackler vs. Navy. Saturday, on senior day, the Fighting Irish are expecting to have him back on the field.

Senior JD Bertrand leads Notre Dame with 60 total tackles in nine games. He missed the matchup with the Midshipmen with a groin injury. Head coach Marcus Freeman said Monday that Bertrand practiced on Sunday, which means he’s likely on track to suit up vs. the Eagles at 2:30 p.m. ET Saturday.

Bertrand isn’t the only senior linebacker dealing with a nagging ailment. Jack Kiser, who tied for a team-high 8 tackles vs. Navy, suffered an ankle sprain late in the game. He did not practice Sunday, but Freeman said he expects him to make a return to the field Tuesday.

Senior safety Brandon Joseph missed the Navy game with an ankle sprain of his own. Freeman said he is still in the recovery process. He did not practice Sunday, and he’ll be reevaluated Tuesday. Freshman wide receiver Tobias Merriweather missed the Navy game with a concussion. Freeman did not address his progress.

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With only two regular season games remaining, it’s that time of the year when every time has bumps and bruises. The teams that win ballgames at this stage in the season are the ones who have depth to overcome injuries. Notre Dame relied heavily on two underclassmen linebackers, sophomore Prince Kollie and freshman Junior Tuihalamaka, at linebacker without Bertrand. Even freshman Jaylen Sneed played his first nine snaps of the season.

Junior safety Xavier Watts was Notre Dame’s defensive player of the game without Joseph in the lineup, meanwhile. He played 44 snaps, the most of any safety, and tied Kiser with 8 tackles.

Saturday could be the last day the likes of Bertrand, Kiser and several other seniors play a game at Notre Dame Stadium, too. Freeman said the 25 players who will take part in the senior day ceremony are not expected to return to the team in 2023. That could change, of course, but as things stand, that is how the Irish are treating the festivities. Notre Dame had not released a list of those 25 names as of Monday afternoon.

Look for Notre Dame to get more bodies on the field in the last two weeks of the regular season, too, with plenty of players taking advantage of the ability to get game reps while holding onto a redshirt.

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