Notre Dame linebacker Prince Kollie enters NCAA transfer portal
Notre Dame fans will always be left wondering what could have been for linebacker Prince Kollie. The rising junior entered the NCAA transfer portal on Monday. Matt Freeman of Irish Sports Daily first reported the news, which was confirmed by On3’s Matt Zenitz.
Playing time was always hard to come by for Kollie in his first two seasons in South Bend. As a sophomore, he played 136 defensive snaps per Pro Football Focus. That ranked No. 22 among all Irish players who logged at least one defensive snap.
Notre Dame is going into the 2023 season with three graduate students returning at the linebacker position. That trio includes Marist Liufau, who has remained entrenched as the team’s starting will linebacker. Liufau led all Notre Dame players with 646 defensive snaps last fall.
Earlier this spring, Kollie said he felt he should have been a starter in the latter stages of last season. He also said he feels like he has arrived on an equal playing field as his elder statesmen. Rep distributions in spring practices did not indicate as much; Kollie was still a clear backup to Liufau at will.
Notre Dame is losing a special teams staple. Kollie scored a touchdown on a blocked punt in the Irish’s blowout win over then-No. 4 Clemson last November. Kollie led all Irish players with 231 special teams snaps in 2022. Kollie had 32 total tackles, 2.5 tackles for loss and 1.5 sacks in his two seasons with the Blue and Gold.
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Kollie missed the last chunk of spring practices because of concussion protocol according to head coach Marcus Freeman. He did not play in this past Saturday’s Blue-Gold Game. Several young linebackers stepped up and played admirably, meanwhile.
Notre Dame’s graduate student dup played limited snaps, leaving the door open for the likes of sophomores Nolan Ziegler and Jaylen Sneed and freshmen Drayk Bowen, Preston Zinter and Jaiden Ausberry to have strong showings. Sneed led the Gold Team with 7 tackles. Ziegler led the Blue Team with 10, including a sack. Zinter had six, including two tackles for loss, and Bowen had 5. Ausberry only had 3, but he displayed a keen nose for the ball. He was around it all day.
Those five linebackers are the future for Notre Dame. Kollie was once believed to be just that, but he’ll take two years of eligibility elsewhere it appears.
