Why national college football analysts praise Notre Dame QB Sam Hartman
Notre Dame never has any issues drawing attention from the college football community. The Fighting Irish made a move this offseason that ramped up magnification on South Bend even further.
The program is not far removed from enjoying a successful era led by the winningest quarterback in Notre Dame history, Ian Book, but the Irish have still been missing something at the signal-caller position for quite some time. Handicapping quarterback success is subjective. It’s not an official science. But there’s a case to be made Notre Dame has not had a QB who can make all the throws on the field since, say, Jimmy Clausen (2007-09)? And, of course, Brady Quinn from 2003-06.
Enter Wake Forest transfer Sam Hartman.
Rated as On3’s No. 1 transfer portal player in the most recent cycle, Hartman is a five-year veteran who set the ACC’s all-time passing touchdowns record (110) at Wake. The ceiling of the Notre Dame offense instantly went up a few floors with his addition to the roster.
Fox Sports analyst Joel Klatt rated Hartman as his No. 2 most interesting transfer of the offseason, trailing only 2022’s No. 2 player in the country Travis Hunter’s switch from Jackson State to Colorado to follow coach Deion Sanders.
“[Hartman is] one of the most productive players, really, in the history of college football and certainly in the history of the ACC,” Klatt said on his podcast. “That’s interesting to me because Notre Dame was similar to Iowa in that last year, I felt like if they got any quality quarterback play, then they were going to be in games and possibly winning games.
“I think Marcus Freeman has done a heck of a job in recruiting. This is a team that I think has been built really well at the line of scrimmage offensive line and defensive line. So if you can get a guy like Sam Hartman, he very well might be the best transfer quarterback of this class.”
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ESPN analyst Greg McElroy concurred.
“Sam Hartman’s a dude,” McElroy said on a podcast. “Now he’s not the biggest guy in the world and there are a couple concerns. But when he’s on — go back and watch his performance against Clemson — when he’s on, he is as accurate as they come in the game. He’s got great instincts.”
Hartman went 20-of-29 for 337 yards and 6 touchdown tosses vs. Clemson. BlueandGold.com broke down his game tape from that matchup here.
The marriage of Hartman and Notre Dame could be a match made in Heaven. Notre Dame prides itself on solid offensive line play, something Hartman did not always receive at Wake. If there is anything to be worrisome of, though, McElroy said it’s the Irish’s pass-catching corps. The program lost all-time great tight end Michael Mayer to the NFL Draft, and he left behind some unproven tight ends and wideouts in his wake.
One thing is for certain, though: nabbing a player like Hartman from the portal is nothing but a good thing.
“I am cautiously optimistic because it does seem as though Notre Dame is maybe more willing now than they have been in the past to welcome in grad transfer players,” McElroy said. “I’m anxious to see how it’s all going to work out but I trust Marcus Freeman.”
