Countdown to kickoff: Notre Dame at Ohio State is 12 days away
To preview one of the most anticipated games for Notre Dame this century and the official start of the Marcus Freeman era, BlueandGold.com is counting down the days to the matchup against Ohio State on Sept. 3.
This daily series of 99 stories celebrates by the numbers some of the most notable names, dates, moments and memories related to the past and present of Notre Dame football.
With 12 days until kickoff, we take a look at Notre Dame’s new starting quarterback, sophomore Tyler Buchner, who wears No. 12 for the Fighting Irish.
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It’s TB12 time.
The same combination of letters and numbers adopted by the most prolific winner to ever play football, Tom Brady, also describes a signal caller 26 years Brady’s junior. Notre Dame starting quarterback Tyler Buchner, just a 19-year-old sophomore who wears No. 12, will lead the Fighting Irish into the Horseshoe in Columbus, Ohio, in 12 days to take on the No. 2 Ohio State Buckeyes.
Outwardly, the Notre Dame coaching staff does not have any reservations about Buchner making his first career start in a game with great stakes and a ton of attention. Offensive coordinator Tommy Rees harped on an “ownership” of the offense from Buchner, and head coach Marcus Freeman lauded his leadership.
He’s as ready as ever to take the plunge.
“When you meet with the quarterbacks, he’s an alpha male in that room,” Freeman said. “He’s a confident guy. He knows the answer. If someone doesn’t know the answer when you ask a question, he’s the first one to answer.”
Notre Dame players who have shined in fall camp
Much of the confidence in Buchner stems from what he has done this offseason in decidedly winning a quarterback competition against capable junior Drew Pyne while some of it certainly stems from what Buchner did as a true freshman in going 21-of-35 (60.0%) from the air for 298 yards with three touchdowns and three interceptions. He ran 46 times for 336 yards and three more scores.
Buchner finished second on the team in rushing yards behind Kyren Williams, who’s now with the defending Super Bowl champion Los Angeles Rams. He provides an element with his legs to an extent that even all-time Notre Dame wins leader Ian Book might not have reached in his lengthy collegiate career. Book ran for 1,517 yards from 2017-20, second to Tony Rice‘s all-time program record 1,921 yards on the ground from 1987-89.
Buchner has the ability to fit somewhere in that conversation.
Of course, he’d have to start for at least the next two seasons and stay healthy in the process. Injuries have been a concern for Buchner. In a year and a half at Notre Dame, Buchner has strained his hamstring once and sprained his ankle twice. He missed time last fall with the hamstring issue. He missed the Blue-Gold Game in April with the second ankle sprain, which he suffered walking down a set of stairs on Notre Dame’s campus.
Buchner gives the Fighting Irish their best chance to rack up victories in 2022. But he has to stay on the field for that to come to fruition. A little health and a little help from the supporting cast can go a long way for the kid from San Diego.
“I think Tyler is finding his stride right now,” Rees said. “We’re going to continue to have an extremely confident and calm quarterback. We continue to build toward consistency and leadership. Those are the traits that we want to continue to have come out of him.”
