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Notre Dame offensive guard Rocco Spindler enters NCAA transfer portal

IMG_9992by:Tyler Horka•about 10 hours•

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rocco spindler
Notre Dame guard Rocco Spindler. (Chad Weaver, Blue & Gold)

Offensive lineman Rocco Spindler spent the better part of the last two seasons as a starting guard for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish. He’ll spend the last year of his collegiate eligiblity somewhere else, it appears.

Per On3’s Pete Nakos, Spindler entered the NCAA transfer portal Thursday.

Spindler started 23 games the last two seasons, all at right guard. He was the starter from the beginning of the year in 2023 before he got injured and missed the last three games of that season. In 2024, he lost his starting job to begin the year and did not start the first three games of the season. Billy Schrauth got hurt against Purdue in Week 3, though, and Spindler replaced him against Miami (Ohio) in Week 4.

Spindler started every game from that week through the rest of the season, even after Schrauth returned from his ankle injury. Notre Dame moved Schrauth to left guard and kept Spindler at right guard.

Schrauth replaced sophomore Sam Pendleton in the starting lineup at left guard. Pendleton was the first Notre Dame player to start the string of transfer portal entries in the last two days. He’s been followed by wide receivers Deion Colzie and Jayden Thomas and now Spindler. Blue & Gold expects at least a few more Fighting Irish players to follow suit.

As for Spindler, he arrived in South Bend as the No. 4 interior offensive lineman and the No. 65 overall prospect in the class of 2021 according to the On3 Industry Ranking. He only appeared in two games as a true freshman, but he bumped that up to 12 of 13 as a sophomore as a mainstay on Notre Dame’s field goal blocking unit.

Spindler is two years older than Pendleton, but they’re probably leaving Notre Dame for the same reason; the Fighting Irish offensive line depth chart is incredibly deep for the 2025 season. Position coach Joe Rudolph has a lot to work with in finding his five best options to start in the season opener at Miami.

On the interior, Schrauth is returning. Season-long left tackle starter Anthonie Knapp, a rising sophomore, is a candidate to change his position to guard. The Irish also have redshirt sophomores Joe Otting and Chris Terek and redshirt freshmen Styles Prescod and Peter Jones in addition to redshirt junior center Ashton Craig.

Notre Dame is just as deep at offensive tackle with redshirt juniors Ty Chan and Aamil Wagner, redshirt sophomores Charles Jagusah and Sullivan Absher, redshirt freshman Guerby Lambert and true freshmen Will Black, Owen Strebig and Matty Augustine. Fellow true freshman Cameron Herron is expected to play center.

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