Which Notre Dame players could win individual awards?

Eleven Notre Dame players made preseason watch lists for individual awards. Here are the 11, the awards they could win and five deep sleepers who didn’t make watch lists but could vault themselves into the conversation.

Notre Dame graduate quarterback Sam Hartman

Watch lists: Walter Camp Player of the Year Award, Davey O’Brien Award (best quarterback), Maxwell Award (most outstanding player)

Sam Hartman, being an accomplished quarterback, is Notre Dame’s best candidate for the Heisman Trophy as well. The Heisman does not put out a preseason watch list or any other list until its finalists are announced.

The Wake Forest graduate transfer is a two-time Davey O’Brien semifinalist (2021-22), and a successful season by his standards would at least put him there again in 2023.

Irish sophomore cornerback Benjamin Morrison 

Watch lists: Bednarik Award (best defensive player), Jim Thorpe Award (best defensive back), Bronko Nagurski Trophy (best defensive player)

Benjamin Morrison’s outstanding freshman season caught national attention in 2022. He made seven outlets’ freshman All-American teams, and he could very well be a real contender for the best defensive back in the country within the next two years.

Notre Dame junior offensive tackle Joe Alt

Watch lists: Walter Camp Player of the Year, Outland Trophy (best lineman), Lombardi Award (best lineman)

Joe Alt is Notre Dame’s youngest captain by two years, and he’s also one of the highest-regarded offensive tackles in college football. By no means, though, is Alt done improving his craft for the 2023 season.

“Oh, I don’t think that at all,” Alt said on July 31 when asked if he thinks he’s a finished product. “Every day, I’m trying to get a little bit better.”

Irish graduate linebacker JD Bertrand

Watch lists: Butkus Award (best linebacker), Bronko Nagurski Trophy (best defensive player)

JD Bertrand’s inclusion on the Nagurski Trophy watch list came as a surprise to some, but the two-time Notre Dame leading tackler is highly thought-of in the national college football sphere. 

The next step for Notre Dame’s middle (“Mike”) linebacker: more ball production. Bertrand could add to his four career pass deflections in 2023.

Notre Dame junior offensive tackle Blake Fisher

Watch list: Outland Trophy (best offensive or defensive lineman)

Thanks to Blake Fisher and Alt, Notre Dame is the only school in the country with two offensive lineman on the Outland watch list. Irish fans have concrete evidence to point to when arguing that Fisher bookends the best offensive tackle duo in the country. 

Irish graduate linebacker Marist Liufau

Watch list: Butkus Award (best linebacker)

Marist Liufau’s Pro Football Focus coverage grade (75.9) in 2022 indicates a valuable player on Notre Dame’s defense. 

Notre Dame junior running back Audric Estimé

Watch list: Doak Walker Award (best running back)

Audric Estimé is a vital player in Notre Dame’s offense, even with a passing game that should be much-improved. With no competition for the RB1 job, the junior could easily surpass 1,000 yards.

Irish graduate center Zeke Correll

Watch list: Rimington Trophy (best center)

Zeke Correll enters his third season as the Notre Dame starting center. He’s strongest as a pass blocker, but more pulling in the run game should work in his favor.

Notre Dame senior slot receiver Chris Tyree

Watch list: Hornung Award (most versatile player)

The move to slot receiver from running back likely put Chris Tyree on this list. He likely won’t line up in the backfield much anymore, though. The Irish plan to start him and keep him in the slot.

Irish graduate kicker Spencer Shrader

Watch list: Lou Groza Award (best kicker)

Spencer Shrader was a Groza semifinalist in 2021, going 11 for 13 on his field goal attempts. He has never missed an extra point and is in line to be the Irish kickoff specialist, too.

Notre Dame long snapper Michael Vinson

Watch list: Patrick Mannelly Award (best long snapper)

Michael Vinson was a Mannelly semifinalist this past season, but the American Football Coaches Association saw him as a first-team All-American.

Deep sleepers

Jayden Thomas (Biletnikoff): Here are three things that seem realistic: Hartman has a Davey O’Brien-worthy season, Thomas goes for around 1,000 yards this season and the Irish have four other receivers who total about 550-650 each. That was basically Wake Forest in 2022. If it happens again, Thomas is probably named a Biletnikoff semifinalist.

Cam Hart (Thorpe): Hart made Bruce Feldman of the Athletic’s “Freaks List” in back-to-back years for a reason. Feldman reported that Hart squatted 505 pounds and ran 23.1 miles per hour this offseason, which will do just fine for his lengthy, 6-foot-2 ½ frame. If healthy, Hart can make a big statement this season.

Jack Kiser (Butkus): Kiser being the odd man out of the three graduate linebackers on the Butkus watch list is likely a snap count thing more than anything else. If he moves more in line with Liufau and Bertrand this season, all three of them could gain national recognition.

Rylie Mills (Outland): Instead of moving between defensive end and defensive tackle like he did this past season, Mills is all DT. He bulked up to 306 pounds and looks every bit as agile and powerful as he did before. This could finally be the season Mills puts it together.

Xavier Watts (Thorpe): Very little about Watts’ past performance says “award candidate.” But he’s generated a ton of buzz in fall camp as he looks to build on a strong finish to the 2022 season. With breakout years, Watts could be on Thorpe radars by midseason.