Marcus Freeman: Notre Dame quarterback competition stays unsure
With two weeks up until opening kickoff, Notre Dame has yet to select a beginning quarterback.
Irish head coach Marcus Freeman said after Sunday’s scrimmage– the final scrimmage of fall camp– that the quarterback competition in between redshirt sophomore Kenny Minchey and redshirt freshman CJ Carr remains uncertain. Minchey and Carr have actually been competing one-on-one considering that the end of spring practice, when redshirt junior Steve Angeli transferred to Syracuse.
The fight stays neck and neck, with both gifted signal-callers making a compelling case for the top job.
“We’re still in a competitors,” Freeman informed press reporters Sunday. “We’ll go back and assess today’s practice and make a decision. We have to make a decision here quickly. I don’t understand when we’ll make it. I do not want to put a timeline on it. But they have actually both been playing really, actually well.
“You’ve got 2 guys that have been battling all camp. Today was no various. Guys headed out there and fought. There were some advantages, some things we need to get enhanced. But the best thing I like is that they’ve both improved. Which’s the entire point of having a competitors– you have a competition that can raise the level of the people in the competitors. That’s what has actually happened. Both of those two have raised their play.
“We’ll make a decision here soon.”
Blue & Gold senior writer Eric Hansen reported Wednesday that Freeman and his personnel wanted to make a decision by Sunday, however if the choice was not clear, he was comfy letting the competitors continue. Obviously, the choice is unclear– a minimum of before Freeman, offending planner Mike Denbrock and quarterbacks coach Gino Guidugli have a possibility to enjoy the film from Sunday’s skirmish.
A standard pocket passer at 6-foot-3, 210 pounds, Carr has revealed the capability to throw to all 3 levels with accuracy and anticipation since he came to Notre Dame in December 2023. His most appealing quality might be his pocket presence, which enables him to extend plays and discover downfield targets.
Minchey, on the other hand, is an improviser with a flexible arm that provides him the ability to make identify hand down the run. When he was a true freshman, then-Notre Dame linebacker JD Bertrand called him “Kenny Williams,” referencing the task he did emulating then-USC quarterback Caleb Williams on scout group as the Irish prepared for the Trojans.
While Carr is not a statue, Minchey is the exceptional runner and several outlets– including Blue & Gold– reported that the tiebreaker in the quarterback competition may go to the latter because of that. Irish offending organizer Mike Denbrock has normally chosen dual-threat quarterbacks, from Desmond Ridder to Jayden Daniels to Riley Leonard.
No. 6 Notre Dame opens the 2025 season at No. 10 Miami in a standalone game on ABC. Kickoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. ET on Aug. 31 at Acid Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Fla., with the eyes of the country fixated on a top-10 match.
The Irish need to pick a quarterback already, or risk a cloud of uncertainty hanging over an appealing season.