Duke QB Leonard moving to Notre Dame
Pete Thamel, ESPNDec 12, 2023, 11:34 AM ET Notre Dame landed its top quarterback target Tuesday, as the anticipated became reality when Duke transfer Riley Leonard announced on social media that he’s committing to the Battling Irish.Riley will be
able to play right away for the Irish in what will be his final year of eligibility.Leonard became one
of the top players and quarterbacks in the website after back-to-back strong seasons at Duke, where his play led heaven Devils to a set of high-end seasons.According to sources, there was a strong household pull that played a role in him selecting Notre Dame. Leonard’s great-grandfather, James E. Curran, played football for the Combating Irish and became part of the Class of 1940. Leonard matured in Alabama but was a devout enough Notre Dame fan that his preferred move is”Rudy.”Editor’s Picks 2 Associated He’ll be forecasted as the immediate starter at Notre
Dame, as 1 year transfer Sam Hartman is out of eligibility and the rest of the quarterback room is unskilled. Leonard will require another year of advancement to work his method into the first-round NFL draft conversation, as his worth in college now is more as a double threat than a pure passer.In 2022, he led Duke to one of the greatest turn-arounds in college football, as he represented 33 touchdowns– 20 passing and 13 hurrying– as Duke went 9-4 and blew out UCF in the Military Bowl.In 2023, he led Duke to a win over Clemson in the opener and pressed the Blue Devils to the school’s highest nationwide ranking, No. 16, since 1994. Leonard was hobbled by an ankle injury suffered late in the loss to Notre Dame, which forced him to miss the following week’s game versus NC State.He later exacerbated the ankle injury versus Florida State before returning versus Louisville and suffering a toe injury that ended his season.
He played 7 games on the season, ending up with 1,102 backyards passing, 352 backyards hurrying and seven total touchdowns on the year.A dream come to life. Go Irish pic.twitter.com/2Ft09Ho4uj!.?.!— Riley Leonard(@rileyleonard13_)December 12, 2023 In 21 starts at Duke, he went 13-8. In the seven games in 2023, he threw
3 goal passes and hurried for 4 more. For his career, he’s thrown for 4,450 yards and 24 goals and run for 1,224 and 19 goals. He has averaged 5.3 yards per carry.The question for Leonard at Notre Dame will be who he can throw the ball to. For both of Marcus Freeman’s seasons in South Bend, the pass receiver system has actually been among the program’s weak points. Notre Dame fired receivers coach Chansi Stuckey and brought in Mike Brown this offseason.The Irish have actually landed 2 of the top pass receivers in the NCAA transfer website, as former Clemson wide receiver Beaux Collins and former Florida International pass receiver Kris Mitchell have actually both devoted to Notre Dame.For Leonard, Notre Dame was the only official see he took after announcing his transfer from Duke. Both he and Notre Dame appeared secured on each other.On Instagram, Leonard summed it up in this manner:”A dream come true.”