Notre Dame Football Mailbag: CJ Carr vs Kenny Minchey rages on, latest in recruiting, and the 2025 offensive line

With spring practice wrapping up, we now have a break in the action for Notre Dame football. That isn’t going to stop us from talking about the Fighting Irish, and their quest for a National Championship in the 2025 season. The optimism is at an all time high under head coach Marcus Freeman, and that […]

Ryan Roberts — National College Football Writer
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Kenny Minchey
MICHAEL CLUBB/SOUTH BEND TRIBUNE / USA TODAY NETWORK

With spring practice wrapping up, we now have a break in the action for Notre Dame football. That isn’t going to stop us from talking about the Fighting Irish, and their quest for a National Championship in the 2025 season. The optimism is at an all time high under head coach Marcus Freeman, and that isn’t stopping anytime soon. 

In this week’s Notre Dame football mailbag, a large section of the conversation centered around the quarterback battle between CJ Carr and Kenny Minchey. I was also asked about some various recruiting topics, as well as other team centric questions as well. As always, shoutout to everyone who submitted questions this week. 

Quarterback competition 

Yes, it is a real quarterback battle. If it wasn’t, Kenny Minchey wouldn’t be sticking around. I fully understand that everyone is very high on CJ Carr, but please don’t forget about Minchey. I would argue that his tools are the best in that room, and he could possess the highest upside if developed properly. Minchey will have every chance to win the job, although it won’t be easy. 

If I was a betting man, my money would be on Carr winning the job in the end. My hope is that Minchey makes a big jump the rest of the offseason, and he has a chance to win in the end. I fully believe that if that happens, then Minchey could unlock upside we haven’t seen at quarterback in South Bend in a long time. 

Upside for CJ Carr

I mean, I guess anything is possible. Carr’s arm strength is good enough, and he has a frame to continue to develop and fill out. I just really, really hate projecting how good of a NFL prospect a player is without any live reps. Ask me this question if Carr wins the starting job. The talent is there, at least in theory. 

Defensive depth 

It’s such a tough question because it depends on whether a couple of the mainstays leave for the NFL Draft. I don’t expect Jaylen Sneed to be on the team after the 2025 season, so opportunities should open there. Who knows what happens with Drayk Bowen or Jaiden Ausberry, depending on how they play. I do think it’s more likely that Kahoun finds a role based on his age. Zinter’s window for playing time will begin getting smaller and smaller, and the team continues to add talented linebackers to the roster every year. 

Ideal recruiting finishes 

On the defensive line, the ideal finish would be for Notre Dame to land McHale Blade to finish up a defensive end class that already includes Rodney Dunham and Ebenezer Ewetade. From there, it’s about focusing on the interior. I feel good about where things are for defensive tackle Tiki Hola, but I’m not overly confident otherwise inside. If the Irish were able to land Khary Wilder to pair with him, that would be tremendous. 

At wide receiver, I’m less optimistic in the finish right now. Notre Dame got a nice commitment from Bubba Frazier to go along with Dylan Faison, but Mike Brown needs to land one or two difference makers in this class. As it stands, the two wide receivers the Irish are in best position for are Kaydon Finley and Brayden Robinson. They will need to close the deal, or else they may have to expand the board at some point. 

Replacements for Howard Cross and Rylie Mills 

As of today, replacing Rylie Mills and Howard Cross III is going to be a group effort. Some of the familiar faces are Gabriel Rubio, Jason Onye, and Donovan Hinish. I also expect redshirt sophomore Armel Mukam to be a part of this rotation, and continue to earn more reps. 

One newer name to know is Louisville transfer Jared Dawson. His body type screams nose tackle, but Dawson has enough movement skills to create some negatives behind the line of scrimmage as well. Notre Dame also took another transfer this offseason in Elijah Hughes (USC), but it’s uncertain if he’ll have a role this season. 

2025 offensive line upside 

Yes, I think they absolutely can. It’s really going to come down to health for that offensive line unit. I know some are frustrated with the Anthonie Knapp situation (trust me I get it) but that projected starting lineup is still really talented. The upside is immense. You can make a really strong argument that a lineup of Knapp, Billy Schrauth, Ashton Craig, Charles Jagusah, and Aamil Wagner might be the most talented group in all of college football heading into the 2025 season. 

Cam Williams in 2025 

Yes, I think Cam Williams will get on the field this season. I don’t, however, foresee him playing a large role. The flashes from Williams are really promising, but the excitement is usually followed up with the level of inconsistency. Him having to play a lot in the boundary due to the Micah Gilbert injury also didn’t help in that regard. The light still hasn’t come on yet, but hopefully it does soon. 

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