SOUTH BEND — Deland McCullough has an acronym that he wants his Notre Dame running backs to model their work ethic around.
‘D3’: detailed, determined and disciplined.
It’s those attributes that help earn playing time, especially if applied to the least attractive part of being a running back: pass protection. Those who have picked up on stopping blitzes and gaining yards on shorter-distanced plays the last few seasons have been the ones on the field for the Fighting Irish. That’s expected to be the case again in the 2024 campaign.
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“It’s part of being a running back,” said McCullough of pass protection. “That’s part of the job. Any guy who doesn’t embrace that, we’ve got a major problem.”
Replacing Payne
Notre Dame seemed to have its person for this role locked up coming out of the 2023 season in Gi’Bran Payne. As a sophomore last year, Payne was used in a lot of short-yardage situations or as a pass blocker on third downs, carving out a niche on the team. Although his final stats didn’t jump off the page (168 rushing yards, 58 receiving yards and four total touchdowns), he was still instrumental to the offense.
Payne was ready to continue in this spot until the Blue-Gold Game in mid-April. The annual spring showcase saw Payne tear his ACL in his right knee, sidelining him for the upcoming season.
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This has left an opening in the Notre Dame running back room, and McCullough plans on letting everyone try to earn it.
“All these guys know that’s an open spot,” McCullough said. “I think everyone in that room knows it’s a fair opportunity to show what you’ve got. I put them all in there. When we do our walk-throughs, I put every single guy in there and say, ‘You’re going to eliminate yourself. Nobody is going to say they didn’t get an opportunity for that job because coach didn’t give me an opportunity for the job.’”
McCullough noted that if the Irish had to play tomorrow (the season opener is still four weeks away), sophomore Jeremiyah Love would be the one primarily in on third downs. Love displayed his elite speed last year, finishing as the team’s second-leading rusher (385 yards) behind veteran Audric Estimé.
While Love was fast last season, he wasn’t as big, dropping under 190 pounds before the team’s Sun Bowl game in late December. That number has drastically gone up since, as a more muscular Love is listed at 206 pounds on the fall camp roster.
He feels this added strength puts him in a great position to be used on the key downs on offense.
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“I have really long arms, so I like to extend them and not let (pass rushers) get too close,” Love said. “And with me being a lot stronger than I was last season, that helps keep people off me.”
Other running backs in the mix for playing time
Love and redshirt sophomore Jadarian Price are expected to get the bulk of the rushing attempts this year, but that doesn’t mean some of the others in the running back room won’t see playing time.
Along with graduate senior Devyn Ford, two true freshmen in Aneyas Williams and Kedren Young are battling for snaps. The easiest way on to the field is learning how to pass protect, which is why Williams has made it a top priority for him since stepping on campus in January.
“I know that role and how big of an impact it plays into being an every-down college running back,” Williams said. “With camp, that’s my main priority, showing I can do that against any level.”
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It helps practicing against a defense like the one Notre Dame has as well, which returns several starters from a top-10 unit overall nationally a season ago.
“We have a good defense, so they bring a lot of blitzes,” Young said. “Coach McCullough stresses that a lot because, in third down situations, a blitz is going to come, so you have to be ready for them.”
While Love might be the early leader in getting third-down snaps, he knows it’s not guaranteed to him yet.
“I don’t think it’s going to be a one-person job — it might be a multiple person job, but we don’t know that right now,” Love said. “Everybody just comes out and works.”
This article originally appeared on South Bend Tribune: Learning pass protection vital for Notre Dame running backs
South Bend Tribune
