Veteran Notre Dame wide receiver and offensive newcomer hindered by spring injuries
Notre Dame football senior wide receiver Deion Colzie is back on the mend. On Saturday, Fighting Irish coach Marcus Freeman announced the 6-foot-4, 212-pounder would be out “for a few practices” after he dislocated a finger that required surgery to fix.
Freeman also told reporters that a hamstring injury has limited freshman running back Kedren Young‘s availability.
Colzie’s news is the most notable of the two. The McDonough (Ga.) Athens Academy product returned to practice this spring after missing most of his junior season after having one of his knees scoped.
Colzie participated in the first spring practice of 2024 on March 7. Blue & Gold did not report him being absent during Wednesday’s practice, the second session the media viewed. Notre Dame completed spring practice No. 4 on Saturday, with 11 more spring sessions remaining. Freeman said Colzie could return to practice next week.
“He’s expected to return probably sometime next week in some capacity,” Freeman said. “I don’t see him catching balls next week, but (I) expect him to be out there sometime next week.”
Freeman said Young’s injury happened in the second practice but did not reveal a timetable for his return.
“He hasn’t done much the last two practices,” Freeman said. “But I started to see him progress during those first two practices in pass protection and even getting the ball a little bit and running it.”
This spring, Colzie and Young hoped to carve out roles in the Notre Dame offense.
Colzie’s Notre Dame career is more urgent now that the Irish have added three graduate student pass catchers to the wide receiver depth chart this offseason. Entering the 2024 season, Colzie has caught 16 passes for 304 yards and 2 touchdowns in 28 appearances across three seasons.
Colzie had an impact in Week 0 of last season in a 42-3 win against Navy. In his junior season debut, he had 3 catches for 45 yards and 1 touchdown. He did not haul in a pass for the remainder of the 2023 season, in which he only played five games.
Young enrolled at Notre Dame in January following an outstanding career at Lufkin (Texas) High. The 6-foot, 229-pounder registered 3,926 rushing yards and 45 touchdowns in high school. According to the On3 industry Ranking, he was the No. 9 running back in the 2024 class.
Young looked to help replace former Irish running back Audric Estimé, who is off to the NFL. Notre Dame has four other scholarship running backs, including Jeremiyah Love and Jadarian Price.
In addition to Colzie and Young, Freeman said defensive linemen Aidan Gobira (knee), Armel Mukam (shoulder) and Loghan Thomas (shoulder) and tight ends Kevin Bauman and Mitchell Evans (knee injuries) are unlikely to contribute this spring. Freeman previously stated on March 7 that they would not practice this spring.
