Newsstand: Three Notre Dame players announce NFL Draft declarations
Three Notre Dame football players who are out of collegiate eligibility announced decisions to enter the 2023 NFL Draft this week. Cornerback TaRiq Bracy and defensive tackle Jayson Ademilola and Chris Smith are headed to the next level.
All three played important roles for the Notre Dame defense in 2022. Bracy was the Irish’s most-used slot corner. He played 527 snaps, which was the fifth-most among all Irish defensive players. Three hundred and 95 of those came in coverage in the slot. Rising senior corner Clarence Lewis turned in the second most in that category with 154.
Ademilola missed two games due to injury; senior day vs. Boston College and the Gator Bowl vs. South Carolina. He still played 418 snaps and recorded 17 quarterback pressures according to Pro Football Focus. Only fellow NFL Draft entrant Isaiah Foskey had more QB pressures (18) among Irish players.
Smith played in South Bend for one season. He transferred in from Harvard last year. He played 265 snaps at nose tackle and registered 17 tackles. Bracy had 39 tackles, sixth most on the Irish roster. Ademilola had 29, including 5 tackles for loss and 3 sacks.
Notre Dame tweets of the day
Fighting Irish: 2022 Gator Bowl Champs.
Smith’s message to Irish nation.
Ademilola’s farewell.
Quote of the day
“You don’t learn a lot about a coach when you’re beating Clemson handily. You learn a lot when you’re losing to Marshall and what that night is like, what the next day is like, how he addresses the team, how he leads. It was compelling. It was textbook. I feel great about the foundation and great about where we are. It’s as cohesive as a staff as it has been in my time here.”
Headlines of the day
Notre Dame signees’ stats from Under Armour All-America Game (Patrick Engel)
All-American Bowl journal: Notre Dame LB Drayk Bowen recaps first two days (Mike Singer)
Early enrollee freshman Cassandre Prosper fitting right in for Notre Dame WBB (Tyler Horka)
Notre Dame 2022 Pro Football Focus season grades: special teams (Tyler Horka)
Where the Notre Dame offense ranked in every major PFF category in 2022 (Tyler Horka)
