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Notre Dame football injury report: Leonard Moore OUT, DeVonta Smith game-time decision for Week 4 vs. Purdue

IMG_7504by: Jack Soble09/20/25jacksoble56
leonard moore
Notre Dame cornerback Leonard Moore (15) celebrates an interception. (Mike Miller, Blue & Gold)

When No. 24 Notre Dame takes on Purdue in search of its first win of the 2025 season, it will have to do so without its best defensive player.

The Irish announced cornerback Leonard Moore (ankle) is a game-time decision for Week 4, but he is not dressed for the game, so he will not play. Starting nickel back DeVonta Smith (ankle) is a legitimate game-time decision, and kicker Noah Burnette (hip) is out.

Moore went down during the second quarter of Notre Dame’s 41-40 loss to Texas A&M in Week 1, when junior linebacker Drayk Bowen collided with his right leg. The 6-foot-2 corner from Round Rock, Texas was lucky to avoid a catastrophic injury, given the nature of the collision. Fortunately for the Irish, he returned after 3 snaps and intercepted Texas A&M quarterback Marcel Reed a short time later.

However, on Monday’s availability report, Moore was listed as questionable with an ankle injury. He could miss his first game due to injury of his young career, and Notre Dame’s reeling secondary will be without redshirt sophomore safety Adon Shuler (targeting) in the first half as well.

After a hiccup in Week 1, when he got beat on a double move for a touchdown, Moore returned to his Freshman Defensive Player of the Year and preseason All-American form in Week 3 against Texas A&M. He finished with a 90.8 Pro Football Focus coverage grade, and he only allowed 1 reception for 11 yards on 4 targets.

Moore’s interception showcased his brilliance as a cover corner, playing perfect bump-and-run technique and turning to face the football at the perfect time.

With Moore potentially out, moving junior Christian Gray to the boundary and elevating true freshman Mark Zackery IV to the starting lineup at field cornerback is the most likely solution.

Smith could be a significant loss as well, given the struggles of redshirt freshman cornerback Karson Hobbs at nickel through two games. He injured his ankle during pregame warmups and missed Week 3 against Texas A&M. In his place, Hobbs was targeted 13 times on 35 coverage snaps and allowed 6 receptions for 107 yards.

Smith, a transfer from Alabama, was targeted twice during his Notre Dame debut in Week 1 and allowed 1 reception for 7 yards. In his potential absence, Irish head coach Marcus Freeman said Hobbs, redshirt sophomore Ben Minich, true freshman Dallas Golden and even Gray had been repping at nickel throughout the week.

Burnette showed up on Monday’s injury report as questionable with a hip injury, and for the second-straight season, Notre Dame’s kicker will miss a game. A transfer from North Carolina, Burnette has been perfect so far in a blue-and-gold uniform. He’s 3-of-3 on field goals and 4-of-4 on extra points, with a long of 39 yards.

With Burnette out, the Irish will start either junior Marcello Diomede or true freshman Erik Schmidt against Purdue. Diomede, who currently serves as Notre Dame’s kickoff specialist, missed his lone field-goal attempt from 54 yards out in 2024. Schmidt, Rivals’ No. 2 kicker in the class of 2025, would be making his college debut.

The Irish (0-2) and Boilermakers (2-1) will kick off at 3:30 p.m. ET on Saturday at Notre Dame Stadium in South Bend.