Notre Dame kicker Harrison Leonard enters NCAA transfer portal

On3 imageby:Tyler Horka04/29/22

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A Notre Dame walk-on kicker is officially looking for a new home.

Harrison Leonard suited up in blue and gold for three seasons. He attempted five extra points over the course of those campaigns and made all of them, including one in the Irish’s 55-0 blowout victory over Georgia Tech last year. Now, he’s looking for somewhere else to spend his remaining two years of eligibility. Per sources, Leonard has officially entered the NCAA transfer portal as a graduate transfer.

The Jamestown, R.I., native leaves Notre Dame with a degree from the Mendoza College of Business. He studied finance. Leonard also helped found Our Playbook, an organization dedicated to helping Notre Dame student-athletes get the most out of their name, image and likeness (NIL).

“I’ve learned so much, especially working with the students of the university,” Leonard told BlueandGold.com last fall. “Everyone you meet in every class is so bright. Every class you go to is an experience to learn something new.”

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Leonard likely was not going to factor into the Notre Dame kicking competition. A walk-on who was not in line to be placed on scholarship, he had to look for playing options elsewhere. That doesn’t mean he left the Irish kicking situation in good shape, though.

Notre Dame kickers Josh Bryan, a sophomore, and Blake Grupe, a sixth-year senior who transferred in from Arkansas State, struggled mightily in last week’s Blue-Gold Game. Bryan missed both of his attempts. Grupe missed one. In total, Notre Dame went 1-for-4 on field goals in the spring scrimmage.

Head coach Marcus Freeman said earlier in the spring the kicking game was a concern. Those two missed multiple kicks during a closed-doors scrimmage midway through the spring slate.

The Irish bid farewell to three-year starter Jonathan Doerer this offseason. He made 163-of-165 extra point attempts and 49-of-65 (75.4%) of his field goal attempts for the Irish. Two of those field goals were game-winners in 2021; an overtime boot from 41 yards out on the road at Florida State and a 48-yard strike on the road at Virginia Tech in the final minute of regulation.

If Notre Dame is forced to attempt kicks of that magnitude in 2022, the Irish might be in trouble.

“If we want to be a championship caliber team, we’ve got to improve,” Freeman said.

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