It’s official: Notre Dame football announces Chansi Stuckey as WR coach
It’s almost been two weeks since former Baylor wide receivers coach Chansi Stuckey was first reported to be taking the same position at Notre Dame, but now it’s official.
The Fighting Irish announced Stuckey’s hire Monday. He is the third coach to be officially publicized as joining the program in the last week along with special teams coach Brian Mason and offensive line coach Harry Hiestand.
“Chansi brings a diverse skill set to our staff,” Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman said in a statement. “He has NFL playing experience, and also has the ability to connect with our players and push them to develop their craft. I believe with him leading the way, we can build the best receiver room in the country.”
Stuckey replaces former Irish wide receivers coach Del Alexander, who parted ways with the program after five seasons. Stuckey, 38, is a native of Warner Robins, Ga., and played at Clemson from 2003-06. The two-time first-team All-ACC selection finished his career with 2,021 yards from scrimmage and nine touchdowns. He had at least 700 receiving yards in each of his final two seasons.
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The New York Jets selected Stuckey with No. 235 overall pick in the seventh round of the 2007 NFL Draft. Stuckey stayed in the league for five seasons with the Jets (2007-09), Cleveland Browns (2009-10) and Arizona Cardinals (2011). He played in nine games for the Cardinals when current Notre Dame tight ends coach John McNulty was the wide receivers coach there.
Stuckey is new to the college coaching scene. He began his career as a graduate assistant at Clemson in 2019. According to a story on BaylorBears.com, Stuckey worked in sports broadcasting for Sports New York and Fox Sports in Las Vegas in addition to acting in Los Angeles before finally getting into coaching. Clemson coach Dabo Swinney was adamant about bringing Stuckey onto his staff.
“My wife was like, ‘Clemson Football? What is going on? We live in California, you’re acting,'” Stuckey told BaylorBears.com. “But, when I called Coach Swinney, he was like, ‘Finally, I’ve been waiting for you.”
Dave Aranda and the Baylor Bears came calling to hire Stuckey as the wide receivers coach in Waco in January 2021. Three different players caught 30 or more passes for Stuckey at Baylor during the Bears’ Big 12 championship season. Former Miami Booker T. Washington four-star prospect Tyquan Thornton led the group with 62 catches for 948 yards and 10 touchdowns.
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Notre Dame has only had two wide receivers eclipse the 900-yard mark in the last six seasons. Equanimeous St. Brown had 961 yards in 2016, and Chase Claypool had 1,037 in 2019. Both players have found homes in the NFL with the Green Bay Packers and Pittsburgh Steelers, respectively.
Stuckey is inheriting a relatively young, unproven wide receiving corps. Even the veterans of the room, seniors Braden Lenzy, Avery Davis and Joe Wilkins Jr., have only combined for 1,653 receiving yards in 13 combined seasons. Former walk-on Matt Salerno was recently rewarded with a scholarship. That gives Notre Dame four senior wide receivers on scholarship.
The other four scholarship wide receivers on the roster are all underclassmen; true freshman Tobias Merriweather and sophomores Deion Colzie, Lorenzo Styles and Jayden Thomas. Styles shined with eight catches for 136 yards and a touchdown in Notre Dame’s Fiesta Bowl loss to Oklahoma State.
Notre Dame needs a successful recruiting class of 2023 to bolster the roster. Stuckey gives the coaching staff a tie to the South. He grew up in Georgia, played college ball in South Carolina and coached for a year in Texas. Those states and the surrounding regions are always hotbeds for wide receiver talent.
Stuckey has a few items at the top of his to-do list upon arriving in South Bend. Scavenge the transfer portal for possible immediate help, get going on the class of 2023 and find a way to work with what he’s got as the team prepares for spring practices.
