How Notre Dame offense will look different in Sun Bowl vs. Oregon State

Marcus Freeman’s advice to Steve Angeli: Just be Steve Angeli. The Notre Dame head coach wants his sophomore quarterback to do the things he’s done whenever he’s played this season, which usually worked.

After all, Angeli’s body of work put him in position to start the Sun Bowl in the first place.

The Irish didn’t alter their offense to fit Angeli too much, because Freeman and interim offensive coordinator Gino Guidugli believe his play style isn’t too dissimilar to departed starter Sam Hartman. But that doesn’t mean the playbook will look exactly the same at 2 p.m. ET on Friday in El Paso, Texas, as it’s looked all season. It won’t.

“It’s a whole new offense,” Guidugli said. “At the end of the day, we got three starters returning and two of those starters [sophomore guard Billy Schrauth and sophomore center Ashton Craig] have only played three or four games.”

It’s strange, but it’s true. Junior guard Pat Coogan — ironically one of the least experienced starters on the team heading into the season — is the only offensive player who started every game and will play in the Sun Bowl. Junior wide receiver Jayden Thomas is the only Week 0 starter who will play in El Paso, but he struggled with a hamstring injury from September to the end of the regular season.

Thomas will be one of Notre Dame’s primary receivers for the first time since he got hurt, as will the other Ja(y)den who dealt with a nagging hamstring injury, freshman wideout Jaden Greathouse. Both are fully healthy, along with senior wide receiver Deion Colzie (knee, out since Week 3) and graduate wideout Matt Salerno (lower leg, missed Weeks 2-11)

“To have JT back and healthy is really encouraging,” Freeman said. “He really hasn’t been healthy all year, so I expect him to do some things. JG, Jaden Greathouse, has had a great bowl prep.”

“Those are two guys we’re going to lean on in the pass game and be where they’re supposed to be for Steve and make catches,” Guidugli said. “They’ll be guys you’re going to see a lot of come game day.”

Schematics-wise, the change in running backs might be the biggest driver of change. Junior Audric Estimé is out and freshman Jeremiyah Love is in, and Love’s speed will allow the Irish to do some different things. They’ve had that speed all season, but with Estimé out, Freeman sees a chance to really unleash it.

“You can obviously try to get him to the perimeter, and his speed is elite,” Freeman said. “So how can we find different ways to get him in space and get him the ball and say, ‘Go make a play’? Those, to me, are the ways you can expand the offense with Jeremiyah.”

With so much new personnel, Guidugli said the Irish had to go back to the basics in their install for day one of bowl prep, similarly to day one of fall camp. But bowl prep is a long time — about as long as fall camp is — and Guidugli had time to throw in some wrinkles.

“We got really smart kids at Notre Dame,” Guidugli said. “Those guys will go out there and be able to execute. How much can you put in? We’ll be able to do enough, but we’re going to lean on the things that we’re best at.”

Bowl prep was also a chance for the reserve Irish to stand out and claim roles for the game. Angeli’s ascension was a given, as was Love’s. But sophomore running back Jadarian Price’s usage was spotty at best throughout the regular season, and he’s listed on the official depth chart as the co-starter alongside Love.n

Sophomore tight end Eli Raridon will have his chance to shine as the No. 1 tight end, while freshman wide receiver Jordan Faison has a bigger role than before, too. And at left tackle, freshman Charles Jagusah grabbed the starting job early in bowl prep and didn’t let go.

“If you’re a first-time starter like Charles Jagusah, our left tackle, you know what? Go show that you can be the future left tackle of this program,” Freeman said. “That’s why you’re gonna go out there, and we have a strong belief in him.”

The way the Irish talk about Jagusah, they believe he has a chance to be a special player at Notre Dame. He — and everyone else who will play their largest role of the season on offense — now have a chance to prove it.

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