Notre Dame Lands Seven Players On The PFF Top 101 Players From…

Notre Dame Lands Seven Players On The PFF Top 101 Players From The 2024 Season

Notre Dame had a magical 2024 season that ended with the Irish setting a program record for wins (14). The Irish earned a berth in the first-ever 12-team playoff and won three games on their way to the national championship game. Notre Dame fell short of a title, but it was a brilliant season for the program. Following the season, Pro Football Focus listed its Top 101 players from the 2024 college football season. Here’s the list of Irish players in the list. NO. 16 – S XAVIER WATTS “Last year’s Nagurski Award winner played even better in 2024. His 89.7 overall grade ranked fifth among qualified safeties, and he led that same group with six interceptions. Equally as important is that he raised his run defense grade by 17 points and showed improved tackling ability. Watts was an invaluable piece to Notre Dame’s national championship run.” – Max Chadwick, PFF NO. 19 – RB JEREMIYAH LOVE “The Fighting Irish made it all the way to the national championship game because of its stout defense and dominant run game, the latter of which was largely due to its superstar sophomore. Love finished the year as the second-most-valuable running back in the nation according to PFF’s wins above average metric, and his 91.0 PFF grade stood fifth. He forced a missed tackle on 38% of his carries, which was second in the Power Four. Love will enter 2025 as the best tailback in college football.” – Chadwick NO. 21 – CB LEONARD MOORE “Moore began his collegiate career without much hype as just a three-star recruit. He’ll enter his sophomore year as the best cornerback in America because of how stellar he was as a true freshman. Moore’s 89.1 PFF grade was third among Power Four corners, while his 81.7 grade in man coverage ranked fourth among all corners in the nation. He finished the year as the third-most-valuable cornerback in the nation according to PFF’s wins above-average metric, trailing only two projected first-round picks in Jahdae Barron and Travis Hunter.” – Chadwick

NO. 71 – QB RILEY LEONARD “There might not be any single player from the College Football Playoff who showed more heart, effort and leadership down the stretch than Leonard. While Leonard may forever be limited with what he can do with his arm, his legs more than made up the difference this season for the Irish. Leonard nearly broke 1,000 yards on the ground, finishing with 982 total on 173 carries. This earned him an 82.8 run grade which ranks in the top 10 of all quarterbacks.” – Chadwick NO. 75 – NB JORDAN CLARK “Clark was an important piece to a Notre Dame secondary that ran as much man coverage as any team in the country. Playing primarily in the slot, Clark’s 83.2 coverage grade was a top-15 mark among Power Four cornerbacks. He also broke up six passes and allowed just 9.1 yards per reception.” – Chadwick NO. 88 – LB JACK KISER “The sixth-year captain of Marcus Freeman’s team had a hell of a career in South Bend. You won’t find many tougher football players out there than Kiser, who left it all on the field against Ohio State. Kiser posted his best statistical season in his final year, racking up 75 total tackles and 35 run stops. This earned him an elite 90.5 tackling grade combined with an 86.8 run-defense grade, both ranking in the top 16 among linebackers.” – Chadwick NO. 94 – LB DRAYK BOWEN “Bowen emerged as one of the best young linebackers in college football this season. His 80.7 overall grade was a top-20 mark in the Power Four this season. He was already an elite tackler as a true sophomore, as he missed just five tackles in his 16 games. Bowen will be one of the top returners at his position in 2025.” – Bowen Obviously I have no issues with the seven players included, but not having Rylie Mills on the list was a bit of a head scratcher. Mills earned second team All-America honors from Sporting News and also ranked in the Top 10 from Pro Football Focus in pressures among defensive tackles this past season. He also ranked 5th among defensive tackles in hits + sacks on the quarterback.