Five freshman standouts from Notre Dame spring practice

Twelve of the 23 players in Notre Dame’s 2023 signing class enrolled early and are going through spring practice for the first time. Saturday offered media a look at an entire practice, where most of them were in action in 11-on-11, seven-on-seven and position drills. None received first-team reps Saturday, but that’s not a surprise just six practices into their college careers.

Here’s a look at five freshmen who have stood out this spring, with Saturday’s session carrying the most weight. (Note: safety Adon Shuler and defensive tackle Devan Houstan were out due to injury. Quarterback Kenny Minchey didn’t get any 11-on-11 reps).

Wide receiver Rico Flores Jr.

The traits are hard to miss. Rico Flores Jr. is physically ready for the position, with lower-body strength that rivals older receivers. In one word, he’s smooth. He’s sudden and fluid in and out of breaks. His hands are soft.

But the traits alone aren’t the standout. Fellow freshman Braylon James arrived with high-end speed and has displayed it so far, for example. But his route-running needs refinement and his route tree needs expanding. Flores, though, has garnered attention because the physical tools have come with advanced feel for the game and refined route-running ability for his class year. That combination turns heads.

The 6-foot, 198-pound Flores has the stop-and-start ability to shake corners on curls and comeback routes. He caught a touchdown on a back-shoulder throw in one-on-ones Saturday. It wasn’t enough to earn him many first-team reps Saturday, but if he can sustain what he has shown so far, Notre Dame might be forced to put him into the 2023 plans.

Wide receiver Jaden Greathouse

Notre Dame quarterbacks targeted Jaden Greathouse often in 11-on-1 Saturday, mainly on underneath routes and crossers. His physical traits aren’t quite as eye-catching as Flores’, but the route-running ability and strength is impressive for a freshman. He arrived with the label of a polished route-runner who can be a downfield threat, jump ball winner and run after the catch.

“Rico and Greathouse, really good with their feet, really natural catchers of the ball,” quarterback Tyler Buchner said. “It just looks natural catching the ball. They’re all going to be really good for us.”

Greathouse had some after-catch chances on those short throws, though none were gigantic gains. His contested catch abilities stood out in one-on-ones. He also was one of the kick returners in a special teams period.

Linebacker Drayk Bowen

Drayk Bowen looks like the most physically ready linebacker of the freshman trio (he, Preston Zinter and Jaiden Ausberry) just by looking at him go through drills. He’s 6-foot-2 and 230 pounds, right on the level of fifth-year seniors and multi-year starters JD Bertrand and Jack Kiser.

But that alone isn’t enough to make the list. Bowen’s strength and athleticism showed up on the field too, even if he’s still working through learning the playbook and learning his role on every play and technique. (Grad assistant Max Bullough had him redo a drill in an earlier practice). He’s decisive, explosive and fluid enough to still make plays while he learns. He stuffed a run play in the red zone when he immediately filled a gap and bounced off an oncoming blocker. He looks athletic enough to stick with running backs in coverage in the flat and with tight ends in the middle of the field.

Linebacker Preston Zinter

Like Bowen, Preston Zinter is still adjusting. He also had moments where the speed of the college game looked new to him. But he has some natural playmaking ability and speed that fits at the inside linebacker spots.

It showed up in Saturday’s 11-on-11 red zone session after a mostly quiet practice. He and defensive end Aiden Gobaira shared a sack when he came on a blitz. His best play was a run stop on the outside where he saw the running back bounce outside and immediately shed a block from tackle Tosh Baker without breaking stride. He chased down the runner and made the tackle for a short gain.

The 6-foot-2, 233-pound Zinter looks like he could also be a long-term fit on the edge in third-down blitz packages.

Cornerback Christian Gray

The 6-foot, 184-pound Christian Gray didn’t quite make the loud impression that cornerback Jaden Mickey did as a freshman last spring, but he’s confident in his own way. There’s no sense of trepidation from him, even though he hasn’t been perfect.

Early in Saturday’s practice, Marcus Freeman pulled him aside to give him some pointers after he ran too far upfield defending a screen. Gray was too aggressive on that play. But he didn’t lose his desire to try and make plays because aggressiveness burned him one time.

Gray is smooth in and out of breaks and has the hip fluidity to run with receivers downfield and on in-breaking routes. His summer emphasis will likely be getting stronger.

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