With the transfer portal window fully open and national signing day just around the corner, college football rumors are swirling. According to multiple reports, the quarterback market is about to get a lot thinner, with Riley Leonard expected to commit to the Notre Dame Fighting Irish with an announcement possible on Monday.
College Football Rumors: Riley Leonard to Notre Dame?
According to On3.com’s Hayes Fawcett, multiple quarterbacks are expected to exit the transfer portal Monday, with former Duke Blue Devil Leonard one of the biggest names available at the present moment.
Since entering the portal, Leonard has long been linked with the Fighting Irish. Marcus Freeman’s team was successful at the quarterback position by utilizing the transfer portal one year ago, landing Sam Hartman from Wake Forest.
Although Notre Dame has talented young passer Steve Angeli — who will start the Sun Bowl clash with Oregon State following Hartman’s decision to opt-out — waiting in the wings, it has appeared increasingly likely that the Fighting Irish would follow the same route again and bring a transfer portal quarterback in.
Freeman obviously has familiarity with Leonard after the Fighting Irish faced Duke in late September. The Blue Devils quarterback suffered an injury during the game that unraveled Duke’s season. Having gone 4-0 to open the year, they went 3-5 down the stretch as their QB waged his battle with injury.
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As a result, Leonard threw for just 1,102 yards and three touchdowns in the 2023 college football season, adding four more scores on the ground. However, the highly-regarded dual-threat is just one year removed from a 33-touchdown campaign where he tallied over 3,500 total yards.
Leonard has been hotly tipped to head to Notre Dame since spending two days in South Bend last week. According to 247Sports Notre Dame insider Tom Loy, the Fighting Irish are expected to beat out Ohio State for the services of the former Duke quarterback. An announcement is expected on Monday.