Hartman withdraws, and Steve Angeli will start in the Sun Bowl.
Sam Hartman, the quarterback for Notre Dame, decided not to play in the Sun Bowl in order to start getting ready for the 2024 NFL Draft. On December 29 in El Paso, Texas, the No. 16 Fighting Irish take on No. 19 Oregon State in the Sun Bowl. Sophomore Steve Angeli is anticipated to start in Hartman’s place.
With this news, Hartman’s illustrious six-season collegiate career comes to an end. Before transferring to Notre Dame for his final season of eligibility in 2023, he attended Wake Forest for five years. During the year, Hartman completed passes for 2,689 yards, 24 touchdowns, and 8 interceptions. He also gained 123 yards and three touchdowns from rushes. Hartman finishes his time in college with 15,656 passing yards and 134 touchdowns (tied).
With Hartman off the field, Angeli will get his first career start and hopefully leave a lasting impression. Kenny Minchey, a rookie quarterback, might also see action. This season, Angeli participated in seven games. For a total of 272 yards, he completed 19 of 25 passes. In the win over Stanford, he threw four touchdown passes and one interception. Playing in two games, Minchey completed both of his pass attempts for a total of 12 yards.
Among Angeli’s 2023 highlights was his 8 of 11 passing for 130 yards against Tennessee State in a 56-3 victory. Angeli completed 6 of 7 passes for 92 yards and a touchdown pass to Cooper Flanagan in the Irish’s 58-7 victory over Pittsburgh. A 45-7 victory over Wake Forest was sealed in the closing minutes by his fourth touchdown pass of the season.
Joe Alt, an offensive lineman, declared his intention to enter the NFL as of the publication time. He, too, has decided not to play in the bowl game.
The Irish have a new quarterback for the 2024 campaign as Hartman leaves. Riley Leonard, a transfer from Duke and one of the best dual-threat quarterbacks in the country, has decided to attend Notre Dame instead of Ohio State, as was to be expected. Leonard completed his three seasons at Duke with 4,450 yards and 24 touchdowns through the air. He gained 1,224 yards and 19 touchdowns on the ground.
Leonard will probably be a projected starter when he arrives at Notre Dame, where the quarterback position is comparatively inexperienced. Leonard, like Hartman, can boost his NFL prospects during his time at Notre Dame. Leonard guided Duke to an incredible turnaround in 2022. Thirteen of his 33 touchdowns came from the ground and 20 came from passing. Duke defeated UCF in the Military Bowl to close out the season with a 9-4 record.
Leonard led Duke to an unexpected victory over Clemson in the season opener, but he was hindered late in the campaign by an ankle injury sustained in the loss to Notre Dame. He participated in seven games this season and totaled 1,102 yards passing, 352 yards of rushing, and seven touchdowns overall. At Duke, Leonard had 21 starts and went 13-8.
Notre Dame is seeking consecutive bowl game victories for the first time since 2013-14. In Marcus Freeman’s first season at the helm of the Irish, Notre Dame defeated South Carolina last year in the Gator Bowl. Concluding the regular season 9-3 in Freeman’s second season as head coach, the Irish can reach double-digit wins for the sixth time in seven seasons with a victory over Oregon State.
With Angeli under center, the Irish will be facing a strong Oregon State defense. The opponents threw 12 interceptions and 20 touchdowns against the Beavers this season. A strong performance from Angeli in the Sun Bowl will bolster his stock heading into next season, especially with Leonard joining him in South Bend.
Notre Dame’s offense is expected to look quite different in the Sun Bowl. Several offensive players have already opted out of the bowl game. Despite the attrition due to the transfer portal and the impact of the 2024 NFL Draft, Angeli has a chance to make a lasting impression on the coaching staff ahead of next season. While his future clearly will not be determined by his Sun Bowl performance, Angeli will need to perform admirably in the Sun Bowl to show what he is capable of in something other than clean-up duty in blowout wins.
