Notre Dame at 2024 NFL Draft - What We Learned (2024)

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Notre Dame’s first two picks off the board were offensive lineman Joe Alt and Blake Fisher. This is what the Irish are most known for in recent history, and the lineage continues. Joe Alt was always going to leave for the draft, he’s just that good. As for Blake, many thought he would benefit greatly from another year of college ball. He chose to opt for the draft and it has paid off.

The next step for Notre Dame as far as a program marker in the draft goes would be for them to continue to send top-end linemen to the league along with a couple of skill players. It’s great being “known” for something in the draft, I’d just like to see more players that hold the ball in their hand in the mix as well.

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For as bizarre as Jim Harbaugh tends to be, he sure does like Notre Dame football having just drafted not one but two Irish players in Joe Alt and Cam Hart. Jim Harbaugh likes hard nosed football. He and Joe Alt are a perfect match in that regard.

It’s interesting how certain franchises tend to gravitate to certain types of personalities and players. Ironically, both Harbaugh brothers have now shown a penchant for preferring Notre Dame talent. These players will all certainly be interesting to follow into the next phase of their careers.

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Sam Hartman was not drafted and instead signed a very nice undrafted free agent deal with the Washington Commanders. While it’s unfortunate that he was unable to land somewhere in the draft, he’s done enough to land on a roster and try to establish himself in the league, even if it’s as a backup.

The reality is that if Notre Dame wants to get serious about making College Football Playoff runs in the modern era, they have got to start getting higher-level quarterback play, period. What could Notre Dame be with a legitimate top-end quarterback to pair with the stout defenses that the Irish have produced? I’d sure like to find out.

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Michigan had 13 players drafted, the most in this year’s draft and nearly double Notre Dame’s total of seven players. Perhaps coincidentally or not, they also won the championship last year. What do you make of this? Michigan seems to have built a solid culture of development that allowed them to create a powerhouse this last year.

Yes, they cheated. But they were a good team at the same time. If Notre Dame is going to try to replicate a recent champion in terms of building out a program, Michigan is much closer to a path for the Irish than the way Georgia, Alabama, OSU, and LSU build rosters. Marcus Freeman’s vision for Notre Dame is beginning to take shape, that’s without question. What’s in question is how successful it’ll be.

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Despite not having reached the pinnacle of college football since 1988, Notre Dame still has more draft picks than any other school with a total of 532. Curious Irish minds may wonder who’s number two on the list? It’s of course USC, who’s creeping up on the Irish with a very respectable 529 selections.

Based upon the way Marcus Freeman and his staff are building the roster out in a modern way, I suspect that future years will be great successes for Notre Dame in the draft. They are building a faster, longer, and more athletic team from top to bottom and it will soon pay off on both the collegiate and professional fields.

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