Notre Dame's Bryce Young Is Fine Tuning The Details To Become An Elite Pass Rusher
Notre Dame returns one of the most underrated edge duos in the country. On one side, you have Boubacar Traore who many have tabbed a breakout candidate nationally. Traore is one of the many players on the Fighting Irish roster with high NFL upside and has the potential to be the first defensive end taken in the first round from South Bend since 1997. The other breakout candidate who's been putting in the work this offseason has been Bryce Young who's also looking to emerge onto the national stage.
The 6-6, 260-pound North Carolina native didn't wait long to come onto the scene. Young played 374 snaps as a true freshman and played in meaningful minutes throughout the entire playoffs in 2024. Last season, Young played 314 snaps throughout the regular season and looks to solidify his starting position during the offseason. He's been putting in the work to be a fellow breakout candidate along with Traore.
"Like everybody goes through, you go through your process, figure out what works for you and what doesn’t work for you," Young shared. "I’m at a great spot right now. My strength numbers have improved while I’m leaning down and putting on more muscle. So I feel like I’m in a great spot. Right now, it's about consistency and stacking days. That’s the biggest thing. I'm trying to put it on tape every day and make sure what the tape says is what I want to be on there."
In his first two seasons with the Irish, we've seen Young flash in moments. He's had big plays against Indiana in the playoffs as a true freshman and he played well against Texas A&M at home this past season accumulating four total pressures. It's the weekls ebbs and flows Young has to cut down on and become a more consistent player. If he does that, he'll be a force to stop on the defensive line.
"In terms of pass rush, there are small things I’m working on now that are going to pay dividends," Young explained. "I can already feel it. Coach [ Charlie ] Partridge has been a great addition. There’s so many little things that can improve your game and shave those seconds off. He’s helped me a lot.
"One of the biggest things is my hips," Young continued about his offseason improvements. "I'm working on making sure my hips are turned toward the quarterback and getting up field, that’s the biggest thing. I already feel it improve my game so much as I continue to grow and work out what works for me and what doesn’t work for me."
Young has the opportunity to be the second side of a dominant pass rushing duo that features himself and Traore. And that doesn't include rotational players Keon Keeley , Loghan Thomas and true freshman Ebenezer Ewetade and Rodney Dunham . Outside of Traore and Young, the defensive end unit as a whole is relatively inexperienced, but the talent in the room is undeniable. Young has the opportunity to separate himself the same way Traore has this offseason and he's been putting in the work to do so.
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