Notre Dame made its first-ever College Football Playoff appearance in 2018, but did so despite losing two top-10 offensive linemen in that year's NFL Draft.
All-Americans Quenton Nelson and Mike McGlinchey needed replacing, and while the end result was a 12-0 regular season, the offensive line took a noticeable step back and was caught out by a strong Clemson defense in the Cotton Bowl.
Now in 2024, the University of Notre Dame faces a similar situation.
Notre Dame must replace one of the best left tackles in the school's long history, Joe Alto, who is now with the Los Angeles Chargers, and also is missing right tackle Blake Fisher, a second-round draft pick by the Houston Texans.
Taking their place will be a group of rookies who were once highly-anticipated, but there are a few players for whom it is simply unfair to have such high expectations in 2024.
On the left wing appears to be Charles Jagsa, a top recruit for the class of 2023. The 6-foot-7, 330-pound sophomore struggled early in his only start in last year's Tony the Tiger Sun Bowl but visibly improved as the game went on.
Veteran Tosh Baker appears set to start on the right side for now, but there is likely plenty of competition, with junior Amir Wagner likely to compete for playing time and last year's freshman Sullivan Absher also worthy of attention.
Regardless of who starts, it’s hard to imagine that 2024 won’t see notable regression at those two positions.
It wasn't because of a lack of preparation or anything like that, but offensive tackle was clearly one of Notre Dame's biggest strengths in 2023. Alt and Fisher were that good.
Unfortunately for Notre Dame, there isn't a lot of time left to rejuvenate these particular positions.
The Week 1 trip to Texas A&M includes a matchup against a highly talented Aggies defensive line led by Purdue transfer Nick Skoutron, a pass-rush threat who is on the shortest list of most talented defenders Notre Dame will face in 2024.
This matchup feels a bit like when a retooled offensive line faced Rashan Gary's Michigan in the season opener in 2018. That night, Notre Dame scored two early points to win 24-17, but struggled to move the ball the rest of the game.
That unit developed quickly and everything else fell into place to lead them into the regular season and playoffs with a 12-0 record.
Given this year's schedule and the talent across the Irish starting 22, an offensive tackle is in order, and if he's good, it's worth keeping an eye on.
– Notre Dame Football Offensive Preview 2024: The Irish O's take off
