The news around ND’s 0-2 football program got a bit grimmer today as head coach Marcus Freeman announced that quarterback Tyler Buchner suffered a sprain of his left (non-throwing) shoulder in the 4th quarter of ND’s loss to Marshall last Saturday. He will undergo surgery Tuesday, with an expected recovery time of four months, apparently lost for the season.
Drew Pyne (5-11 1/2, 198) will take over at QB for the Irish. Pyne saw meaningful action last season against Wisconsin and Cincinnati. For the year he was 15-30 passing good for 224 yards with 2 TDs with no interceptions. Last week he entered the game late after Buchner’s injury and was 3-6 for 20 yards with and interception and a five yard TD pass to Michael Mayer. Pyne is in his junior year at Notre Dame and is a sophomore by eligibility.
Buchner closes out his abbreviated 2022 season 28-50 passing for 378 yards, no TDs and 2 interceptions. Buchner, known for his running abilities, through two games leads the Irish with 62 yards on the ground. He ran in two TDs and a two point conversion against Marshall.
When asked to talk about Pyne and how the Irish offense would now change, Freeman said, “He’s a natural leader, has a lot of the natural QB traits that you’re looking for. I don’t see the offense changing extreme amounts. We’re still going to be able to do some of the QB runs that we did with Tyler and obviously the passing game, we’ll continue to enhance it and figure out ways to be more consistent in it and put him in a situation to hopefully have more completions”
Pyne came to the Irish as a four star recruit out of New Canaan, Connecticut in 2020. As a high school senior he completed 161 of 252 passes for 2,107 yards and 24 touchdowns with just seven interceptions, he also ran for 259 yards and 8 TDs.
True freshman, Steve Angeli, who led a last minute game winning drive in the Blue Gold game, moves up the depth chart to now back-up Pyne.
Since coming to ND, Pyne has impressed with his positive attitude, and loyalty towards to the University. He wear’s a bracelet that reads, “Make History”, a reference to his desire to leave Notre Dame with a national championship. During his Freshman year he reportedly would visit the Grotto every other day where he prayed that he stayed positive.
Pyne’s first start is scheduled for this Saturday against 2-0 Cal. Kickoff is at 2:30 PM.
