NOTRE DAME, Ind. – For some (maybe many) who would be the starting quarterback at Notre Dame this season, I didn’t know. The Derby quarterback between junior Drew Pyne and sophomore Tyler Buchner always felt like it was just a matter of time before Buchner crowned the starter more than it was a real competition.
Fighting Irish head coach Marcus Freeman announced the much-anticipated news early Saturday afternoon, shortly after his team concluded its eighth practice of fall training camp.
“(It was) a very tough decision,” Freeman began. “One that me and (Offensive Coordinator Tommy) Rees spent a lot of time talking about. It’s not a seven-practice decision. This is what we looked at kind of last year, we looked at the spring, we looked at the summer and the start of fall camp and the whole body of work. We just felt like it was time. It was time to clarify the offense as to who is going to be the starting quarterback.”
Buchner gets the nod after playing in 10 games as a true freshman in 2021. He completed 60 percent of his 35 pass attempts, with three touchdowns and three interceptions. His most valuable asset as a freshman was his running ability. Buchner ran for 336 yards on 46 carries (7.3 YPC), with three touchdown runs.
“We think Tyler brings an element, obviously, a dynamic element with his feet,” Freeman said. “The ability to extend plays, having a QB running game — that kind of played a big part in this decision.”
Pyne played in just two games as a sophomore last fall, but they were important in relief of Jack Coan. He came off the bench to go 6 for 8 for 81 yards, including a 16-yard touchdown pass to Kevin Austin to help the Irish beat Wisconsin.
He played again a week later against Cincinnati when Coan struggled in the first half, and Pyne completed 9 of 22 passes for 143 yards and a touchdown in Notre Dame’s only regular season loss.
Buchner’s official announcement over Pyne comes just over a week into training camp, but it’s an evaluation process that has been underway for several months. Rees said he is considering the “entire body of work” of both signal callers, going back to last season.
“It was a very difficult decision,” explained Rees. “You have two kids who are working hard to achieve a goal. Drew is the best Drew Pyne he’s been since he was at Notre Dame, to his credit.
“We felt that Tyler gives us the best opportunity,” Rees continued. “To give a moment, we had a practice a few days ago where we probably felt like ‘OK, this is what it’s going to look like and this is where we can work at our best’. We made the decision as a team and as a group and we are fully ahead.”
There is no bad blood between Buchner and Pyne. The latter chatted a week ago about the amount of time he spent with Buchner in the film room and how close the two have become since Buchner arrived on campus as a registrar in the early spring of 2021.
“Fortunately, during all this time, I’ve had a great friend and competitor in Drew Pyne,” Buchner said of his teammate. “Every day, he pushes me to get better. He pushes me to spend more time in the building (and) watch a movie with him. We compete every day in practice, and he worked really hard. I couldn’t be happier to have him on this team.”
As a first-time Head Coach with a defensive background, Freeman has handed over most of the offensive decisions to Rees since becoming head coach. But he shared with Rees his top-3 criteria for who would be Ireland’s next quarterback.
“Number one they make the right decisions,” Freeman said. “Number two, you have to take care of the football. We can turn the ball. We have to take care of football. And then three, you have to make plays, and who is making plays. There’s a huge criteria, I’m sure, that Coach Rees has in terms of how he evaluates those guys, but those are the three things I’m really looking for.”
Rees has worked with Buchner for about 20 months since the sophomore arrived on campus in the middle of what would have been his senior year of high school. It came after the pandemic canceled his senior season. Rees narrowed down what he’s looking for from Buchner now as he works toward the first start of his career.
“I think the word we’ve said in camp is trust,” Rees explained. “I think Tyler is hitting his stride right now. We will continue with a very confident and calm quarterback. I think we will continue to build towards consistency and leadership. Those are the qualities we want to keep coming out there.
“I think part of this decision is to allow him to have that platform to not worry about every play and every decision,” Rees continued. “It gives him the freedom to go out there and work, knowing that this team has his back and we’re ready to go.”
As you would expect, Buchner is one of the smartest players on the Fighting Irish roster. Freeman doesn’t spend every minute of his time as a first-year head coach in the quarterback room, but when he has Buchner’s ability is readily apparent.
Freeman calls him “alpha” in the room. He is always the first to respond quickly when asked a question. It is that preparation that Buchner believes will allow him to be the best version of himself when he takes the field this season.
“When I play the best is when I’m out there, you know I like to think of myself and say I’m just balling,” Buchner explained. “Just playing ball. I think that thought process or that mindset of going out there and balling is something that comes from preparation and being so confident and being so prepared that you don’t have to think. It’s almost subconscious at that point. So, it’s about preparing to push myself as far as I can and being consistent there.”
Buchner’s first chance as Notre Dame’s starting quarterback will come exactly three weeks to the day the world heard the news that he has earned the starting job. It hits the road in “The Horseshoe” at Ohio State against the No. 1 team. 2 in the country.
A hostile environment, to be sure, but Rees is not worried.
Buchner may have been a “package” quarterback last year, but 10 games of experience was valuable. Rees touched on big moments, like the three quarters that Buchner played in a night game at Virginia Tech, and in a key situation in another night game vs. North Carolina last season, that Buchner had in the bank.
“This is not a guy who hasn’t played,” Rees said. “This is not a guy who hasn’t played big hours, and I think a lot of the confidence we have in the team that started last year and has been growing over the last nine months.”
Buchner now holds the title of one of the most respected monitors in college sports: Notre Dame starting quarterback. Names like Joe Montana, Joe Theismann, Tony Rice, Rick Mirer, and Brady Quinn come to mind when the phrase is said.
“I don’t know if it’s fully hit me yet, but it’s a blessing and I’m really grateful and blessed to be in this position,” Buchner said of being named Notre Dame’s QB1. “My teammates have been great in supporting me, the coaching staff for believing in me. It’s a pretty surreal feeling.”
And in three weeks, Buchner hopes to be “balling” in his first career start at Ohio State.
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