Will Notre Dame football be able to build off of a successful first season from head coach Marcus Freeman?

Notre Dame recovered from an 0-2 drop with losses to Ohio State and Marshall with wins over then-No. 5 Clemson in November and the University of South Carolina in the Gator Bowl. The Fighting Irish ended the season with a 9-4 overall record and a 4-2 record at home.

The Irish completed their search for a reliable stopgap at quarterback with the transfer of former Wake Forest quarterback Sam Hartman, who will likely take the starting job over Tyler Buchner and Steve Angeli.

Notre Dame football promoted tight ends coach Gerad Parker to offensive coordinator in February, replacing former OC Tommy Rees after he took the offensive coordinator & quarterbacks coach job at Alabama.

“I know firsthand the person, teacher, recruiter and innovative football mind he is,” Freeman said in a February statement. “I look forward to watching our offense flourish under Gerad's leadership and direction.”

Spring practices will provide a small window into Freeman's continued journey as Notre Dame's head coach and just how competitive the Irish can be in his second year. What will be some of the more competitive position battles to look out for as spring practices continue to drag on?

Wide Receiver

Every good quarterback needs reliable wide receivers to keep the offense running smoothly.

Former Virginia Tech receiver Kaleb Smith transferred to Notre Dame in December, giving the Irish a Hokies' team leader in receiving yards with 674 and receiving touchdowns with three. Smith has four recorded seasons with Virginia Tech, gaining a nomination for the 2022 Burlsworth Trophy given to “College football's most outstanding player who began his career as a walk-on,” according to the team's website.

Jayden Thomas and Lorenzo Styles return after taking second and third place on the Irish in receiving yards. The duo combined for four touchdowns and 55 receptions in 2022, with Thomas peaking at 80 receiving yards against Navy and Styles earning 69 receiving yards against North Carolina and Marshall.

Will four-star commit Braylon James from Round Rock, Texas, find his way into the rotation? Two other four-star recruits, Jaden Greathouse and Rico Flores, have enrolled early with the Fighting Irish. They may be able to earn snaps behind Tobias Merriweather and Deion Colzie.

Linebacker

Linebacker JD Bertrand led the Fighting Irish in tackles last season with 82, putting him ahead of Jack Kiser and Marist Liufau, who earned 59 and 51 total tackles, respectively.

Three Notre Dame football graduate linebackers, Bertrand, Liufau and Kiser, will likely take the starting spots at the middle, weak-side and the “rover,” or a linebacker who can play as a nickel defender and provide run support, according to NFL Draft Blitz.

Three linebackers, including two four-star recruits Drayk Bowen and Jaiden Ausberry, enrolled with Notre Dame. Bowen accepted a spot at Notre Dame over offers from Arkansas, Clemson, Cincinnati, Illinois, Michigan and Michigan State, among others. ESPN ranked Ausberry as the No. 38 player in the country, while Rivals ranked him at 80th overall, according to Irish Breakdown Publisher Bryan Driskell.

Jaylen Sneed, a former four-star recruit by 247Sports, Rivals and ESPN, can take a backup spot at the rover after he appeared in four games during his freshman season. He earned seven tackles, one solo, while adding a half tackle for a three-yard loss against Boston College, according to the team's website.

Defensive End

Notre Dame football defensive end Isaiah Foskey, who declared for the NFL Draft in December, led the Irish with 11 sacks last season.

It will be tough to match his pass-rushing production, but Javontae Jean-Baptiste, who transferred in from Ohio State, can give Notre Dame a key depth piece at the end behind a potential starter in Nana Osafo-Mensah.

Jean-Baptiste earned 19 total tackles, four sacks and one forced fumble for the Buckeyes last season, proving to be a key rotational piece in a defense that finished in sixth place in the Big Ten with 303.9 yards allowed per game, according to the Big Ten.

Jordan Botelho, who earned two tackles, two sacks and two tackles for loss against South Carolina, has the opportunity to take a starting spot of his own. Junior Tuihalamaka and Joshua Burnham may be able to earn rotational snaps behind Botelho and give Notre Dame the depth it needs to make a formidable defensive line.