SOUTH BEND, Ind. — CJ Carr grew up in a football family.
His father, Jason, was a quarterback at Michigan and his grandfather, Lloyd, led the Wolverines to a perfect season and the 1997 national championship as their head coach.
Now the younger Carr has a chance to create a new legacy for the family that grew up in college football’s winningest program — with one of the sport’s most prestigious schools, No. 6 Notre Dame.
Coach Marcus Freeman ended the quarterback competition Tuesday by selecting Carr as the starter and putting the former Michigan prep star under the spotlight in next Sunday night’s season opener at No. 10 Miami.
Carr already sounds like a natural.
“One of my strengths is understanding where to go with the ball and what the defense is doing,” he said when summer camp opened. “I think I’ve grown a lot with that since my first year here. Another strength is the relationship I have with my teammates. The quarterbacks and the coaches get all the glory, but it’s really the (offensive) line and the receivers who are out there making all the plays.”
Neither Carr nor his top competitor, Kenny Minchey, have been available to reporters since Freeman made the decision. Freeman also has not yet spoken about it.
Carr appeared in one game last year, mop-up duty in a 66-7 rout at Purdue. But he has never thrown a college pass or logged a carry.
He replaces Riley Leonard, who led the Irish to 13 straight wins last season before falling 34-23 to Ohio State in the CFP national championship game. Leonard was drafted by the Indianapolis Colts in April.
Initially, some thought the more experienced Steve Angeli, Leonard’s backup in 2024, would be in the mix. But Angeli transferred to Syracuse in the spring, making it a two-man competition between Carr…
Source link : https://www.nbcsports.com/college-football/news/carr-hopes-to-add-to-familys-football-legacy-after-winning-starting-qb-job-at-no-6-notre-dame
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Publish date : 2025-08-25 03:56:00
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