Notre Dame lands massive defensive commitment in transfer portal
Marcus Freeman hasn’t won as many games as Notre Dame football fans would like through his first two seasons but there is one place he has won big and repeatedly: the transfer portal.
After restocking the wide receiver group recently and landing a second quarterback from the ACC in as many years earlier in the week, Freeman and Notre Dame landed a big-time defensive commitment Wednesday.
Pass-rush specialist RJ Oben, previously of Duke, is now headed to Notre Dame. He made the announcement on social media.
Oben is coming off a year where he was a major key on Duke’s solid defense. He totaled five sacks, 17 tackles, six tackles for loss, and another six quarterback hurries this past season.
Oben will be key in replacing another transfer, Javantae Jean-Baptiste, who transferred from Ohio State before the 2023 season.
Oben stands 6-4, 260-pounds and figures to jump to the head of the depth chart at one defensive end position. Inexperienced Aidan Gobaira and tyson ford also figure to play the position going forward.
As the defense loses some key pieces for 2024, adding Oben certainly lessens the blow to what was a very solid defensive line in 2023.
