Notre Dame QB Evolution: Graduating from Layups to Progression Reads

High school coaches often fall into the same trap with young quarterbacks. We ask them to carry the offense before they’re ready, instead of building a system that carries them. Development isn’t about throwing everything at a QB and hoping he figures it out. It’s about sequencing his growth.

A young quarterback’s job is not to win the game on his own. His job is to execute. Early in 2025, Notre Dame redshirt freshman CJ Carr said it best when he described his role as not being a superstar, but simply executing the offense. That mindset didn’t happen by accident. It was built into the structure of the system.

Offensive coordinator Mike Denbrock had a clear plan from day one. Give the quarterback answers. Lean on high-percentage throws. Limit the mental load early, then expand it as confidence and command grow. What you see on film is not just play calling. It’s a progression plan for the position.

Part I - Protect the Freshman

When given a young QB, good coaches don’t just go to the ‘baptism by fire’ route. A plan should be developed to build the confidence of the young QB and allow him to adjust to the speed of play. So let’s take a quick look at how Coach Denbrock allowed CJ Carr to develop in year one.

Slow ‘em Down with Screens

Game 1 vs. Miami. As we now know, the Miami defense featured an elite pass rushing unit. Out of the gate, three of the first four plays were screens to take advantage of the over-aggressive Hurricane defense with a freshman QB.

Once a defense has been burned by a screen, defensive linemen can no longer rush upfield blindly. They must “retrace their steps” and verify the play before fully committing, which grants the offensive line more time on standard pass plays.

Quicks with Precision

Not only did Notre Dame come out hot with screens, but they fired in some easy quick routes, especially into the boundary to create short throws for their young QB.

Snag

Stick

These quicks are great confidence builders!

RPO “Copy” Tag (The Field/Motion Read)

This RPO involves a receiver running a flat route across the formation at the snap. This is often used against three-down fronts to create a numbers advantage on the edge.

This is often a “Triple Option” concept. Carr reads the EMOL first to give or keep, and then reads a second-level defender, like the SAM linebacker or Nickel, to decide between running himself or flipping it to the “Copy” route. This tag is highly effective against field pressure, as it puts the “Mike” linebacker in immediate conflict.

Part II - Opening the Vertical Toolbox

Carr has shown the ability to transition to aggressive thinking. Denbrock coached Carr to be a gunslinger who wasn’t afraid to take chances once he understood the situational why behind a play. These weren’t just go balls, but calculated shots based on Carr’s pre-snap operational command.

After the shot plays against Purdue, it was clear that Carr was ready for more volume and more progression based reads. The training wheels came off the very next week against Arkansas where Carr threw for 354 yards and 4 TDs.

Mesh Rail

Dusty (Double-Under)

The Screen game gets a little more complex with the throwback off of boot…

Even the short stuff became a bit more advanced with a deeper RPO in the glance concept used for deeper, intermediate routes. Carr used this to target Jordan Faison or Will Pauling for explosive gains once he showed mastery of the shorter reads.

Part III - Mid-Season Command

By mid-season, Carr showed the ability to look off and stare down safeties to allow for vertical shots in the seam. This shows his pre-snap coverage recognition and ability to

The final stage is turning the QB into a “problem solver” on the field as Denbrock gave Carr more responsibilities on the field. By the Pitt and Stanford games, Carr was diagnosing leverage and cleaning up bad calls at the line.

Carr finished with a 24:6 TD-to-INT ratio and a top-10 national QBR of 83.4, proving that a managed start doesn’t cap a player’s ceiling.

When managing and developing a young QB, keep it simple and intentional:

1. Protect early
Build the foundation with answers, not questions. Lean on your run game, screens, and quick game to slow the defense down and let your QB play fast. Confidence comes from completion, not complexity.

2. Reward processing
As your QB proves he can handle the system, expand it. Add vertical shots, layered concepts, and true progression reads. Make every added responsibility something he has earned through execution.

3. Turn him into a problem solver
The end goal is not a robot. It’s a quarterback who can diagnose, adjust, and attack. Give him ownership. Let him fix bad plays, understand leverage, and take calculated shots. That’s when your offense stops being called and starts being run.

Developing a quarterback is not about what you install. It’s about when and why you install it.