The Notre Dame football team might be getting one of its best defensive linemen back earlier than it expected.

Jason Onye has been away from the team for the last few months, though it’s been clear that should he want to come back to the Fighting Irish he would be welcomed with open arms. According to one insider, it appears Onye is will be back in time to engage in spring practice with the rest of the defense, a timetable that seems a bit quicker than most expected heading into February.

A to Z Sports analyst Ryan Roberts wrote earlier this week that Jason Onye is “full go” for the spring and has actually officially returned to the Notre Dame football team as of now. If true, it would be a massive news for a defensive front that will have to revamp a bit of losing the likes of Howard Cross III and Rylie Mills to graduation.

Notre Dame football reportedly gets defensive lineman back for spring practice

The return of Onye also means that new defensive coordinator Chris Ash will get to see up close and personal what he has in the d-lineman. What Onye has is quite a bit of talent, even if he didn’t play much in 2024.

Onye has in fact, played a grand total of 269 snaps for the Notre Dame football team. Those snaps are spaced out over 13 career games from 2022-2024. However, he has shown an ability to get to the quarterback in limited action (logging 2 sacks) that should make him attractive to Ash should he indeed be “full go” in the coming months.