SOUTH BEND, Ind. — The unintended consequence — and a first-world problem at that, if it even is one — is that the 20th batch ever of Notre Dame football early enrollees isn’t exactly living in the same world as the fresh arrivals’ new teammates, for the most part.

Or even the one being navigated by the first four ultra-early enrollees, who arrived on campus in December and have been active participants in practice as scout-team members during the 2024 Irish team’s extended College Football Playoff run.

Which persists this week and culminates next Monday night, Jan. 20, in Atlanta with the seventh-seeded Irish (14-1) clashing with 8 seed Ohio State (13-2) for the national title (7:30 EST, ESPN).

All the while spring-semester classes began at ND this Monday, for the third-largest football freshman contingent in the two decades now that early enrollment has been a thing for football. It also starts for a handful of transfers — a newer trend — and for the players who will go to battle to bring home the first national championship in football for Notre Dame since 1988.

What defensive tackle Davion Dixon; cornerback Cree Thomas; running back Nolan James Jr.; wide receivers Elijah Burress, Jerome Bettis Jr., and Scrap Richardson; and offensive linemen Matty Augustine, Cam Herron and Owen Strebig will be doing is what every EE class has been doing since pioneers James Aldridge, Chris Stewart and George West ushered in the new tradition in January of 2006.

And that is adjusting to the academic rigors of Notre Dame, beginning winter workouts in the weight room in preparation for spring practice and, in some cases, figuring out how NOT to get frostbite walking through campus.

The winter workouts with the staff of director of football performance Loren Landow is the extent of their football involvement. The other four — quarterback Blake Herbert, safeties JaDon Blair and Ethan Long and linebacker Madden Faraimo — will soon merge onto the same track as the January-arriving nine.

“They have to add value to our program or we’re wasting time,” Irish head coach Marcus Freeman said earlier this month of what he hoped to get out of having the four December additions on campus extra early, in time to help prep for Georgia, Penn State and now Ohio State.

“If there’s somebody in our locker room or a team meeting room that’s not adding value to their program, they shouldn’t be here. That’s what we communicate to them. Your role now, the value you’re going to bring is scout team. And all four of those guys have to make sure they add value to our program. And they did. Those four guys made us better.

“And here’s the other thing I told them. The reward, the feeling they get from the reward of the last game is going to be different than any feeling they’ve had to that point. I remember the very first day they were here. I said, ‘You guys get excited and you’re happy when you win, right?’ Yeah, yeah.

“They’re in the back. I said, ‘Just wait ‘til after this next one, where you’re invested in this program. Because the amount you invest is going to determine the feeling you get from the reward.’”

Quarterback CJ Carr, in December of 2023, was the first early enrollee to get a special waiver to attend and participate in practice as the Irish were prepping for a Dec. 29, 2023 Sun Bowl matchup with Oregon State. The Irish won that game, 40-8.

The new wave of Irish newbees aren’t the only ones who are adjusting to a modified calendar brought on by the extended and unprecedented postseason run by the Irish.

The deadline for college players with remaining eligibility, interested in becoming early entries in the 2025 NFL Draft in April, is Wednesday, but for the Irish and the Ohio State players pondering that decision, it’s been extended to Jan. 24.

Also for outgoing transfer-portal ponderers, that December window closed on the 28th. But it reopens for Irish and Buckeyes for five days after the national championship game. Another 10-day window pops up for all players in the spring, April 16-25.

And speaking of spring, there is no publicized date for either the start or end of spring practice. So, how the 13 early enrollees fit into that picture, let alone the 2025 season that kicks off Aug, 30 against Miami at Hard Rock Stadium, is more muddled than usual.

Here’s a quick thumbnail on each of them:

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OT Matty Augustine: Notre Dame figures to have offensive line depth in abundance next season, including tackles with starting experience. And if there’s a young player poised to challenge the more-experienced group, it would figure to be current freshman Guerby Lambert or June-arriving five-star freshman Will Black.

But the 6-6, 287-pound four-star tackle prospect from Greenwich, Conn., is a promising long-term option, who can start building toward that future this spring.

WR Jerome Bettis Jr: The three-star prospect and son of former Irish All-America running back Jerome Bettis walks into a wide receiver room that, at the moment, has 13 players with 2025 eligibility.

The 6-2, 200-pound Bettis also has safety skills, and perhaps his long-term path ends there. But that’s also a deep room. Should he stay on offense, boundary receiver figures to be his fit, with Virginia transfer Malachi Fields favored to top the depth chart when the Irish open the 2025 season.

S JaDon Blair: One of the ultra-early four arrivals, the 6-4, 190-pound four-star prospect looks the part in drills with the current Irish players and has a Kyle Hamilton profile with his height, length and closing speed.

With two-time All-American Xavier Watts moving on to the NFL, Blair could start to build a case this spring for a rotational spot, at the least, at safety in 2025.

WR Elijah Burress: The son of former NFL standout wide receiver Plaxico Burress had a strong high school senior season and joins the Irish at a wide receiver position of less resistance — the field side — than Bettis. Current sophomore Jordan Faison figures to be the No. 1 option at that position in 2025, but the spring is an opportunity for Burress to make a claim to be in the conversation for a rotational spot, with lots of others.

DT Davion Dixon: The 6-1, 316-pounder from Miami gets to start his freshman season back home in South Florida, but will it be as a depth piece or more of a bystander?

The Irish have numbers on the interior of their defensive line in 2025, but not a lot of proven commodities, even with the addition of two transfers over the weekend. Dixon, who was the first player to commit to ND in the 2025 class, will likely be a more long-term project but has a chance to surprise in the spring.

LB Madden Faraimo: The late-committing, extra-early-arriving 6-2, 219-pounder was the No. 53 prospect nationally regardless of position in the 2025 class and looked the part of an early achiever during playoff practices in December and January.

With sixth-year vet Jack Kiser out of eligibility, look for Faraimo to make a push toward joining the five-man linebacker rotation next season with returnees Drayk Bowen, Jaylen Sneed, Jaiden Ausberry and Kyngstonn Viliamu-Asa.

QB Blake Hebert: What happens with the outgoing transfer portal at this position dictates much of what kind of reps Hebert will see in the spring. The 6-foot-3, 215-pound four-star prospect is not perceived as a contender to succeed Riley Leonard as a starter, but he could end up being a key depth piece in 2025.

OL Cam Herron: The three-star prospect from Indianapolis will be groomed as a future center. And with plenty of experienced options in front of him — including early season 2024 starter Ashton Craig returning from ACL surgery — the 6-2, 276-pounder has plenty of time to grow into the role at a leisurely pace, both physically and mentally.

RB Nolan James Jr. : A prospect the Irish poached late from Boston College’s class, from a skills and traits standpoint, projects to be an early contributor, but how deep will the Irish running backs room be?

None of the six backs on the roster have expiring eligibility, and Gi’Bran Payne will be back from ACL surgery after missing this season. So, unless there’s a big transfer-portal rush, James may not have the opportunity to move up quickly early.

S Ethan Long: Of the three early enrollees from the Brunswick School in Greenwich, Conn., Long has the clearest path (Augstine and Hebert are the others) to compete for early playing time, but only relatively speaking. The safeties room has numbers and talent, just not a lot of college reps yet.

Long was one of the four December early enrollees who continue to log scout-team reps this month.

WR Scrap Richardson: Another player with versatility to start or end his career on either side of the ball. The 6-2, 170-pound Greenville, Ga., product’s track speed and raw ability make him the wild card of this early enrollee group.

OT Owen Strebig: The 6-7, 292-pound Brookfield, Wis., product and maybe largest employee ever to work at Panera Bread, gives off some Mike McGlinchey vibes of a high-ceiling tackle. As a high school freshman, he weighed in at just over 200 pounds, so he’s still growing into his bigger body and potential.

Like Augustine, more long-term path than short-term here, but Anthonie Knapp showed in 2024 why you never know.

CB Cree Thomas: The 6-foot, 179-pound prospect comes from the same school in Phoenix as injured Irish junior cornerback and projected first-round draft choice Benjamin Morrison. And he has similar aspirations.

It’s likely that the two junior enrollees at that position, Dallas Golden and Mark Zackery, will be on faster tracks for playing time. But both Morrison and this year’s freshman All-American, Leonard Moore, have shown, those projected timetables can be sped up by the coaching of Irish DBs mentor Mike Mickens.

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