SOUTH BEND — Three more Notre Dame football reserves entered the transfer portal on Wednesday, including second-year offensive lineman Sam Pendleton.
While senior wide receivers Jayden Thomas and Deion Colzie depart as graduate transfers, Pendleton went from starting the first seven games of 2024 at left guard to a reserve role when starting right guard Billy Schrauth returned from a high ankle sprain to start against Navy.
Schrauth flipped over to left guard, allowing fourth-year guard Rocco Spindler to remain in the lineup on the right side.
“I can’t really tell their reasoning; I didn’t get a bunch of explanation (from the coaches),” Pendleton said on Jan. 18 at College Football Playoff championship media day in Atlanta. “I tell people I just do what I’m told. That’s all I can do.”
A redshirt freshman from Lawsonville, N.C., Pendleton filled in capably at right guard for the second half of the CFP opener against Indiana.
“I played well,” Pendleton said. “I was winning most of my games. There were a couple games that I didn’t do as well.”
The 6-foot-4, 310-pound interior lineman was the only Irish player this season with a publicly announced concussion, which he suffered near the end of Game 5 against Louisville. Pendleton returned to practice after the bye week and made two more starts before assuming backup center chores behind upperclassman Pat Coogan.
“The concussion thing really wasn’t something I had to deal with,” Pendleton said. “I got taken away from that. They pulled me off on the sideline (for the last five plays against Louisville). I was fine. I practiced the next week. It wasn’t like I was out for a long time.”
A fourth-year reserve from Paulding County, Ga., the 6-2, 218-pound Thomas was a powerful downfield blocker and reliable target in the red zone, Thomas made 64 catches for 838 yards and seven touchdowns in his three seasons in the rotation.
Thomas made 12 combined starts in 2022-23 and had a streak of 12 straight games with at least one catch, including a five-catch, 66-yard showing in the Gator Bowl win over South Carolina. A solid start to his 2023 season was derailed by nagging hamstring issues, and he lost playing time in his final season when a trio of graduate transfers were brought in at receiver.
Thomas also carried five times for 37 yards in his Irish career, including two carries in the College Football Playoff. Thomas added a 5-yard scoring catch against Indiana in the CFP opener.
A senior from McDonough, Ga., Colzie also closed out his Irish career in his home state. At 6-4 and 211 pounds, Colzie made just 21 catches for 345 yards and three touchdowns in his four seasons.
His most productive season was as a sophomore in 2022, when he averaged 21.3 yards on nine receptions and became a trusted third-down target for quarterback Drew Pyne.
Mike Berardino covers Notre Dame football for the South Bend Tribune and NDInsider.com. Follow him on social media @MikeBerardino.
