Listed measurements: 6-foot-2, 190 pounds.
2023-24 year, eligibility: A fifth-year transfer, Shrader has a season of eligibility remaining only because 2020 did not count against his ticking clock due to the universal pandemic eligibility waiver. He is the second place kicker in two years to use that added season with a transfer to Notre Dame, following Blake Grupe from Arkansas State.
Depth Chart: Bringing in Shrader played a part in the Irish losing Josh Bryan to transfer, leaving Shrader as the only scholarship place kicker on the roster.
Recruiting: Shrader walked on at South Florida after a brief professional soccer career — he turned 24 last month — but immediately found a role as a Saturday kicker with the Bulls.
CAREER TO DATE
A prediction: The “ND on NBC” booth will bring up Shrader’s previous appearance at Notre Dame in his first game in South Bend this fall, against Tennessee State on Sept. 2. That game should feature plenty of Irish scoring, meaning the booth will not have to shoehorn in the reference whenever Notre Dame first finds the end zone.
Shrader sent the opening kickoff 49 yards against the Irish when South Florida visited on short notice during the pandemic. In a 52-0 rout, that was Shrader’s only opportunity to kick that day. That kickoff was returned from inside the 20-yard line; perhaps that will be the easy opportunity to mention Shrader’s previous appearance at Notre Dame Stadium, praising a touchback in comparison to that shorter kick three years ago.
Down in Tampa, Shrader peaked in 2021 before a slight step back in field-goal efficiency in 2022. Much of that dropoff came from beyond 40 yards.
2021: 6-of-6 on field goals inside 40 yards; 5-of-6 on field goals longer than 40 yards.
2022: 7-8 on field goals inside 40 yards; 2-5 on field goals longer than 40 yards.
His career-long make was a 52-yarder.
2019: 12-of-12 on extra points; 4-of-9 on field goals.
2020: 11-of-11 on extra points; 4-of-6 on field goals.
2021: 35-of-35 on extra points; 11-of-13 on field goals.
2022: 37-of-37 on extra points; 9-of-13 on field goals.
NAME, IMAGE, LIKENESS
This guy loves to work. #𝐅𝐀𝐁𝟓𝟎 5⭐️
— Brandon Kornblue (@KornblueKicking) May 4, 2023
☘️ @NDFootball | @_spencershrader pic.twitter.com/3XRXjbOoS9
WHAT WAS SAID WHEN SHRADER COMMITTED IN DECEMBER
“A graduate (and a former professional soccer player before originally walking on at South Florida), Shrader’s quick commitment to Notre Dame does not yield any insight into what changes Irish head coach Marcus Freeman was or was not able to implement with the academic side of the University as it pertains to undergraduate transfers, a notoriously slow process that has made it more difficult for Notre Dame to pull in players in years past.”
2023 OUTLOOK
Going 95-of-95 on extra points may seem a low bar when looking for a kicker transfer, but if Shrader remains perfect after touchdowns, the Irish will be better off because they sought a transfer.
That is the reality at this point; Notre Dame had no other place-kicking option with any experience. Finding 30-some assured points and an ability to avoid unnecessary two-point conversion worries is worth entering the transfer market. (If Shrader cracks 40 made point-after attempts, credit quarterback Sam Hartman the most.)
Of course, the Irish would also like Shrader to return to his 2021 form from range. A kicker capable of hitting 5-of-6 attempts from deeper than 40 yards could be a genuine weapon in the three biggest games of the season. Frankly, and this is not meant to be dramatic, that very well could be the difference between a win and a loss against one of Ohio State, USC and Clemson.
That will be the differentiator in how Shrader is remembered: Can he hit a clutch kick in primetime? South Florida never really gave him a chance to answer that question.
DOWN THE ROAD
This is it for Shrader, simply enough. And his 2022 struggles from distance lessen any hopes of an NFL gig.
He did display a kickoff leg last year, knocking 80.7 percent of his kickoffs for touchbacks, compared to Zac Yoakam’s 61.5 percent at Notre Dame. Some of that may have been intentional coaching by former Irish special teams coordinator Brian Mason, so it will be curious to see how Marty Biagi approaches it in September.
NOTRE DAME 99-TO-0
The summer countdown begins anew, Rylie Mills to Deion Colzie
No. 99 Rylie Mills, senior defensive tackle, moving back inside from end
No. 98 Devan Houstan, early-enrolled four-star defensive tackle
No. 97 Gabriel Rubio, junior defensive tackle, one of three Irish DTs with notable experience
No. 95 Tyson Ford, sophomore defensive tackle, up 30 pounds from a year ago
No. 93 Armel Mukam, incoming freshman defensive end, former Stanford commit
No. 92 Aidan Keanaaina, a senior defensive tackle now ‘fully healthy’ after a 2022 torn ACL
No. 91 Aiden Gobaira, sophomore defensive end, former four-star recruit
No. 88 Mitchell Evans, the next starter at ‘TE U
No. 87 Cooper Flanagan, incoming freshman tight end, four-star recruit
No. 84 Kevin Bauman, senior tight end coming off a torn ACL
No. 83 Jayden Thomas, junior receiver, probable No. 1 target in 2023
No. 79 Tosh Baker, senior tackle, again a backup but next year ...
No. 78 Pat Coogan, junior interior offensive lineman
No. 77 Ty Chan, sophomore offensive tackle, former four-star recruit
No. 76 Joe Alt, first-team All-American left tackle
No. 75 Sullivan Absher, incoming freshman offensive lineman
No. 74 Billy Schrauth, sophomore left guard, likely starter
No. 73 Andrew Kristofic, fifth-year right guard, likely starter
No. 72 Sam Pendelton, early-enrolled freshman offensive lineman
No. 70 Ashton Craig, sophomore interior offensive lineman
No. 68 Michael Carmody, senior offensive lineman
No. 65 Michael Vinson, sixth-year long snapper, four-year starter
No. 64 Joe Otting, incoming freshman offensive lineman, four-star recruit
No. 59 Aamil Wagner, sophomore offensive tackle
No. 56 Charles Jagusah, incoming freshman offensive lineman, four-star recruit
No. 56 Howard Cross, fifth-year defensive tackle, multi-year starter
No. 55 Chris Terek, incoming freshman offensive lineman, four-star recruit
No. 54 Blake Fisher, junior right tackle, second-year starter
No. 52 Zeke Correll, fifth-year center, third-year starter
No. 51 Boubacar Traore, incoming freshman defensive end, four-star recruit
No. 50 Rocco Spindler, junior offensive guard
No. 47 Jason Onye, junior defensive tackle on the verge of playing time
No. 44 Junior Tuihalamaka, sophomore defensive end, former linebacker
No. 42 Nolan Ziegler, sophomore linebacker, Irish legacy
No. 41 Donovan Hinish, sophomore defensive tackle following in his brother’s footsteps
No. 40 Joshua Burnham, sophomore linebacker-turned-Vyper end
No. 38 Davis Sherwood, junior fullback/H-back, former walk-on
No. 34 Drayk Bowen, early-enrolled freshman linebacker, baseball infielder
No. 17 Brenan Vernon, incoming freshman defensive end, four-star recruit
No. 13 Holden Staes, sophomore tight end, up 20 pounds in a year
No. 12 Penn State RB transfer Devyn Ford gives Notre Dame newly-needed backfield depth, experience
No. 4 Rhode Island transfer safety Antonio Carter gives Notre Dame desperately needed backline depth
