by J.T. Toth
Photo Courtesy of NBC Sports.
At Draft 412, the NFL draft talk never ends. We will keep you ready for the next set of gridiron stars—from today and all the way until draft night 2024. We will bring you mock drafts, player profiles, individual team needs, and everything else you may need related to the 2024 NFL Draft.
Today’s Spotlight - Notre Dame, Quarterback, Sam Hartman
Name- Sam Hartman
Pos- Quarterback
Team- Notre Dame
HT/WT- 6’3” 200 lbs.
Born- 7/29/1999
Home – Charlotte, NC
Hartman played high school football for Davidson Day School in Charlotte, NC until his senior season when he transferred to Oceanside Collegiate Academy in South Carolina. All together in his prep career, he threw for 9,481 yards and 98 touchdowns. Coming out of high school, he was rated the No. 12 pro style quarterback in the country and was a consensus three-star athlete. He committed to Wake Forest in January of his senior year.
As a true freshman in 2018, he earned the starting quarterback job in preseason camp, and started each of the first 9 games for the Demon Deacons. He set numerous school records including most touchdown passes in a season (16), and total offensive yards by a freshman with 2,259.
Hartman was beat out by Jamie Newman in 2019 and took a redshirt after playing in only 4 games.
During his redshirt sophomore year, he started all 9 games and passed for 2,224 yards, while throwing 13 touchdowns and only 5 interceptions.
Between 2021-2022 Hartman passed for 7,929 yards and 77 touchdowns for Wake Forest before transferring to Notre Dame for his “super senior” 6th season in 2023. In his first start in 2023 he threw for 251 yards and 4 touchdowns in a 42-3 victory over Navy.
Hartman has above average arm strength and can make all the throws needed at the next level. He has exceptional vision and anticipation on his pre-reads, and his level of experience has made him comfortable calling out blitzes and coverage schemes pre-snap. He throws with a delicate touch at the right times and but has the arm strength to fire a ball into a tight window. He steps up in the pocket when he needs to and he makes positive plays on the run. His footwork is perhaps best in this class, in and out of the pocket. And Hartman is a leader on the field and off of it.
On the downside, the speed of the NFL may be too much for him to adjust to. He has a tendency to hold on to the ball a second too long when going through his progressions and his accuracy can be affected by the rush. At times, he puts the ball in bad spots for his receivers to gain yards after the catch and his throwing mechanics need some work. Finally, he has a penchant for throwing the ball high on normally easy plays.
Hartman is unquestionably an experienced leader and team player with the skill set to be an NFL backup. If he can play at the speed of the league, a solid NFL comparison on the high end may be New England’s starting quarterback Mac Jones. But he’s more likely projected as a serviceable reserve in the mold of Green Bay’s Sean Clifford.
Strengths
Pre-snap reads
Strong arm
Leadership skills
Good touch
Weaknesses
Holds the ball too long
Throwing mechanics
Ball placement
Better outside the pocket
Final Analysis
Sam Hartman is hoping he can cash his 6th year to help his draft stock. If he can lead Notre Dame to a big season, he can improve his stock, but Draft 412 still thinks he is in that “other” group of quarterbacks.
Draft 412 Draft Prediction - 4th round or 5th round