How is Sam Hartman still in College? Exploring the NCAA career of Notre Dame QB

Notre Dame quarterback Sam Hartman has already earned a place in the hearts of Fighting Irish fans during his debut season at South Bend this year.

Hartman had previously spent the last five seasons playing for the Wake Forest Demon Deacons, where he went on to break several program records.

Given that Hartman has already played five seasons of college football, his current presence in CFB arena has become a prime subject of discussion.

How is Sam Hartman still playing college football?

Well, the answer to this is not quite as complex as you think.

Hartman accepted a scholarship to play for Wake Forest back in 2018 and was named the starting quarterback on the roster for his freshman year. He went on to play nine games and record 1,984 passing yards and 16 passing touchdowns.

Unfortunately, he suffered an injury while playing against Syracuse, which led him to miss out the rest of the season.

Duke's Mayo Bowl - Wake Forest v Wisconsin

When Hartman returned for his second year, he was named as the backup QB for Jamie Newman after a tough competition in training camp. The player only played in four games that season, which led to him redshirting in 2019. Thus he was able to preserve one year of eligibility in college football.

Additionally, because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the NCAA announced that the 2020 season of college football would not be counted when discussing the eligibility of any player. Thus, the 24-year-old quarterback was able to transfer to Notre Dame this year for his sixth year of college football.

Before making the transfer, Hartman established himself as one of the best quarterbacks in Wake Forest history. From 2018 to 2022, he put up 12,967 passing yards and 110 passing touchdowns for the Demon Deacons.

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Sam Hartman Notre Dame stats

Despite it being the debut season for the 24-year-old QB in Notre Dame, Sam Hartman has already made his presence felt on the field. He was named the starting QB for the Fighting Irish and has led the team in all five games they have played so far.

Sam Hartman was successful in leading the Irish to four straight victories during their 2023 campaign. However, their streak was broken by Ohio State in week 4, who defeated them 14-17.

So far, the player has put up 1,236 passing yards and 14 passing touchdowns, and fans have a lot of expectations from him as the season continues.