Through Notre Dame’s first two games of the season, junior wide receiver Jordan Faison registered a combined 50 yards receiving. In the past two games, Faison has exploded for a combined 194 yards. His standout performances have helped steer their season back on track, and he isn’t planning to slow down anytime soon.
“I describe him in the quarterback room — he’s got like a lucky clover in his back pocket every time because he’s always in the right place. He’s always doing what he should do. Then, when you get the ball in his hands, the body control to make a guy miss, he’s always falling forward. It’s just Mr. consistent,” CJ Carr said of Faison after the Arkansas game.
Just a season ago, Faison was certainly consistent. However, his consistency looked different in the first round of the College Football Playoffs: Faison caught for a season-high 89 yards against Indiana. He stacked up three 25-yard games throughout the season and two 46-yard performances as well.
Now taking on a bigger role in offensive coordinator Mike Denbrock’s offense, Faison’s consistency has reached new heights. He’s no longer a supplementary target, but rather the go-to man in an offense that has strung together 24, 40, and 56 points twice to start the year. Faison has been Notre Dame’s leading receiver in both of their two wins and leads the team with 19 receptions. Faison was also the team’s second-leading passer against Arkansas. He earned that mark on a successful fake punt trick play for 40 yards called by Freeman to open up the second half.
“Yeah, it feels great,” Faison said of his development at Notre Dame’s weekly press conference. “Obviously been putting in work during the season and before the season. Kind of just going through the little things, going through the playbook and whatnot. All of our hard work we’ve put in being able to show is a good thing.”
Faison’s consistent play isn’t just evident in the passing game. The “lucky clover,” as Carr dubbed him, has also helped open up running lanes for the Irish’s star backfield tandem of Jeremiyah Love and Jadarian Price through tenacious blocking. Although 5-foot-10 and one of the smaller guys on the team, Faison is not shy to make his presence felt.
“Coach has a little competition with us. Whoever can get more might get a little dinner or something at the end of the season, but yeah, everyone has the mentality of going in there and trying to knock you down on your butt. I think that helps our offensive line and our run game develop and hit big plays,” Faison shared about helping in the blocking department.
Faison’s willingness to assist wherever needed, whether it’s in the run game, special teams or in his traditional role as a wideout, has sculpted him into one of the most versatile weapons Notre Dame has had in decades. It has also played a pivotal role in building trust with his teammates, as evident by Carr’s praise — and nickname — for Faison.
That trust hasn’t just randomly appeared on Saturdays. It’s been built brick by brick through months of practice, and is now finding its way onto the field.
“We’re all just developing. Everybody has got to be on the same plan to elevate as a room. That connection also goes with our quarterbacks as well and with CJ, having those reps over practice and building that trust and connection with our quarterback,” said Faison.
Carr isn’t the only person Faison has won the trust of. Head coach Marcus Freeman called Faison “competitive and consistent” after the Purdue game. “You know he’s going to be exactly where he needs to be,” he said
A dual-sport athlete, Faison understands what it takes to win. In his freshman year, he started all 17 games en route to the Irish’s NCAA lacrosse championship. Faison scored nine goals and dished out eight assists en route to the championship. Now serving as a major weapon on what appears to be Notre Dame’s most potent offense in recent memory, Faison has to harness the lessons he’s picked up as a national title winner to assist the football program’s effort to get over the hurdle for the first time since 1988.
He’s also been strategic in using the on-field lessons in lacrosse to make him a better football player. So far, the results have been clear.
Faison talked about how the two sports complement one another at last season’s Sugar Bowl media day, “They go hand in hand. Obviously, the athletic piece. They are both pretty good athletics. And taking pieces of being a receiver and having a defender in your face and seeing safeties moving is the same as having defenders in your face in lacrosse. You are dodging against that, and the defense behind them is sliding. They go hand in hand, and they both help me tremendously.”
Looking ahead, Faison is on pace to smash his career-high receiving yard total of 356. Sitting at 244 yards currently, it’s possible he can reach that mark with a big game this Saturday against Boise State. However, that’s not the focus for Faison. A team player, his eyes are fixated not on personal stats, but rather the Irish’s win column.
“We’re feeling good obviously, but we still have those two losses on the back of our minds. We’re going to use that as our motivation to keep on going. Nothing is guaranteed out here. No win is guaranteed. We have to work for every single one,” Faison said.
Luckily for Faison and the Irish, hard work is their bread and butter. After losing to NIU early last year, Notre Dame soared to the national championship game just months later. Placed once again in must-win territory after week two, Notre Dame knows the mentality it will take to reach the places they aspire to.
While uncertainty looms about whether the Irish can accomplish this formidable task, especially with outside factors in play, Faison has been a revelation. His ability to always break open provides the Irish with at least one constant.
That’s why CJ Carr’s “lucky clover” description isn’t just a nickname. It’s a fitting symbol for a playmaker who consistently provides Notre Dame with a level of dependability needed at this stage of the season. When the Irish need a play, they know exactly who has the luck — and the skill — to deliver.
