Notre Dame QB Riley Leonard was forced to leave the Orange Bowl late in the second quarter after he was driven to the ground.
Leonard got hit as he threw the ball and the back of his head hit the turf. Leonard was a bit shaky when he got up and was immediately noticed by an official who signaled for Leonard to be checked out on the sideline. The QB was immediately escorted into Notre Dame’s medical tent.
Riley Leonard went into the medical tent for a possible head injury after taking this hit late in the second quarter.
Leonard was replaced by backup QB Steve Angeli. pic.twitter.com/PAd4UtuNe3
— ESPN (@espn) January 10, 2025
Steve Angeli replaced Leonard with the Irish trailing 10-0.
Leonard’s exit came as Notre Dame offensive lineman Rocco Spindler was treated by training staff. Spindler was the second offensive lineman to leave the game because of injury after starting left tackle Anthonie Knapp got rolled up on and suffered an apparent left ankle injury. Knapp was walking gingerly on the sidelines and had not returned to the game after his injury.
Leonard was 6-of-11 passing for 43 yards and an interception before the hit. Angeli led Notre Dame to a field goal before the end of the half to cut Penn State’s halftime lead to 10-3. At the start of halftime, coach Marcus Freeman said he didn’t have an update on Leonard’s status and said that Notre Dame would have fewer designed QB runs going forward if Leonard would be unable to return.
