Even with Malachi Toney ruled out because of a high ankle sprain that requires surgery, Notre Dame is not treating Miami’s leading receiver like a guaranteed no-show just yet.
Former Notre Dame quarterback Brady Quinn said Thursday on 2 Pros and a Cup of Joe on Fox Sports Radio that he still isn’t fully buying the idea that Toney will miss Saturday’s game between the Hurricanes and Fighting Irish. Quinn pointed to the timing of the injury news and the fact that non-conference games do not fall under the ACC’s mandatory availability reporting rules.
“I’m still even skeptical,” Quinn said. “Like this is one of those things in college football where until I don’t see him on the field Saturday night, I will not believe it.”
Quinn, who played quarterback at Notre Dame from 2003 through 2006, suggested the late-week announcement could leave Notre Dame guessing until kickoff. Toney was injured in practice, and the news came out Wednesday after most of the week’s media access had already wrapped up.
“At this juncture of the week, player availability for the media is done, so it’s not even like you’ll get him later on today or something as media availability after practice,” Quinn said.
The ACC began requiring availability reports for conference games in 2025, with teams listing players as available, probable, questionable or out before kickoff. But that rule does not apply here, since this matchup is non-conference.
Still, Quinn’s suspicion runs into a major obstacle: Toney had surgery on Thursday.
Notre Dame coach Marcus Freeman is approaching the situation with the same kind of caution, even if Miami is preparing as though Toney will not play.
“We’ll see if he plays or not,” Freeman said Thursday. “We have to make sure we have a plan if he plays, if he doesn’t, we’ll adjust.”
For now, Notre Dame is leaving the door open just enough to account for Toney, even with the Hurricanes expecting to be without him.
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