Listed measurements: 6-foot-3 ⅛, 260 pounds.
2023-24 year, eligibility: A fifth-year veteran, Osafo-Mensah has two seasons of eligibility remaining.
Depth Chart: If Osafo-Mensah does not start as Notre Dame’s “Big” end this season, he will be the 1B to Ohio State transfer Javontae Jean-Baptiste, and it might be more precise to call Osafo-Mensah the 1-A-B in that situation. Whichever starts, it may be an honor in name only, as a timeshare at the position would benefit everybody.
Recruiting: A consensus four-star prospect and All-American, Osafo-Mensah chose the Irish over his homestate power Texas. If you ask this scribe when Osafo-Mensah made that choice, the only answer would be, “Sometime in the summer, I was camping.”
At that time, the commitment was a big enough deal to find an internet connection to prepare for it. When Osafo-Mensah signed his National Letter of Intent, he was still the No. 9 weakside defensive end in the recruiting class, per rivals.com, but by the time the cycle had completely concluded, following Osafo-Mensah’s unimpressive All-American Bowl showing, he had fallen to be the No. 23 weakside defensive end in the country.
CAREER TO DATE
As most freshmen do, Osafo-Mensah preserved a year of eligibility in 2019, hardly a surprise When Notre Dame had five future NFL defensive ends on the roster, six if Justin Ademilola finds his way onto a 53-man roster by September. Then a lateral meniscus injury cost Osafo-Mensah the 2020 season.
Through no fault of his own, he had become an afterthought to many outside the program, and while Osafo-Mensah very much had his moments in the last two seasons, few were big enough highlights to change that perception, even if he spent the North Carolina matchup in 2021 making Tar Heels star quarterback Sam Howell’s life miserable.
2019: 2 games, both blowouts; 1 tackle.
2020: Torn meniscus.
2021: 12 games, 1 start; 13 tackles with 2.5 for loss including two sacks.
20222: 13 games; 14 tackles with one for loss, plus two quarterback hurries and a forced fumble.
NAME, IMAGE, LIKENESS
That first word is one that should be handled correctly and accurately for every person, let alone ones poised to make money off their names. So let’s defer to Osfao-Mensah on the proper pronunciation of his first name:
Checked with @NaNaOsafo2 : Proper spelling of his first name is “Nana.” Means “King” or “Mister” in Ghanaian. Middle name is Asare after his great-grandfather. #NDFootball
— Mike BerardinoNDI (@MikeBerardino) October 18, 2022
Now for making money off that moniker, Osafo-Mensah and a few teammates took advantage of a study abroad opportunity from the University to visit Ireland this summer. The veteran defensive end took the experience a step further, boosting the profiles of Aer Lingus and the Ireland Tourism Bureau and, presumably, receiving a bit of a profit himself.
What a time, What a place☘️ @AerLingus x @TourismIreland pic.twitter.com/qwRb1fzuHy
— NaNa Osafo-Mensah (@NaNaOsafo2) March 14, 2023
Especially with Notre Dame heading to Dublin in 57 days, this campaign had more pertinence than many NIL deals.
Let’s see what’s poppin in Dublin☘️ @AerLingus @TourismIreland pic.twitter.com/pmlXQb4zdz
— NaNa Osafo-Mensah (@NaNaOsafo2) March 11, 2023
QUOTES
Osafo-Mensah may have a better vantage point on the struggles of being a young player not seeing playing time than most veterans. Increasingly, that scenario leads to a transfer or life after graduating in four years.
Thus, Osafo-Mensah can relate to the younger half of the Irish roster (which, without counting players, is probably closer to a younger two-thirds) in a way others may not.
“He’s progressing fundamentally, but overall, as a leader, he’s emerging as one of the top leaders on defense,” defensive line coach Al Washington said this spring. “He has a talent in terms of communicating and the kids respond to him. To his credit, he’s embraced that.
“He’s progressing very, very nicely. I feel like he’s going to help us this year.”
WHAT WAS PROJECTED A YEAR AGO
“This space is making a habit of reminding its readership of veterans’ long-ago recruiting rankings, an irony given this space also refuses to delve into the dredges of recruiting coverage. Osafo-Mensah could become the poster child of both those stances.
“Osafo-Mensah’s recruitment was a high-profile affair back in the summer of 2018. He held offers from nine SEC programs, including Alabama, LSU and Georgia. While Texas pursued him, his hometown TCU was also joined by Texas A&M. Clearly, Osafo-Mensah projected as a collegiate talent to be feared.
“Yet years needed to pass before more than a third-string role was available for Osafo-Mensah. Recruiting rankings yield only so much.
“Regardless of that narrative, Osafo-Mensah’s minimal 2021 provides the best projection for his 2022. He did not actually play that much last season, but still Osafo-Mensah made 13 tackles with that pair of sacks, not to mention hassling quarterbacks a few additional times.
“The vague phrasing of “did not actually play that much last season” makes an exact projection more difficult, but if Ademilola spends more than half his time at Vyper end, then Osafo-Mensah could double or triple some of those stats in a true No. 2 role at ‘Big’ end.
“His strong spring game — 1.5 tackles for loss with half a sack — furthered that thinking. Osafo-Mensah still has the length and speed that made him a highly-touted prospect. Needing some time to get into collegiate shape is not cause for concern. In the long-term, neither is a meniscus injury. Osafo-Mensah should prove all that this fall.”
The crucial fourth-and-one stop was not NaNa Osafo-Mensah's first moment reasserting his talent this season.
— Douglas Farmer (@D_Farmer) October 9, 2022
We all, including the media, too quickly forget about once-heralded recruits when they don't produce for three years. That is not always a bad sign. https://t.co/etpo4H4VxS
2023 OUTLOOK
Osafo-Mensah has not had enough of a workload at any point to lead to a specific projection now. But let’s offer this thought, nonetheless: Osafo-Mensah has all the physical tools and, increasingly, the experience necessary to be in the top three among Notre Dame defenders in sacks and tackles for loss this season.
He regularly made plays last year. He rarely, if ever, made mistakes.
It’s that simple.
Recruiting rankings from five years ago are not a reason to believe in a player now, but they should also still serve as a reason to think a player could have more to offer than has yet been seen.
Needed to cut this one up real quick to make sure Nana Osafo-Mensah and JD Bertrand get some credit for the fourth-down stuff in addition to Jayson Ademilola. NOM holds his ground. Bertrand fills the hole. @insideNDsports
— Tyler James (@TJamesND) October 9, 2022
Extended highlights from @NDonNBC: https://t.co/SH1OKpoj00 pic.twitter.com/prvx8DRdrD
DOWN THE ROAD
A player from Texas finding a home in South Bend, Ind., should not have been assumed when Osafo-Mensah made that 2018 commitment. It should also not be assumed he wants to spend a sixth year in northwestern Indiana in 2024. Exhibit A: Ademilola’s departure for the NFL this winter despite having another season of eligibility remaining.
But if Osafo-Mensah wants to play a sixth year in a gold helmet, Notre Dame will certainly welcome him back in 2024.
It is hard to imagine he could so excel this season as to warrant NFL consideration. If he was already on that precipice, buzz would have begun this spring.
Today we celebrate Juneteenth#GoIrish☘️ pic.twitter.com/uC6GXXTu1t
— Notre Dame Football (@NDFootball) June 19, 2023
NOTRE DAME 99-TO-0
The summer countdown begins anew, Rylie Mills to Deion Colzie
No. 99 Rylie Mills, senior defensive tackle, moving back inside from end
No. 98 Devan Houstan, early-enrolled four-star defensive tackle
No. 97 Gabriel Rubio, junior defensive tackle, one of three Irish DTs with notable experience
No. 95 Tyson Ford, sophomore defensive tackle, up 30 pounds from a year ago
No. 93 Armel Mukam, incoming freshman defensive end, former Stanford commit
No. 92 Aidan Keanaaina, a senior defensive tackle now ‘fully healthy’ after a 2022 torn ACL
No. 91 Aiden Gobaira, sophomore defensive end, former four-star recruit
No. 88 Mitchell Evans, the next starter at ‘TE U
No. 87 Cooper Flanagan, incoming freshman tight end, four-star recruit
No. 84 Kevin Bauman, senior tight end coming off a torn ACL
No. 83 Jayden Thomas, junior receiver, probable No. 1 target in 2023
No. 79 Tosh Baker, senior tackle, again a backup but next year ...
No. 78 Pat Coogan, junior interior offensive lineman
No. 77 Ty Chan, sophomore offensive tackle, former four-star recruit
No. 76 Joe Alt, first-team All-American left tackle
No. 75 Sullivan Absher, incoming freshman offensive lineman
No. 74 Billy Schrauth, sophomore left guard, likely starter
No. 73 Andrew Kristofic, fifth-year right guard, likely starter
No. 72 Sam Pendelton, early-enrolled freshman offensive lineman
No. 70 Ashton Craig, sophomore interior offensive lineman
No. 68 Michael Carmody, senior offensive lineman
No. 65 Michael Vinson, sixth-year long snapper, four-year starter
No. 64 Joe Otting, incoming freshman offensive lineman, four-star recruit
No. 59 Aamil Wagner, sophomore offensive tackle
No. 56 Charles Jagusah, incoming freshman offensive lineman, four-star recruit
No. 56 Howard Cross, fifth-year defensive tackle, multi-year starter
No. 55 Chris Terek, incoming freshman offensive lineman, four-star recruit
No. 54 Blake Fisher, junior right tackle, second-year starter
No. 52 Zeke Correll, fifth-year center, third-year starter
No. 51 Boubacar Traore, incoming freshman defensive end, four-star recruit
No. 50 Rocco Spindler, junior offensive guard
No. 47 Jason Onye, junior defensive tackle on the verge of playing time
No. 44 Junior Tuihalamaka, sophomore defensive end, former linebacker
No. 42 Nolan Ziegler, sophomore linebacker, Irish legacy
No. 41 Donovan Hinish, sophomore defensive tackle following in his brother’s footsteps
No. 40 Joshua Burnham, sophomore linebacker-turned-Vyper end
No. 38 Davis Sherwood, junior fullback/H-back, former walk-on
No. 34 Drayk Bowen, early-enrolled freshman linebacker, baseball infielder
No. 32 Spencer Shrader, South Florida transfer kicker
No. 17 Brenan Vernon, incoming freshman defensive end, four-star recruit
No. 13 Holden Staes, sophomore tight end, up 20 pounds in a year
No. 12 Penn State RB transfer Devyn Ford gives Notre Dame newly-needed backfield depth, experience
No. 4 Rhode Island transfer safety Antonio Carter gives Notre Dame desperately needed backline depth