Notre Dame football injury update ahead of meeting with No. 1 Miami

SOUTH BEND — Notre Dame football will be without two key pieces of its defensive line tonight against top-ranked Miami.

Sixth-year defensive tackle Jason Onye and Pittsburgh transfer Francis Brewu, both listed as questionable this week with post-Navy knee issues, were ruled out officially in Notre Dame’s pregame announcement.

Onye and Brewu both left the 35-13 win over Navy in the first quarter. Onye had missed five straight games after suffering an ankle injury in the season-opening win over Wisconsin.

Also spotted before the game: Two-time captain and middle linebacker Drayk Bowen on crutches with an apparent hard cast on his injured right foot/ankle and injured cornerback DJ McKinney, out since the fourth quarter at BYU, with no apparent brace or warp on his injured right ankle.

Notre Dame is regaining the services of linebacker Kyngstonn Viliamu-Asa, who missed two of the past three games with a left thumb/wrist injury suffered on Oct. 3 at North Carolina.

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With Onye and Brewu out tonight, the Irish figure to learn more heavily on Oregon transfer Tionne Gray, USC transfer Elijah Hughes, senior starter Armel Mukam and Sean Sevillano Jr. at the defensive tackle spot.

Against Navy Mukam played 31 defensive snaps, followed by Gray (30), Sevillano Jr. (26), Hughes (23), Brewu (7) and Onye (5).  

Mike Berardino covers Notre Dame football for the South Bend Tribune and NDInsider.com. Follow him on social media @MikeBerardino.

This article originally appeared on South Bend Tribune: Notre Dame football injury update ahead of meeting with No. 1 Miami