Notre Dame receiver Joe Wilkins Jr. is coming back for his fifth season of eligibility in 2022.

He made that announcement on Instagram on Tuesday:

 

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Wilkins was set to play a significant role for the Fighting Irish in 2022 before tearing his MCL against Cincinnati. Prior to his season-ending injury, he caught 4 passes for 61 yards and 1 touchdown.

That touchdown came in Notre Dame’s season-opening win over Florida State. It gave the Irish a lead late in the first half and was one of the most impressive touchdowns from a Notre Dame player all season:

If he’s able to come back healthy, that’s a potentially huge lift for a Notre Dame team that struggled to find consistent production at receiver last season. Kevin Austin was the only wide receiver to top 400 receivers yards last season as the passing game largely leaned on tight end Michael Mayer and running back Kyren Williams.

Notre Dame’s solutions to this problem will likely be internal. The Fighting Irish haven’t yet brought in any high-impact players at that position from the transfer portal, although that could change in the coming weeks.

For his career, Wilkins has 11 catches for 124 yards and 2 touchdowns.