how does everyone think stanley does in the nfl over the next couple years? http://www.si.com/nfl/2016/04/18/nfl-draft-rankings-scouting-reports-ronnie-stanley
@AdamSchefter After medical rechecks, Notre Dame's Jaylon Smith is not expected to play in 2016 and teams are unsure when he will play again, per sources.
Feel bad for Jaylon. But IMO this is a walking billboard for ND. Best player in draft and could possibly never be the same after one lame cheap shot. Guy will graduate hopefully and do fine for himself
None other than ND turncoat, Taylor Decker. Fitting he committed the crime. As for Jaylon, I still hope he gets his shot in 2017. I didn't think he'd have a shot to play in 2016, but you hate hearing this talk about "not sure when he'll play again." In tangential, but related news, it sounds like Myles Jack also has ongoing concerns about his knee after his injury. Talk about a bad year for injuries to top prospects.
Tale of the Tape Spoiler Tim Prister’s Tale of the Tape TIM PRISTER 9:56 AM When it comes down to choosing which quarterback is the best fit, it’s really very simple: Which of Kizer and Zaire gives Notre Dame the best chance to win? KIZER VS. ZAIRE, ZAIRE VS. KIZER Matt Cashore / Irishillustrated.com With spring practice coming to a close and Brian Kelly declaring that Malik Zaire has evened up the race heading into the summer, Irish Illustrated puts a bow on the competition for now with as objective of an analysis as possible. No favorites due to personal likes and dislikes. No favoritism toward one over another because of preconceived notions and “cheering” for one over another. Just a one-on-one analysis with the winner being the one who gives Notre Dame the best chance to win, which ultimately is the bottom line. (Editor’s note: Let the record show that during the Blue-Gold Game, a person in the stands sitting behind me said, “There’s my guy, Brandon Wimbush. That’s who I want to win the job.” Wimbush, a very exciting prospect, has no mastery of the offense, and thus, he’s not in the running for the job. More on the talented but not ready Wimbush to follow.) As it relates to Kizer vs. Zaire, here’s how I see it: Kizer is a technician. He takes pride in knowing the offense, where everyone should be lined up, what play gives the offense the best chance to succeed, and how to create a mismatch by checking into plays that leave the defense vulnerable. Zaire is a grip-it-and-rip-it quarterback. He thrives on a high motor and playing in an attack mode. He wants to overcome the opposition with sheer will and energy. When it doubt, let it fly. When it doubt, run away from everyone. He has the ability to bail the Irish out of a lot of bad plays. Kizer is measured. He has the ability to see and check into more advantageous plays. Zaire doesn’t use the play clock like Kizer does. He wants to attack a reeling defense and keep the opposition on its heels. Both, depending on the situation, can give an offense an advantage. Kizer is a quiet leader; Zaire plays on high emotion. With Kizer you know what you’re getting; with Zaire, his calling card is the element of surprise. Kizer can rip it, but he’ll beat you with a touch pass. Zaire can finesse it sometimes, but he’d rather rip your heart out with a bullet. Kizer’s relationships are calm one-on-ones; Zaire rallies the masses and attracts relationship through high-energy motivation. Kizer ad-libs to keep the drive alive; Zaire ad-libs to cut the defense’s heart out. Kizer has struggled in the red zone; Zaire is a react on the fly guy whose sheer athleticism gives him a better chance to succeed in the red zone by creating chaos for the opposition. Kizer knows where everyone should be and the corresponding adjustment; Zaire would rather beat you to the punch than wait for something to develop. When in doubt, Kizer looks for the more advantageous play and checks down; when in doubt, Zaire rifles a pass in a small window. Kizer is, for the most part, an accurate passer. Zaire plays with a damn the torpedoes approach. Kizer shows touch; Zaire shows a cannon. Kizer is the picture of poise; Zaire is the picture of intensity. Kizer is in control of the time on the clock; Zaire wants to speed up time. Okay, maybe that’s pretty subjective. It’s an interpretation of approaches and personalities as well as a physical analysis. But at the end of the day, extrapolating those impressions and applying them to the type of quarterback Brian Kelly appears to prefer, he’s going to choose the technician over the attack-at-all-costs quarterback. He’s going to choose the quarterback more inclined to complete 60 percent of his passes and move the chains as opposed to big-play guy with the greater margin for error. NBC analyst Ross Tucker – trying to remain objective without declaring a winner – summed it up best. “All the pre-snap stuff, the poise and the comfort level, I think Kizer is a little ahead of Zaire,” Tucker said. Kelly said all the right things after the Blue-Gold Game to leave the competition open-ended. But when it comes time to make a decision, which is four months than now, he’s going to be more inclined to choose Kizer over Zaire. The comfort zone Kizer offers will carry more weight than Zaire’s quick-strike, game-breaking ability because Kizer does a better job of reducing mistakes. SHAUN CRAWFORD Matt Cashore / Irishillustrated.com The red-shirt freshman cornerback/nickel back played in a green jersey to indicate that he was not to be hit. Crawford, on the other hand, was in attack mode in the Blue-Gold Game. He’s aggressive, has a great feel for the opposition and plays an intelligent brand of football without sacrificing aggressiveness. He is a weapon as a nickel because he has all the physical tools to defend inside receivers, who can use a break right or left to get open. Crawford’s outstanding athleticism and make-up speed allows him to defend in wide-open spaces. Crawford will blitz off the edge, but he’ll also diagnose a play and position himself to make a tackle. At 5-foot-8 ½, 180 pounds, he is as physical as any player on the defense pound-for-pound. He is a complete football player, minus ideal size, although that size plays into his tremendous athleticism. “It seems like no matter what the play is, Crawford knows what’s coming and keys and diagnoses it very quickly,” Tucker said. That’s easier to do in a Blue-Gold Game where most the offensive pyrotechnics are kept in their wrappers for when it counts. But Crawford understands technique, angles and tendencies. If you’re looking for potential stars on the 2016 team, this guy is – along with a few others -- at the top of the list. KEVIN STEPHERSON Matt Cashore / Irishillustrated.com From the start of spring drills right through the Blue-Gold Game, the early-entry freshman was impressive. He consistently caught the football – the deep teardrop pass by Kizer that Stepherson dropped not withstanding – right up there with Torii Hunter Jr. He runs good routes. He was open all spring. The quarterbacks seem to find him when he’s open and he rarely misses on an opportunity. We saw what Kelly was talking about with regard to catching the ball at full speed on a second-half reception from Wimbush. This is a real quality prospect. He needs to get stronger in the lower body to withstand the rigors of the game, but he’ll be ready to make an impact this fall. We also got a chance to see his free-and-easy punt-catching skills. Of course, there was no thought of a return as dictated by the rules of the Blue-Gold Game format. We’ll see how he handles it in front of 80,000 people live if C.J. Sanders hasn’t completely overcome his hip issue by this fall. But he looks like a nice alternative, at least as it pertains to catching the football. DEXTER WILLIAMS Matt Cashore / Irishillustrated.com Williams’ overall performance – 13 carries for 43 yards – was evaluated mostly by his 16-yard touchdown run in which he showed his power by breaking tackle attempts from linebacker Josh Barajas and safety Max Redfield. (He also benefitted greatly on the touchdown run via blocks from left guard Trevor Ruhland on undersized Elijah Taylor and center Sam Mustipher on nose tackle Daniel Cage.) Kelly talked earlier in the week about Williams’ downhill running style. He used his burst and power on the touchdown run. Except for one other run, he was mostly stymied by the scrum-like in-fighting up front. This is an exciting addition to the running back mix with Tarean Folston and Josh Adams. There’s a role for Williams as a five-carry-a-game running back in ’16 with a chance to expand his role if he can continue to show effectiveness as a downhill runner, particularly in short-yardage situations. If Folston returns completely healthy, which he should, and Adams builds upon last year’s quality play, which he should, there will be games Williams doesn’t get his touches. But at least he’s in play whereas last year, he would have needed another injury in the backfield to get playing time. BRANDON WIMBUSH Matt Cashore / Irishillustrated.com Irish fans should be excited about the future of Brandon Wimbush. The kid has a cannon and is a devastating athlete. To say he has the best arm among the quarterbacks, as Kelly did, says a great deal because Zaire is the equivalent of a left-handed closer that throws 95 miles per hour. Wimbush has a free-and-easy throwing motion that allows him to throw the ball out of the stadium, but he has more touch than Zaire. Wimbush has outstanding vision as a runner with the escapability to match. He has a built-in radar that allows him to avoid contact as a runner. He has the potential to be a nightmare for opposing defenses. His sheer athleticism will make him difficult to contain. He’s not ready to be the starting quarterback at Notre Dame today and probably not this fall. Kizer and Zaire are way ahead in terms of mastery of the offense, particularly Kizer. His time will come. But it’s best if he preserves a year – provided Kizer and Zaire stay healthy – and continue the process of learning how to run the offense as opposed to relying almost completely on his athletic skills. OFFENSIVE LINE Matt Cashore / Irishillustrated.com The offensive line exits the spring in great shape at left tackle (Mike McGlinchey), left guard (Quenton Nelson) and right tackle (Alex Bars), although Bars looked a little anxious at times in the Blue-Gold Game and lost the great balance we saw from him the previous Saturday in a two-hour open practice. It was difficult to fully assess Sam Mustipher this spring, at least from the outside looking in. But after adding the Blue-Gold Game evaluation with his match-up against Cage, it’s even more encouraging. Mustipher is, to summarize, an intelligent brawler. He picked up the offense/checks rapidly this spring. The battle with Tristen Hoge probably wasn’t as close as Harry Hiestand diplomatically assessed a couple of weeks ago. Mustipher will just keep getting better and better. The right guard position is a concern. Hunter Bivin had balance issues in the Blue-Gold Game. Too much lunging and flopping around, which were issues with his predecessor, Steve Elmer. The difference was that Elmer was a power run blocker who usually overwhelmed defensive linemen when he bulled his way forward with strength and pad level. Bivin has neither Elmer’s power nor pad level in the run game. Colin McGovern remains an option but may lack the combination power/athleticism to move beyond relief pitcher status. There is no margin for error at tackle. The alternative this fall will be Tommy Kraemer and/or Liam Eichenberg. PLAYER SNAPSHOTS Nyles Morgan will be a much more effective blitzer from the Mike linebacker position than a banged up Joe Schmidt could be in 2015. We saw in the Blue-Gold Game why there’s concern with Drue Tranquill playing safety on the hash as opposed to a box safety. When Chris Finke got the edge on a deep ball from Zaire, Tranquill committed, to use Kelly’s words, a panic PI (pass interference). Anything in front of Tranquill is right in his wheelhouse; anything behind him is the area where he needs considerable improvement. Max Redfield’s performance in the Blue-Gold Game is the type of productivity the Irish need from a starting safety. That was a quality overall performance. Credit to Devin Studstill who filled beautifully on a Zaire keeper to dump him for a short gain. He didn’t play tentatively for an early-entry freshman. His body control and ball skills are better than Redfield’s, probably by a substantial margin. Torii Hunter Jr. is on the star list with Shaun Crawford. Tons of credit to Equanimeous St. Brown for taking a monster hit from Daniel Cage, suffering a physical setback (left shoulder), and coming back into the game to make a reception. The Irish don’t know what they have until St. Brown can get stronger and avoid injury. Daniel Cage could be a force. He won’t be a consistent force until he works himself into tremendous condition. Until he does, stamina will be an issue. His development is critical because right now, he’s in a three-man tackle/nose rotation with Jarron Jones and Jerry Tillery. Jones may rotate at nose and tackle, which means Cage’s work volume has to improve. (Note: Isaac Rochell slipped inside with Jones, bumping Tillery to an end position on a 3rd-and-short early in the scrimmage.) The jury is still out on Andrew Trumbetti as a three-down player. He needs to have an outstanding summer in the weight room. It wasn’t a big day for Alizé Jones in the pass-catching department, although he did snag three passes for 27 yards. The most impressive aspect of Jones’ Blue-Gold Game was his willingness to scrap as a blocker. Bend at the knees, maintain balance and then work like crazy to occupy a defender. If Jones simply does that, while adding off-season strength, he’ll contribute as an open-field blocker. In-line blocking will take some more time. It was a noteworthy spring for Josh Barajas, although a couple of missed tackles in the Blue-Gold Game indicate he needs to get stronger and more determined. Nice improvement this spring by Cole Luke as a physical run defender. That role is critical with the loss of KeiVarae Russell. Avery Sebastian has difficulty against the pass, which we knew coming in. His hip turn defending the ball is methodical. He is a physical, instinctive run defender, however, which gives him a shot at a role. It’s Nyles Morgan’s turn, sink or swim. He’s still going to miss run fits, which is always worse than missing tackles. (A missed tackle slows the runner and allows for help; a missed run fit keeps the running back charging unimpeded and leads to big plays.) Morgan is a legit prospect. Now he just needs to play and benefit from his experiences. Asmar Bilal is a helluva prospect. He attacked run fits in the Blue-Gold Game and was around the football. He’s also the No. 3 Will linebacker with a healthy Te’von Coney and Greer Martini. His role could shift to Sam linebacker long-term, which is exciting. He will be a starter for Notre Dame one day, but it won’t be in ’16 if those ahead of him stay healthy. James Onwualu rarely will come off the field. He is the brain center of Brian VanGorder’s operation. Jerry Tillery is a four-gear player who plays in third gear a majority of the time. He needs to improve his motor. His predecessor, Sheldon Day, played in fifth gear on every snap. The Irish will not be able to crease gaps at the three-technique like Day did on a consistent basis in ’15. That’s very limiting in VanGorder’s scheme. The promise of Jay Hayes is balanced out by the fact he is and always will be a tweener – part three-technique, part defensive end. It is imperative that he is in outstanding condition come August so he can maximize the motor and energy he offers. He played at 285 this spring. He’d be more effective at end if he were 275. Jonathan Bonner also is a tweener, which means what applies to Hayes also applies to him. Jacob Matuska can be an asset as an in-line blocker. Durham Smythe remains a bit of an unknown with the most complete skill set (including in-line blocker) among the tight ends. It may be too early/too soon for Miles Boykin this fall. But there’s a quality receiver in there. Still don’t know about Corey Holmes. Just keep working hard and developing. He needs to narrow the gap between his football speed and his track speed. For more on individual performances from the Blue-Gold Game, check out Saturday’s Snap Judgments.
I did not hear a whole lot about martini this spring, was he hurt or just not in the mix that much? Where is he suppose to play? sam?
Finally got some time to watch the game. We are going to be so fun to watch on offense and so hard to watch on defense
In the Tale of the Tape I think Prister puts forth the simplistic comparison of Zaire/Kizer as wild-conservative, athletic-cerebral because thats the easy, cute way to write an article. Maybe its just me but it almost seems as if he's advancing the idea that Kizer is a slightly better Tommy Rees and Zaire is a more athletic Everett Golson and Kelly has to pick his poison. In my mind Kizer is the same type of athlete as Zaire (maybe a step slower or a mph slower on the ball) who is currently more capable of running a complete offense. He certainly made tough throws downfield and made defenses gameplan against his rushing threat, so I'm not sure why those areas are viewed as relative weaknesses in the article. I am excited about the idea of Zaire in the red zone, but will it truly be a quantum leap over Kizer or just the thrill of the unknown compared to the mediocrity we have grown tired of seeing? Seems to me that with another off season of preparation in the system, the competition will not be as close as Kelly made it out to be. All that Kizer accomplished in Zaire's absence was done with little first team preparation or experience. Zaire brings a lot to the table and will certainly be a fine starter, I just think Kizer is the more polished, well-rounded, complete player at the position.
Alumni lottery application email came in last night: $75 for Nevada $150 for Michigan State $85 for Duke $125 for Stanford $150 for Miami $85 for Virginia Tech $115 - $45 for Army (Shamrock) $150 for @ Texas $100 for @ USC
"Notre Dame's Shamrock Series will likely take a break in 2017 but resume in 2018, AD Jack Swarbrick told me today at the CFP spring meetings. The stadium renovation project should be done in time for 2017 so Swarbrick wants to "maximize the number of home games" that year. This year the Irish will play Army on Nov. 12 as part of the series, which has relocated a home game to a major city every year since 2009." -Heather Dinich, ESPN
I haven't been following recruiting very much, basically relying of you guys for my info. But I saw the buzz on Kaindoh after he visited us this past weekend was he was going to Maryland. Even Loy crystal balled him to Maryland. Now the kid comes out and releases a top 4 of ND, PSU, Michigan, Ohio state. Is that just a move to honey dick everyone? I dont have a subscription to any site, so someone fill me in. I'm putting out the bat signal for a1ND and Robdog_5
Apparently 5 people flipped their crystal ball predictions to ND today. Seems to indicate good news for us given his announcement timing just after his visit.
Seems highly unlikely he commits to ND. Would think he ends up at OSU given how things go lately but the good news here is that basically everyone can stop following recruiting if this takes place. Fucking fake out top 4? What is that?
The kid hasn't said he is going to announce next week. Wiltfong just said he heard through sources that he might announce The analysts could just be way fuckin off on the kid. Certainly wouldn't be the first time.
just to go full offseason mode: ranking the position groups by how i perceive the starters and depth Starters: 1 Special Teams 2 Runningback 3 Quarterback 4 Cornerbacks 5 Offensive Line 6 Defensive Line 7 Wide Receivers 8 Linebacker 9 Safety Depth: 1 Quarterback 2 Runningback 3 Cornerbacks 4 Defensive Line 5 Offensive Line 6 Wide Receivers 7 Special Teams 8 Linebacker 9 Safety
Kaindoh legitimately wants to be a Dr. So I think he's a real student. That bodes well for ND. I have zero idea of what Maryland has or doesn't have as far as education so I won't pretend to know or even compare. The kid hasn't seemed to be much about attention so who knows if he would pull the old 4 hats on table and then bring one out from under trick. Who knows, these guys are 17-18 yrs old and I've worked with kids this age for last 10 years. They are hard to understand
Here is an update from ISD: I have talked to a couple people since last night in the industry or connected to IMG. There is a thinking in the industry it's a fake list and Maryland is very much a player, however, everyone agrees it's weird because Kaindoh doesn't seem like that type of kid. I know some close to Kaindoh feel Notre Dame did make a major move this weekend. Another interesting thing that I heard was that one school (NOT Notre Dame) is a school Kaindoh doesn't like at all, so I don't know if that furthers the "fake list" rumors or is just a school he wanted to list to list. That's all I know at this point. my comments on this - this is a very strange recruitment...dude is not a public look at me kind of guy. he barely does interviews and in general keeps all of his comments pretty even. I don't think anyone got a direct quote from him out after his visit to ND...i hate to say this, but it almost seemed like someone hacked his twitter account and posted that and left maryland off to get a rise out of everyone...who really knows at this point but i am happy that he visited ND and from those around him, people are saying that he liked it quite a bit. would be pretty surprised if he doesn't come back for an OV no matter what happens between now and before he early enrolls
Get ready for douche chills... On the other hand I'd rather have 85 arrogant douchebags than a bunch of guys that would rather play congressman or strike out with ugly chicks in Ireland.
Intel Spoiler ISD Intel (4/22) Well-established head coaches with proven track records of success tend to have a great number of characteristics in common. One of those is strong beliefs in their system and their way of doing things. That is often seen – right or wrong – as stubbornness. Notre Dame head coach Brian Kelly may be stubborn in some areas, but even after 23 years of being a college head coach, it’s clear Kelly is open to any ideas he thinks can improve his program and further develop him as a coach. As a staff here at Irish Sports Daily, we had the chance to sit in on Notre Dame’s Coaches Clinic last weekend and as always, we learned plenty. Understandably, Notre Dame asks us not to reveal the X-and-O-type stuff we hear in meetings, but the program did give us permission to go ahead and comment on our feelings on the staff after getting a glimpse of them in their element. Kelly’s keynote presentation was on balancing art and science to gain a competitive edge and proved nothing is untouchable – or at least untweakable – not even his most well-known credo, which is in the process of being paired with technology to be improved. Regardless of the setting and speaker, it can be easy to brush off some of the philosophical talks from coaches, especially with college coaches, whose success is often determined by recruiting more than anything else. But five years after initially hearing Kelly’s ideal pillars for success, it’s perfectly clear he’s built Notre Dame into the kind of program he talked about creating when he arrived in South Bend. It’s not just lip service and it’s a major reason why the team has been able to withstand much of the adversity it’s been dealt in recent years. Kelly hasn’t reached the ultimate goal of winning a national championship yet, but it’s obvious his system is in the market for more tweaks than changes. The head coach wants to learn, wants to get better and isn’t intimidated by incorporating cutting edge solutions of doing so. In our opinion, Kelly has improved his program immensely with his recent assistant coaching hires. The new younger coaches on the staff – Autry Denson, Mike Sanford and Todd Lyght – all bring a sense of energy, vigor and swagger to the program while Harry Hiestand and Keith Gilmore are steadying presences who have had absolutely no problem relating to their current players and the ones they’re recruiting. The coaches are confident in what they’re teaching – either because they’ve had success teaching it or because they’ve had success actually doing it in the cases of Denson and Lyght. We have no idea when Denson is going to escape the comparisons to his predecessor, but while we imagine it could be annoying to constantly be judged against somebody else, there seem to be plenty of reasons for Denson to embrace the comparisons between himself and Tony Alford. Denson has done as well – if not better – as a recruiter in his early days with the program and the on-field production of the running backs was at an extremely high level last season. But maybe just as important, Denson has assumed Alford's crucial role of being a source of comfort for his guys off the field. Denson’s players love him and part of that is surely because he loves them back and feels comfortable involving them in his life, including his family life. He relates to them well and the mutual respect there is obvious. Denson demands toughness from his players and grades them on film as such, but at the same time, he has an appreciation for the hard work that is put in in order to achieve success and doesn’t mind them expressing themselves on the field when it’s called for because he sees that as evidence of being passionate about the game. Denson isn't going to settle for anything less than greatness from himself or his players. It can often be difficult for great players to become great coaches, but Lyght has embraced the most important part of that transition. The two-time All-American, National Champion, All-Pro, Super Bowl champion understands not all – if any – of his players will be able to do what he did physically on the field. But that doesn’t mean his guys can’t be elite players and, in turn, an elite unit and he has a plan for them to be exactly that. He knows what steps need to be made – or literally not made – in order to adjust based on each player’s individual athletic abilities. You hear about tips and tricks at defensive back as much as any other position on the field, and rest assured, Lyght knows them. He has simple, if not easy, ways to make his players more efficient in their play. Lyght has an ability to keep his critiques light and you can tell his room has a good time when he’s correcting players. And make no mistake, Lyght believes in his players, especially the young ones. One youngster caused Lyght to shout “Woo Hoo! I’m glad he’s with us,” when showing a certain clip. But his own personal playing history isn’t the only thing on Lyght’s résumé. The time he spent with Chip Kelly at Oregon and the Philadelphia Eagles may have been brief, but he learned a lot about philosophy and demanding effort during that period. Sanford has the reputation among recruits of being a “cool guy.” Well, it’s not an act. If it was, kids would see right through that. He doesn’t try to be what he’s not and the way he acts on the recruiting trail is likely the same way he acts in his meeting rooms because it's pretty clear that's the way he is. He’s young, but he’s the son of a coach and has already had the chance to be exposed to many different offensive philosophies in his short career, which has led to an unusual level of understanding systems. As an offensive coordinator, he knows exactly who and what he wants to attack and doesn’t have any issues explaining that to his players. Brian VanGorder, Mike Denbrock, Hiestand and Gilmore are the veterans for the staff. VanGorder and Denbrock are commanding figures in different ways. Both guys easily take over a room when they begin speaking, but VanGorder is smoother than you would expect and Denbrock has fire in him that would probably surprise many Notre Dame fans. VanGorder is keenly aware of the pressures that come with coaching at Notre Dame, but he has a clear confidence about him that players gravitate toward. It's not an arrogance. It's more like conviction in what he believes in in terms of his philosophy. Many might be surprised to learn how open he is to changing and tweaking things within what he likes to do with his defense or how he has continued to learn and adjust from his experiences at various stops coaching at the college and NFL levels. With Denbrock, it's obvious he has an understanding of the complete picture when it comes to coaching offensive football. Although we know he has been a successful receivers coach during this time at Notre Dame under Brian Kelly, some of that offensive line coach mentality really comes through in his personality. It's undeniable someone like him would be a good recruiter after hearing him speak. There aren't too many others who could flip from philosophy to strategy to cracking a joke like him. He might be voted as Coach You Would Most Like To Talk X's & O's With While Enjoying An Adult Beverage. With Hiestand and Gilmore, they are so different, but still similar. Both are perfectly happy with their roles coaching the offensive and defensive lines respectively. Many assistant coaches are looking for that next job or trying to find a way up to be a coordinator or head coach. With these two, it's clear there’s nothing they would rather be doing than coaching their guys. Both are passionate about their crafts. Emphasizing working together, setting high standards and kicking butt were constants during Hiestand’s talk. Everything about him oozed offensive line coach and it's obvious why what he demands from his players is so often delivered. His players are not just accountable to him, but to each other. With that sense of community amongst his players, it's no wonder so many top offensive line recruits want to come play for him and with the rest of the offensive linemen at Notre Dame. While Hiestand is a bit more direct and to the point, the word that would best describe Gilmore would be cool. This is a man who can walk into a room and relate to just about anyone. The way he approaches everything is completely genuine and he had the group of coaches focused on the techniques he was teaching one minute and then cracking up with a joke the next. He took a lot of pride in his players performing what he asked of them and the examples he used of players learning new things were as exciting to him as they were to all of the other coaches in attendance. They are different, but both are sticklers for the details of their positions and Notre Dame is fortunate to have two guys this passionate about their roles and so good at communicating as teachers. One final thing that really stood out about the staff as a whole is that the coaches really like their players. Not just personally, they like the talent on this roster. There were multiple examples on film of guys making plays they weren’t designed to make and the common refrain was, ‘Good players make me a better coach.’ The coaches on the staff are secure enough in themselves to throw the credit to the players’ way whenever they can and you get the sense they believe that could be often in the years to come. FROM THE BUSHES:Even before Wednesday night’s release of his top four, Notre Dame felt it had a legitimate shot at elite 2017 IMG defensive endJosh Kaindoh. But like just about everybody, the had to have been shocked by the absence of the home state school as we got the feeling they believed it was a Notre Dame-Maryland battle. Instead, the Irish were joined by Michigan, Ohio State and Penn State on the list. We heard the elite defender has thought about possibly holding off on a decision in order to give his parents a chance to see Notre Dame. Will that happen? We'll see. If he delays it long enough for a return trip, that would obviously be a huge indicator that Notre Dame’s read here is correct. Regardless, Kaindoh has been in very good communication with Notre Dame since the visit and seems more engaged than ever, which is already a positive sign. The parents are going to be key, but it’s also now very clear Kaindoh isn’t going to be afraid of making his own choice even if it’s surprising to some. Junior Highlights More on Kaindoh below Notre Dame really likesHezekiah Jones, which is evident by the fact the Irish extended an offer to the 2017 Baylor wide receiver commit during his visit last weekend. After hosting him, the feeling is Jones is definitely a Notre Dame kid. The Irish love his film. The Texan has the kind of speed Notre Dame is looking for in replacing Will Fuller. It’s going to be important for Notre Dame to stay on him this next month or so, especially after he hits the West Coast this weekend. Either way, right now, the kid is seriously considering Notre Dame. Junior Highlights Notre Dame also feels it’s in it withJaylen Kelly-Powell. The 2017 Michigan safety was completely engaged during his visit to South Bend last weekend and things seem to be trending in the right direction here. Lyght stopped at Cass Tech yesterday and Kelly-Powell was making arrangements to have his parents in the building to meet him. Kelly-Powell wants to bring his parents with him to South Bend soon so they can get a look at what he’s seen during his visits. If that happens, that could be the kind of turning point that could push the Irish to the top of his list. Junior Highlights Some may not consider the Irish as serious contenders for Kelly-Powell’s teammate, elite 2017 wide receiverDonovan Peoples-Jones, but Notre Dame certainly believes it has a shot, at least based on his demeanor with them. Peoples-Jones is always very polite and responsive when he’s around the Notre Dame staff. The Irish obviously understand the competition will be stiff with the regional powers and other national schools in the mix, but they believe they’re there. Junior Highlights At this point, the only thing everybody seems to agree on with elite 2016 athleteDemetris Robertsonis that it’s going to be over soon…we hope. Robertson is still on track to make his decision on Monday, May 2nd with Georgia, Georgia Tech, Notre Dame and Cal still the schools who seemed to be in the best shape. We’ve been pretty pessimistic on Robertson for a while now, but – while we’re not exactly optimistic at this point – it does seem there’s been at least some encouraging contact of late. It shouldn’t be a surprise for anybody who has followed this recruitment to learn that there’s likely to be at least a couple more twists along the way, which could include at least one more visit to one of the schools on his list, although we haven’t heard of any plans being nailed down to return to South Bend. We’re still thinking Georgia here, but Notre Dame isn’t giving up. The Notre Dame coaches hit the road yesterday and will be out until the end of next month, so there should be plenty of action on the recruiting trail over the next few weeks. SECRET WEAPON WITH KAINDOH:As we reported during Saturday’s Blue-Gold Game in South Bend, Kaindoh spent a large portion of the contest speaking with Dr. Brian Ratigan, M.D., who has been the head of orthopedic sports medicine for the Notre Dame football team for eight years. Ratigan won four monograms as a linebacker for the Irish from 1989-1992 before playing three years in the NFL with the Indianapolis Colts. Forgive the medical analogy, but it wouldn’t take a brain surgeon to realize Ratigan would be a good person for Kaindoh to speak with during his visit. “Josh is one of those guys who can go wherever he wants, he’s that good and he’s an even better kid,” IMG Academy head coach Kevin Wright told us earlier this week. “He’s a tremendous student. He wants to go to Med School and he wants to be a surgeon. I know he enjoyed having the opportunity to talk with the doctor and hear a little bit about the experience of going from being a college football player to being an orthopedic surgeon. That’s something that really intrigues him and intrigues me too.” Obviously we couldn’t hear the content of the conversation, but it caught our eyes early and it seemed pretty clear Kaindoh was engaged throughout. “He’s really concerned about the academic component and where he best fits as a student-athlete probably as much as anybody I’ve been around in my coaching career who has that type of athletic ability,” Wright said. “He’s not as wild about the name as he is in regard to what the name stands for and what potential he has from an academic standpoint to achieve.” Wright recalled a recent conversation of his own with Kaindoh. While they were eating, the five-star defender began talking about his Anatomy and Physiology classes. “He started getting into bone density and different things,” the coach laughed. “At some point, it went over my head. He’s pretty special.” Kaindoh came to IMG from a small private school in Maryland. “The second year at IMG has been a good growing experience for him,” Wright said. “I think he feels pretty good about being able to graduate in December and walk on campus wherever that may be and have the experience to play right away or at least compete right away.” After spending the weekend with him in South Bend, Wright wasn’t surprised by the lack of a commitment from Kaindoh this week, but believes a decision could come relatively soon. “I know he’s said he wants to commit before school is out, so I think that still gives him a little bit of time,” the coach said. “But I told him, ‘Don’t feel pressured. You’ll know when you know.’ The rumors and things are funny. “He’s a kid who is a very sincere kid. He’s going to weigh all of the right things. Ultimately, he’s going to make the decision that’s best for him. I know the things that are important to him are all of the right things. We’re going to support him in whatever his decision is.” SMITH CONFIDENT IN ND LB's FUTURES:Earlier this week, Jaylon Smith let us get aglimpse into his last three seasonsand NFL Draft prep. The 2015 Butkus Award winner was also pretty excited about the path he has paved for Nyles Morgan and Te'von Coney. Smith believes both players are ready for the next step and know it’s their time. “I took them under my wing since they got here,” said Smith. “I tried to show them the ropes and how to be great. I just want them to be legendary. That’s something I am proud to have accomplished, forever to be a legend at Notre Dame. “I think they will do great. I have a lot of confidence in them. They know so much from being under Joe (Schmidt) and I. For them, it’s about putting it into game form now.” NFL FUTURES:With the 2016 NFL Draft less than a week away, we checked in withNFL Draft Bible’s Rick Serritellafor some details on Notre Dame’s draft prospects. Ronnie Stanley:A lot of draft experts and mock drafts have Ole Miss' Laremy Tunsil coming off the board as the first offensive lineman in next week’s Draft. However, don’t count Stanley out as teams have made trades for quarterbacks, which opens the door to some teams that might like him more than Tunsil. “I think there is a lot about Tunsil,” Serritella said of NFL teams concerned about the Ole Miss lineman. “If you go back to the time where he was recruited at Ole Miss, there was kind of a package deal with his brother. You don’t hear about that, but that was a little bit controversial. Then you talk about the domestic dispute and he got a pass on that. He was protecting his mom. Coach Hugh Freeze said it’s not a concern. Then all of a sudden, he gets named by Robert Nkemdiche at the NFL Combine and then there was the injury. He is the John Gotti of the NFL Draft...nothing sticks to this guy and everything bounces off. “I think it’s a combination of feeling really good about Stanley in pass-pro and then you factor in the off-the-field stuff, you have to factor all that in. From what I’ve heard, who are the people around Laremy Tunsil with their hands out? You might have to be careful of that too. I think when you factor in all those equations, that’s why some teams value Stanley over Tunsil.” Will Fuller:Is Fuller a first-round guy or second-round guy? That’s up for debate, but there is no denying there are some teams that are in need of a No. 2 receiver and Fuller is more than capable of filling that role. “Obviously the Bengals lost some receivers, so they will need some help there at wideout,” stated Serritella. “I think when you get back into some of these playoff-contending teams, if you want a darkhorse, why not the Atlanta Falcons? They are team that values receivers and obviously Roddy White is out. “Let’s not forget the Carolina Panthers, they got to the Super Bowl with almost no help at the receiver position. There are a lot of question marks that team has. If you can provide Cam Newton with a playmaker like Will Fuller, I think that’s a luxury the Panthers offense was lacking last year. Fuller could add a whole different level to their offense.” Sheldon Day:Day proved his versatility for the Irish over his career and Serritella feels that will translate to the next level as well. “I think he could definitely play one-tech, three-tech and I think even in a hybrid-type of scheme where he might play a little bit of both,” explained Serritella. “I think the Giants are looking to do that. They have used a NASCAR package and take a guy like Day and use him on the inside. That’s a possibility to go in the second round, they love defensive linemen.” Romeo Okwara:One of the youngest players to enter the NFL, Okwara is a guy on the fringe of being drafted next week. “He might not be as talented as some of the other guys in the Draft, but when you factor that in and talk about raw athleticism, you get him in a NFL strength and conditioning program and NFL coaching,” stated Serritella. “He might be a developmental guy and might not start for a few years, but you have tremendous upside. Teams love potential, so I think that is what you’re getting with him. He is probably a late day-three guy.”
Rambling thought vomit follows: Regarding the Intel article about coaching philosophies, I think people (particularly the media looking for an angle) rarely place enough emphasis on the fact that coaching/teaching/mentoring/relating is a critical, free-standing set of skills that are arguably the biggest factor in predicting future success. You often hear about how Coach X can never seem to get a head coaching job despite years of service and knowledge, or how Coach Y was given a chance before other, more experienced coaches. Job knowledge is absolutely critical and experience playing at a high level is certainly a nice add-on for the sake of credibility, but without a doubt the ability to pass on your teachings effectively and form cohesive units within a team are things that trip up many knowledgeable, experienced football men. Distinguished coordinators or position coaches often fall on their faces when given the big chair because they lack the ability to coordinate everyone's job instead of just theirs. NFL men fail in college because they can't grasp recruiting strategies or dealing with academic/campus life requirements. College coaching legends flop in the NFL because you can't tell a multi-millionaire to take a lap. Van Gorder may be a defensive savant, but if he can't teach a 5* athlete to function in his system then he's not a good coach. If Charlie Weis can snag the best high school quarterback and a handful of amazing offensive weapons, but can't find 5 kids who can tackle, then he's not a college head coach. Sanford seems to be a relatable guy that kids lay down in traffic for, much like Alford was. Tenuta knew plenty about defense but hated recruiting and didn't seem particularly interested in dealing with other humans. When you can take good coaching qualities and pair them with the fact that the coach knows what it takes to make it as a student/athlete at ND (Lyght/Denson) then you are playing with house money. Jim Harbaugh appears to be a fearsome weapon in the college world, as are Urban Meyer and Nick Saban. I think Kelly is in the same class and is doing a decent job of finding and retaining a good staff of effective coaches in positions that are right for them. Having an AD who "gets it" and is willing to work on concessions for the student athlete at a place like ND certainly makes a difference. If I was a football coach on the way up, I'd pay to hear Kelly's thoughts because I think his style and system (among other systems) is a successful one.
Mayock lists Keivarae as a safety? That doesn't make sense to me. Ball skills weren't exactly his strong suit. How often did we see him on the WR's hip and not make a play? Maybe he's just looking at his size, speed, and vertical or he is more combining slot corners into the safety bucket?
Please pray for user Druce. He's going through a tough spot tonight and could use some positive thoughts and support.
He is a solid tackler and good blitzer, he is not a corner in the nfl. He gets beat way too much. Safety seems right to me