Looks like Brian Kelly is slipping into Pete's mailbag with a fake name... Given that there is a good chance Clark Lea will not be defensive coordinator after the 2020 season, who are some way-too-early candidates that you think will get a look? Is there a chance Nick Lezynski gets some consideration, or do you think he needs more experience? Stephen O. To answer the second part first, Lezynski would have to be a full-time position coach first, which he currently is not. So we’re a long, long way from him being a coordinator candidate. Normally, I would have dismissed this question as ridiculous, meaning the idea that a graduate assistant would be on anybody’s short list for a coordinator post. And it is ridiculous to talk about Lezynski in these kinds of terms, at least for right now. But mark this down in the same way you should have marked down Tommy Rees as a rising star in the profession during his first season as a graduate assistant at Northwestern, or in the way Rick Neuheisel knew he had something in Clark Lea as a graduate assistant at UCLA, so much so that he promoted him to linebackers coach and nearly to defensive coordinator all within a three-year window. Because Lezynski is going to be a star in the coaching profession. As a communicator, worker, recruiter, Lezynski has it all happening. It’s my belief that if Lea had landed the Boston College job, Lezynski would have been his linebackers coach. As for the guts of your question, about Notre Dame’s defensive coordinator a year from now, I wouldn’t just install Lea as a head coach elsewhere because he nearly got Boston College. For starters, Lea can be choosy with his next job considering his two-year coordinator run here. And I think he will be, focusing on Power 5 jobs with a good academic bent to them. In other words, Stanford, Duke, Northwestern, Wake Forest, Vanderbilt, those types of places. Will any open next offseason? Hard to say. Vanderbilt, Lea’s alma mater, looked sure to open at midseason last fall, then didn’t. How long does David Cutcliffe keep going at Duke? Also, can you name another academically oriented Power 5 program that might have an opening four years down the road? Maybe that’s another Mailbag question for another time. Now, let’s say Lea lands his perfect fit after this next season. Where would Notre Dame turn? I’m not sure, beyond longtime Kelly aide Mike Elston. He’s learned so much and experienced even more during the past decade at Notre Dame. Of course, if Lea left and Elston got promoted, Notre Dame would need a new linebackers coach. And you already know how I feel about who that should be.
Looks like McNulty will be the TE's coach he was with Chargers when Rees was there so that's the connection
Singer said Milum is in for the big 3/21 recruiting weekend That's 6 top 100 level Olinemen in for that weekend and it sounds like they are trying to get Reuben Fatheree from TX there that weekend as well...that's pretty incredible work by Quinn Spoiler Here are tonight's Lucky Charms... *** I reported yesterday that Notre Dame head coach Brian Kelly was at Rivals100 safety Derrick Davis' high school, and I was told that he also made it down to West Virginia Wednesday to see big offensive tackle target Wyatt Milum at Huntington (W. Va.) Spring Valley. The Irish have been recruiting Milum hard ever since the Irish offered him last spring, and he returned to campus in November. I'm also hearing that Milum is discussing a June official visit with the Notre Dame coaching staff, and I can confirm that he will be on campus March 21 for an unofficial. Milum also really likes Penn State, and West Virginia is a big factor here as well. *** Kelly made stops in at couple more big time offensive line targets' high schools today. This morning he was at Olney (Md.) Good Counsel, where the Irish signed Sam Mustipher and Cam Hart from (and I'm sure many others over the years). Notre Dame is working on offensive tackle Landon Tengwall, who has the Irish in his top three with Michigan and Penn State. Everyone I talk to believes it's really down to Notre Dame and Penn State, even though Tengwall visited Michigan in the fall and he hasn't been to Notre Dame since last March. *** Tengwall has indicated that he's visiting Notre Dame March 21 and April 3, but a source close to him tells me that those visits are not set in stone just yet. Don't get me wrong -- they very may well both happen. But don't be surprised if one doesn't happen. The plans are being worked on by the Tengwall family. *** A source tells me that Kelly also stopped in at Baltimore (Md.) Mount St. Joseph to check in on wide receiver Dont'e Thornton Jr., the nation's No. 51 prospect. The 6-4, 185-pounder added Notre Dame to his offer list in the fall, and Kelly visiting Thornton's school just shows how much the Irish like him. *** Kelly also visited the high school of Nolan Rucci, the No. 30 overall prospect and No. 5 offensive tackle in the nation. As I've said is likely for a while now, Rucci is planning to visit Notre Dame for the weekend of March 21. Penn State is probably the team to beat here, but Notre Dame can't be counted out. *** Notre Dame recruiting coordinator Brian Polian has been in Texas this week and extended an offer to 2022 athlete Cristian Driver, the son of former Green Bay Packers wide receiver Donald Driver. Here's what Driver had to say about Notre Dame during an interview with BGI back in August: "I want to go visit them. I love their jerseys; they're awesome. They have all different color jerseys and those are awesome. Notre Dame could be a good place for me and would be eye-opening. I would love to go visit and get to know the coaches better. "The academic side is big and getting your degree from there would be great. Football is not forever and you have to have a plan for after."
Should be able to get back to 5-6 with Pitt coming in on Wednesday. Then it toughens back up, but I’m still bullish on this team
Total bummer we couldn't pull off either FSU or Louisville and played UNC early instead of in the no-Cole free fall. If we were 15-6 (6-4) with a quality win or two, I'd think we have a good chance at the tourney, but we're going to have to go on a serious run to even get in contention. I'm bullish that the team isn't as bad as 2-6 in the ACC looked, but just not sure where they go from there.
I'll be in Vegas for March Madness. It'd be nice to watch ND play in the first round. It's possible. It could happen.
It was gone when I clicked on it...maybe just a bug. Thanks for the clarification. I was expecting some stupid tweet from a key player
of course Michigan and Penn State feel great about these guys none of them have been to ND since the USC game? all those in state kids have been to the other campuses multiple times since then I think ND gets 2/5 for sure, no way they do worse than that
are you guys expecting ND to release tickets or just tickets in general? from my understanding, ND ticket allotment is all spoken for - we received some tiny amount (i think ~5K). i'm guessing other tickets will be released, but i wasn't sure what everyone was waiting on at this point
So the athletic went back and re-ranked the 2016 recruiting class based on actual performance. ND was 4th. Sampson must have tipped BK off that this was coming so he could make that top 5 comment, that crafty son of a bitch.
i thought the only tickets released to this point were for travel packages and individual tickets were going to be available at a later date.
the people on 247 are such a whiny bunch, it's really difficult to read through the forum. They really need to grow up and not overreact to everything - it's like they have never followed recruiting before Shipley hasn't purchased his plane tickets for the 3/20 weekend and they just whine and cry about it Tyree visited a bunch of schools and almost committed to OU and it was total meltdown mode over there because we can't get an elite back...and then ND coaches get him to commit, his rankings drop, and then all the sudden he's not that good anymore. I wish they would just clean all the crap up but it drives page hits so they don't. It's incredibly annoying and sad.
I joined up last month to follow the coaching search (which was generally a waste), and yeah that board is bad. I don't remember the old rivals board ever being that ridiculous but maybe it was and I just didn't know any better.
Every pay site seems to be like that now, it’s like they think since they paid for the site so they can be insufferable cunts.
It’s the dynasty effect in CFB. Everyone thinks a coach can make you into bama/Clemson and the fact that we aren’t makes Kelly a failure.
dantonio stepping down at MSU. could see narduzi going back there from Pitt maybe? would change the complexion of that game at Pitt this year a bit