comical to see 6 of the 23 are Ohio State. Alabama, ND, Ohio state make up more than half of this list.
considering how good he was as a freshman w/ very minimal OT playing experience (even in High School), I think the jump he can make next year can be quite significant that said, Blake will STILL be better which is what's crazy After 2023, both will be first round picks, and most likely top 10 guys if they keep growing and stay healthy
he made some legit plays against Ohio State as a freshman. i don't know if he's going to be all American level this year, but I feel better about him than I would about someone coming from a lower level of football
I am very much a wait and see guy, but after about 18 months of waiting and seeing we got Steve Angeli to show for it. Forgive me if I lack confidence in Tommy fucking Rees
i have no idea if CMF will work out, but i am positive we're not going to lose recruits because of a lack of effort.
I think it will go the same way it goes at every major program. If you have elite recruiters at certain position groups, they’ll likely out-perform your team’s on-field success level. The opposite is also true. Looking at the staff, Freeman is doing a much better job of identifying and attracting elite recruiters than Kelly did. So I agree overall. I still think we may see some deficiencies though in places if certain folks don’t carry their weight.
Loy on the coaching searches Spoiler Irish Illustrated has the latest on the Notre Dame assistant coaching search under head coach Marcus Freeman. Here is the most recent intel regarding the Fighting Irish. Regarding the defensive coordinator search, I’m told the four names in play are Houston defensive coordinator Doug Belk, Minnesota defensive coordinator Joe Rossi, Boston College defensive coordinator Tem Lukabu and Cincinnati Bengals linebackers coach Al Golden. These are the four candidates to now and the ones Freeman has been staying in touch with. To keep everyone updated from the previous story on this, that means NC State’s Tony Gibson, Arkansas’ Barry Odom and Illinois’ Ryan Walters are no longer in play barring a late change in plans. I want to make one thing clear here — a decision has not been made yet. Conversations are ongoing and Freeman, Jack Swarbrick, and others are still getting a feel for the candidates. They are extremely focused on fit and helping to take the program to the next level. Everyone knows Notre Dame is close to taking things up a notch and getting over the next hurdle to get to and win a national championship, so the right hire is important here, not just the biggest name. Fit, running things the way Freeman sees fit, someone being comfortable with him being extremely involved on that side of the ball from a day to day basis, and keeping things rolling, as they have been on that side of the ball, will be factors when naming the next defensive coordinator. In addition, they aren’t trying to get a one-year rental. They know that is not a key to success on the field or in recruiting long term. They want someone that is going to stick around and help build something in South Bend because they know that constantly having to replace coordinators is not an ideal situation. The fact of the matter is that there is a big difference in age regarding the four candidates. You have Belk in his early 30’s, Rossi and Lukabu in their early 40’s and Golden in his early 50’s. Belk, Rossi and Lukabu have already been mentioned as potential head coach replacements at other spots over time, so there is a thought that with a great year defensively, something very much expected for the Fighting Irish in 2022, any of them could be one and done, which is not ideal. With Golden, if all goes well, he could be in it for the long haul if hired at Notre Dame. I’m told it’s a job he very much covets because he has a lot of respect for the program and the university. This was before my time, but I believe there was some chatter that he was in play for the Notre Dame gig back when Brian Kelly was first hired. I could be mistaken, but that’s what I was told. From that, I’m told he has a relationship with Swarbrick that goes back some time. I’ve also learned that Golden has been extremely impressive during conversations with those at Notre Dame, which has helped his cause. With all this in mind, I decided reach out to a few sources that know Golden and have worked with him in the past. I wanted to learn more and get a better idea of what people think of him from people that actually know him. I wanted to hear more about his reputation. “Man, the guy is fiery. He’s passionate. He’s a great defensive mind,” said one source on Golden. “He also does great work in the home with kids.” “He’d be a great hire for a variety of reasons,” said another source on Golden. “First, he’d be a former head coach who has been through it all and he could aid Marcus in a lot of ways as he gets his feet under him. I can’t tell you how important that is and how valuable that would be. Secondly, he’s very well-liked and a well-respected coach by just about everyone you speak with. I mean that. He’s someone that people have always enjoyed working with. I also think he’d kill it with the ND logo on his polo.” 11COMMENTS Things are still fluid when it comes to this role, so we’ll see where Marcus decides to go. My way-too-early feeling is here to keep a very close eye on Golden for the job. But in digging around, all four of the candidates would do well in this role. However, the more I hear about continuity and consistency, as well as the positive comments regarding Golden, to me, he’s the most intriguing option of all because like Freeman, he could be in it for the long haul and that’s a major plus for the future of the program. I’m sure it would be easier to lie and say I don’t have names, but the fact of the matter is that when it comes to the running backs opening, I do have three names to watch. However, my sources connected here prefer to keep the names under wraps because there are factors in play outside of a simple, ‘here’s the list of candidates to know and one is expected to be hired.’ I’ll have more on that when I can share. What I do know is that they are looking to bring at least one candidate in this weekend for an interview and things could move quickly if things go well. I’ll share the names when I can. I’ll also have a little more on the process and how things played out after things get settled. I hate reporting this way, but I am trying to be as transparent as possible while having to respect my sources, which is why running back coaching names haven’t popped up as often when dealing with the vacancies related to defensive coordinator, special teams and receivers, etc.
So they want to hire someone who is going to be here for the long haul... so they're gonna hire a former major program head coach who probably wants to be here a year or two before he gets another HC job?
That is a dumb way to look at a job opening. You never know what will happen a year from now, especially in this new world of college football Please just hire Belk and be done with it. That is a very uninspiring list
I’m not excited about Golden overall but he’s also been a HC twice, has NFL experience, and was a decent recruiter before. He’s still only 52 I’ve been team Belk for a while, but we also don’t have anyone on staff with major college ball HC experience.
I feel like if CMF wants to be heavily involved in the defense, especially the next couple of years, it's going to be really hard to hire someone with past HC experience who is in their 50s and expect that to go well. AND you want that person to be a very good recruiter? I don't know if that person exists. Maybe they think Golden is that guy though. It just seems like a recipe for failure to me.
They aren't hiring anybody without vetting their willingness to play nice with CMF. That's not exactly an arrangement they'd spring on a coach after luring them to accept the position.
I get that. But you have to also be aware that ND DC is an attractive job, so there's the possibility that a candidate will tell you what you want to hear. I'm just saying that considering you have a young HC that will be involved heavily in the defense, a guy with Golden's profile wouldn't be my best envisioned path for a staff. I'd rather have the vet coach be a position coach combined with AHC or something like that. But what the fuck do I know.
Do you think that's the norm or just something you fear in this case? It feels a little conspiracy theory, to me. Honestly, I don't get the worry about coaches using ND for bigger jobs. Not from you, from ND fans in general. I'm willing to bet Bama has produced more coordinators turned HCs and position coaches turned coordinators than any program in the country over the last decade. They rarely hold a coordinator for more than two seasons before they are hired away. And yet they've been the most successful dynasty college football has ever seen in spite of constant turnover. The secret? Hire good ambitious coaches and when they move up, use that fact to attract the next batch. It's a sign of a healthy program. I actually hope we see more of that from ND. It will mean something went right over the next few seasons.
USC lands Travis Dye and Austin Jones in the portal in the last 2 days. They went from average skill position players to really good in the last week. When they add Caleb they will be on par with anyone. Frustrating. We still have advantages in trenches but we will see what the portal continues to bring
A massive, massive reason for Kelly leaving ND with the reputation he has is because USC (and Michigan, to a lesser extent) sucked ass for the entire duration of his tenure, and Freeman isn't going to have that luxury.
Jan. 29 Junior Day (Will change) Four-star DE Brenan Vernon (2023 commit) Four-star LB Drayk Bowen (2023 commit) Four-star OL Luke Montgomery (2023) Four-star LB Jaiden Ausberry (2023) Four-star LB Ta'Mere Robinson (2023) Four-star LB Preston Zinter (2023) Four-star CB Christian Gray (2023) Three-star ATH Kaden Feagin (2023) Four-star ATH Ronan Hanafin (2023) Unranked OL Sullivan Absher (2023) Unranked DL Devan Houstan (2023) Unranked QB Ryan Montgomery (2025)
This is a good start. It is big to get Montgomery back on campus now that ND is recruiting him as an OL and he can meet Heistand. The LSU fan reactions will be great if ND takes Ausberry right out from under Kelly
Ausberry is leaving Louisiana, the brother signed with Auburn despite Kelly trying to get him to stay home. Apparently it’s common for that high school to leave the state- it’s on/near campus so the kids naturally want something different
Vizzina crystal balled on Rivals to Clemson today. Soooooooo not sure we have a QB target were actually gonna land at this point
Loy said he expects some news regarding Jackson Arnold and Oklahoma soon. Must have gave them a silent.
Ya saw that. Felt our best shot at good QBs this class is those 2. So with those 2 out. Things are uhhhhh not great
It’s not the end of the world, but it shows it’s not as simple as getting rid of kelly. We absolutely HAVE to have Buchner turn out well bc it’s abundantly clear we’re getting heavily negativity recruited against when it comes to QB play. The fact that we’ve gone 15 years without a QB win in the NFL is going to haunt us until it’s fixed
Well its not the end of the world. But won't be elite unless you have an elite QB. Buchner gives us a shot. Just QB/WR recruiting has to start trending up
Oh I’m not talking about freeman. I agree things are going to be fine. Just pointing out that QB recruiting has a long way to go
Arnold to Oklahoma. Then Vizzina to Clemson and Moore to Michigan….then can we start bitching or just wait until Steve Angeli trots out there like Matt Lovecchio 2.0
I was unaware the last two had committed. I was also unaware you can read the future. Does Moore love Michigan enough to go there with no HC? Does vizzina go to Clemson if saban retires and Sweeney takes over at Alabama? Who the fuck knows what’s going to happen my friend.
which comes back to my previous post…we’ve seen this movie before. If this was the first time it’s happened I’d be right there with you. It’s not.