I’ll probably eat crow on this but I think he’s going to bust in the NFL. If you can’t catch, you’re on the bench. I personally think he can’t catch.
Big weekend at ND Gonna need a lot of articles posted here bout the cruits and practice reports Bat signal is up
That’s a bit disapointing, he didn’t do anything last year? Redshirt freshmen can usually be pretty good. Maybe it just means that book is looking really really good
Right, it means we are going to go full Oklahoma and Book is is going to win the Heisman this year and Phil will win it next year.
Jurkovic spent his entire freshman year fucking around with mechanics and running scout team. He's just getting started as far as experience running the ND offense.
Yeah there’s officially a disturbing trend in the podcaster commentary about jurk. It was nothing but positive when he enrolled but as soon as August hit there was a full stop on that and everything was couched with “remember he’s just a freshman and he’s not even running the offense so don’t panic” Podcasters take their cue from the coaches on literally everything they say and it seems to me the coaches are down on jurk. Fortunately they have been wrong before.
Sounds like he threw pretty well today from everything I’ve seen I think people are just expecting too much too soon from him
Coach D - defense Spoiler Notre Dame had its fifth practice of the spring this morning (March 21) inside the Loftus Center. Earlier we published the report for the offense. Part two of the practice report focuses on the defense. A quick note, junior linebacker Drew White is out for the spring with a non-football related shoulder injury that will require surgery. Also out for today's practice was senior cornerback Donte Vaughn, sophomore nose tackle Ja'Mion Franklin, freshman rover Jack Kiser, freshman defensive tackle Hunter Spears and fifth-year senior cornerback Shaun Crawford. DEFENSIVE END I didn’t spend much time watching the starting ends or fellow senior Daelin Hayes, instead focusing on other positions. But that didn’t stop all three from flashing at points where it was impossible not to notice them. Julian Okwara’s burst off the edge was good today, as it usually is, and Hayes was physical at the point of attack when I saw him. Senior end Khalid Kareem had one of the best rushes of the day in a matchup against Robert Hainsey. Kareem was coming around the edge and Hainsey had a good angle on him, so Kareem sunk his hips incredibly low, dipped his pads under Hainsey’s hands and got around the corner. It looked like a speed skater going around the corner, he got that low, but once he got around the edge he was back up and on his way to the quarterback. Really impressive rep. Sophomore drop end Ovie Oghoufo caught my eye during today’s practice. He is still a bit on the undersized side of things, but his length is noticeable and his range in coverage is really impressive. Right away he brings value in coverage at the drop spot based on what he did as a prep player, and you saw that during today’s practice. Where Oghoufo really made eye-popping plays today was coming off the edge as a pass rusher. He needs work when it comes to his overall technique, but I was really impressed with his speed off the edge. He blew past the younger tackles on multiple reps, exploding off the ball and quickly getting around the corner to the quarterback. Juniors Kurt Hinish and Myron Tagovailoa-Amosa had some strong battles against the Irish interior players today. They lost their fair share of battles, but they kept plugging away, and Tagovailoa-Amosa flashed some of the penetrating ability that I liked so much from him in 2017. Hinish stopped moving his feet on a few occasions, and when that happened he got beat and knocked off the ball. Freshman Jacob Lacey was a player I spent some time watching today, and he flashed some impressive tools. Lacey got drilled by junior guard Joshua Lugg on one snap and was knocked to the ground, and there were times when he would stop moving his feet, both freshman mistakes. But there were a lot of flash plays as well Lacey showed the ability to hold up at the point of attack, putting his strength and natural leverage on display. You could see his natural power on a few interior pressures. On one snap in particular, Lacey executed a perfect push-pull technique in which he got his hands on the offensive lineman and pushed him back. At that point he pushed his way into the backfield before “pulling” the blocker away and then getting off to the quarterback. It was an impressive rep for the young defensive tackle. I didn't see much of freshman NaNa Osafo-Mensah in team drills, but I did get to see him a bit during individual. His foot quickness and burst off the line standout in the individual work, and you can see the natural power in his hands. He certainly looks the part and moves like you want a highly ranked young player to move around. LINEBACKER Posting a depth chart at linebacker after watching today’s practice would be a useless endeavor for me. Every scholarship linebacker seemed to get some action with the first team at one point during the practice. Senior Asmar Bilal spent time at both the Mike and Buck positions during this morning’s practice. Bilal had some good reps inside at linebacker where he diagnosed the run play and quickly closed on the football. He also blew up a screen in which he read the release of the offensive linemen and played the ball for a stop. He had some inconsistent moments as well where he looked unsure of what he was seeing and he didn’t attack as aggressively. I thought junior Jordan Genmark Heath had one of the better days at linebacker, at least in the reps where I saw him working. Genmark Heath flowed hard to the football and played physical football during the run periods. His hand technique still needs work when he takes on blocks, but I was really impressed with the physicality I saw from him. Genmark Heath looked more comfortable in coverage today than he was the last time we saw him in the fall. He was able to make good reads and then open and run with tight ends, and he closed well on crossers in front of him. Challenging Genmark Heath for most impressive performance of the day was sophomore Jack Lamb, who spent all day at Buck linebacker. Lamb was far more aggressive today than he was in the fall and last spring. He made quick decisions, attacked downhill and was aggressive taking on blockers on most snaps. Lamb also had a really impressive pass rush in which he quickly shot through a gap before the lineman could get on him. Freshman Bo Bauer was physical at the point of attack and did a solid job getting into his drops in coverage, but I didn’t see him around the ball much today. I also didn’t see much of Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah. I know he was out there a lot but I didn’t get to focus enough on him to report how he performed other than being impressed with his movement during drills. Sophomore Shayne Simon spent time at Rover and Buck linebacker today. He got beat a few times in coverage, including a drag route in which he was late reacting to the wideout on the cross and on a blown coverage the freed up a tight end for a touchdown. He also had some good moments in coverage where he used his athleticism to run with a tight end. He just has to learn to be more consistent with his execution, because when he isn’t confident in his assignment he doesn’t play as fast or is late to react. SAFETY Senior safety Jalen Elliott was very active during today’s practice. He was all around the football in the run game and also made a lot of plays on the ball in the pass game. He got beat by Chris Finke on a corner route and was late reacting to a drag, but othe than that he was quite good in coverage. One wrinkle we saw today was Elliott down in the slot when Notre Dame went to its nickel package. Sophomore Derrik Allen was very much up-and-down today. During team periods he was pretty good, but he struggled during one-on-ones. Allen had a bad run fit on a run play, but other than that he was quite active during team drills. He was all over the tight ends on out cuts and picked up drag routes well. Also saw him fly across the field and deliver a hit on a receiver that working inside that wasn’t even his man. Those were all really good moments for Allen, they were moments where he was making reads and playing. During one-on-ones he kept trying to guess on routes and it resulted in him getting beat, badly. Twice he tried to jump a Brock Wright cut but the junior tight end was setting him up, and that resulted in him getting beat. The third time he tried to prepare for the second move but this time Wright simply just beat him outside. Way too much guessing and way too much thinking during one-on-ones and trying to make a play instead of trusting his teaching and reacting. Sophomore Paul Moala spent time at Rover and safety during today’s practice. He is an aggressive downhill player, and we saw that today. He’s most comfortable when filling the box and playing the run. When he got in trouble was in the pass game. He got smoked by Kevin Austin for a post route touchdown early in practice and was beaten multiple times on crossing routes and out cuts, but he was more comfortable in coverage playing over the slot and eating up the screen game. Sophomore DJ Brown is still learning his assignments as a safety. He moves well for the position and his coverage is good, but his footwork is still a work in progress. CORNERBACK Senior Troy Pride Jr. had some really intense battles today with Chase Claypool, and those two seem to be pushing each other quite a bit. Pride’s technique today was really good. I didn’t see the grabbing and reaching at the line of scrimmage we saw in 2018, including the Cotton Bowl against Clemson. He trusted his footwork today and it allowed him to be right in the hip of his opponents. When he got beat it was either an uncovered throw or the quarterback had to make a perfect throw to Claypool. I was skeptical of the move of Houston Griffith to cornerback, and I still need to see a lot more, but today the sophomore was quite good. His footwork at cornerback has improved a great deal and his ability to open up and run was so much cleaner than it was a year ago. He was more confident with his hands, using them to jam wideouts instead of using them to try to slow down a receiver that beat him like we saw last year. Griffith is a patient corner as well, at least he was today, and he didn’t get caught up in what receivers were doing at the snap. He trusted his footwork, trusted his teaching and covered well. Michael Young beat him on a Go route and Claypool beat him twice on deep routes, so there is still work to be done, but he has come a long way at the position since last season. Sophomore TaRiq Bracy was inconsistent today. He was good in coverage for the most part and he had two impressive break ups, but his run support was not up to par and his technique still gets him in trouble at times, but he has improved in this regards. Bracy was better today at the line, and he could put himself in position to open and use his speed to stay step for step with receivers. His speed is really impressive. Junior Avery Davis had some really good reps where his foot quickness and fluidity as an athlete made him look natural playing cornerback. He ran well on deep routes and had a quality pass break up. But there were also times when he looked like a guy who is just now starting to learn to do something he’s never done before. When sophomore Noah Boykin stays patient and trusts his technique he's really good. He can run with the wideouts and his change of direction is good, but he guesses a lot and when he is unsure of his footwork he is clearly thinking about that and not the receiver, and he gets beat. I liked what I saw from him athletically, but he has a long way to go from a fundamentals standpoint.
Coach D - Offense Spoiler Notre Dame Practice Report: Offense - March 21 Bryan Driskell • BlueAndGold.com @BGI_CoachD Pay just $3.99/month for the first FIVE MONTHS of a new monthly subscription! That's over 60% savings! Photo by Corey Bodden Notre Dame had its fifth practice of the spring this morning (March 21) inside the Loftus Center. Part one of the practice report focuses on the offense: QUARTERBACK Neither quarterback was overly sharp during today’s practice. Senior starter Ian Book wasn’t overly sharp during the practice. He threw some really top-notch throws, like a couple of back shoulders to Chase Claypool and a deep post route to the senior wideout, but his timing wasn’t good for much of the practice and he was had some bad misses as well. Book threw a number of deep balls today, and for the most part he had good success. He was late throwing a deep corner to Chris Finke and a post route to Claypool, but he got good distance and was relatively accurate throwing the ball down the field. Notre Dame also seemed to focus on attacking the middle of the field during today’s practice, and while Book was inconsistent with his accuracy, he was more than willing to get to that part of the field. A bad miss on a slant route to Finke during a team period was an example of Book being erratic, as was another off target throw to Claypool on a cross route during team. This wasn’t a typical Book practice, but it is nothing to be concerned about, days like this happen. My big takeaway from the practice was Book’s effectiveness attacking the deep zones, the middle of the field and his seemingly budding connection with Claypool. Sophomore Phil Jurkovec got off to a hot start during team, hitting classmate Kevin Austin on a deep post route for a touchdown, showing off his arm strength and downfield accuracy. For the most part, Jurkovec was quite accuracy on downfield throws. During another team period, Jurkovec went 6-6, hitting four short throws, a wheel route for a touchdown and a fade route in the red zone. During 1on1s, Jurkovec started to struggle. He was late with throws and seemed to wait on receivers to get open instead of anticipating the opening. He missed early on a seam route to Lawrence Keys and then led Austin out of bounds on a comeback because he waited too long to throw. He threw a gorgeous corner route to Joe Wilkins, who beat senior safety Jalen Elliott, but then followed that up with a bad miss on a comeback route. His next throw was a deep post route touchdown to Braden Lenzy, but his next pass was an off target throw to tight end Cole Kmet on an out cut. That kind of up-and-down typified Jurkovec’s day. He made some throws that made me say, “Wow, that was impressive,” but then he would have frustrating simple misses. I’ll say this, Jurkovec has to really clean up his footwork and continue to build confidence in his reads and the offense. Those things should help him eliminate the really bad misses he had today, but his arm talent is impressive, he made plays with his legs today and he is much further along from an execution standpoint than Deshone Kizer was at the same age. RUNNING BACK Senior Tony Jones Jr. spent most of the day working as the first back, but both he and junior Jafar Armstrong spent time with the first group. Jones ran well downhill during team periods and during half-line drills (just half of the offensive line goes at a time). He was decisive with his cuts and ran over Asmar Bilal during a team period. Armstrong showed a good burst attacking the perimeter in the run game, and sophomore Jahmir Smith once again impressed during drills with his foot quickness. None of the young backs got much action during the team periods, but Smith ran well during the half-line period. Sophomore C’Bo Flemister didn’t get much action, but he had a really impressive cutback run during a team period in which he cut the ball all the way behind the left tackle for a big run. WIDE RECEIVER Senior wideout Chase Claypool had a really strong practice today, and his battles with senior cornerback Troy Pride Jr. were really fun to watch. Claypool won some, Pride won some, but the two really pushed each other the entire practice. Claypool stretched the field today, which was good to see. He had a huge play on a post route, caught two outside go routes and also was effective getting a step on the corners and then making a play on the back-shoulder throws. What really stood out to me during today’s practice – and keep in mind it’s just one practice – was how consistent Claypool was with his effort and focus. This has been my biggest criticism of him in past years, but today I didn’t see any lapses with focus or effort, and Claypool set the tone for the rest of the group. He had a drop on a crossing route, but it was his only drop of the day and he was locked in. Fifth-year senior Chris Finke had a lot of action in today’s practice. He got the ball all over the field; we saw Finke get the ball in the run game, in the screen game, on short throws across the middle, quick out throws and he stretched the field as well. We saw Finke beat Elliott on a corner route and he did some damage after the catch as well. Junior Michael Young was active in practice as well. He got a lot of action in the quick game and screen game, and his route running on short throws was crisp. When his initial routes were covered I liked how Young worked around and tried to get open. He beat Houston Griffith on a vertical route, showing a good burst off the line and he tracked the ball well. Young made a couple of competitive catches as well and got some action in the run game. The sophomore receivers made a lot of plays today, but the group was also a bit up-and-down. Sophomore Lawrence Keys III had a strong day today. His route running was solid and he did a good job attacking leverage of defenders and snapping his routes off. Keys got action in the run game and he did a really good job running away from defensive backs on crossing routes. Keys had multiple after-the-catch plays that went for big gains. He got free on a seam route for what should have been a touchdown but the throw was just a step too far. Classmate Braden Lenzy was also very active today. Lenzy’s speed is so obvious, and he’s clearly a step faster than everyone else at the position. He got outside in a hurry in the run game and he was hard to keep up with on crossing routes. Lenzy has to keep getting stronger, but he was able to handle himself better on quick routes than he did in the fall. He was sharp on his slant routes and did a good job leaning the cornerback outside to give himself separation when he broke the route off inside. Lenzy also tracked the deep ball well today, which was good to see. Sophomore Kevin Austin made plays today, but his performance was a bit up and down from a route running standpoint. Where Austin really stood out is when he could just use his speed. He got open deep on multiple occasions, including when he hit a post route for a touchdown early in practice. He had a nice back-shoulder grab on the sideline and showed confident pass catching skills. Where Austin had some issues was with his route running and depth, which caused some misses with his quarterback. Austin also has to improve a bit better at the line when pressed, but he did some good things today. He caught a cross route but allowed walk-on cornerback Temitope Agoro to knock it out of his hands. A guy that stood out at wide receiver today was sophomore Joe Wilkins Jr., who seems to be better back to full speed after offseason knee surgery. Wilkins showed a strong burst off the line and his speed and length in the slot is impressive. His route running today was better than what we saw in the fall, and he caught the ball clean. Wilkins was a frequent target of his quarterbacks, and when the ball was in his wheelhouse he made clean grabs. Wilkins had a really impressive diving catch on the sideline early in practice. Didn’t see much of sophomore Micah Jones today, but did notice he was playing in the slot during today’s practice. TIGHT END The tight ends were very involved in today’s practice. Junior Cole Kmet ran a lot of option routes and out routes today, and when the ball was on target he came down with it. His footwork was a bit choppy out of his breaks, which allowed the linebackers to stick with him, but Kmet used his length to still make a lot of grabs. He had a couple of impressive red zone reps that ended with touchdowns. Classmate Brock Wright was a frequent target of both Book and Jurkovec. Wright ran really sharp routes today and got good separation working the intermediate zones, and when the ball was thrown he came down with it. Wright doesn’t get the same separation on vertical routes, but on short and intermediate routes he was hard to handle today and made a lot of plays. Sophomore Tommy Tremble was quite active today. Tremble’s route running wasn’t overly sharp, but his speed is so good that he can get separation from linebackers and safeties even when his routes aren’t crisp. He had a long touchdown on a corner route where the linebacker didn’t run with him initially, and once he got into space you could see his speed. I didn’t see much of George Takacs today. He got reps and had a couple of grabs to go with one drop, but I missed most of his reps today. He looks healthy and showed a decent burst out of breaks, which is a good sign after battling knee issues last season. OFFENSIVE LINE The offensive line had a really good day today, especially in the run game. Whether it was the team periods or the half line periods, the line got really good movement with both its first and second teams, but the first team was especially good. Starting tackles Liam Eichenberg and Robert Hainsey had good days during the team periods, getting a good push in the pass game and with few exceptions they handled the edge pressures well. The 1on1 pass rush drills were on the opposite side of the field and there was a line of players between us and the players, so we couldn’t really see those. Junior Aaron Banks took reps at left tackle during the tempo period but played left guard the rest of practice. He and classmate Joshua Lugg took all the reps at left guard with the first group today. Lugg had good moments today in the run game, coming off low and driving his feet through contact. I was impressed with right guard Tommy Kraemer for the most part. He had a couple of missed assignments that got him in trouble, but he fired off the ball, played physical and showed improved footwork. Sophomore Jarrett Patterson was a bit inconsistent snapping the ball, but he was a bit sharper than I thought he would be considering he’s just in practice five as a center. What impressed me about Patterson’s practice was how physical he was at the point of attack. He had multiple knockdown blocks and when he got an edge on a defender he was able to lock down the block. That was an encouraging thing to see from a Notre Dame perspective. Sophomore John Dirksen is a physical and aggressive blocker that has to clean up his technique and assignments, but when he knows what to do he can really do damage. Freshman Quinn Carroll stood out today. His quickness out of his stance on pass sets was impressive, and he showed good timing with his hands in protection. His lower body has to get stronger, but he showed good strength with his hands today. Carroll gets good movement for a freshman in the run game as well. Freshman center Zeke Correll had one of the more impressive blocks of the day. He’s incredibly undersized right now, but his power for that size really stands out. Correll got under junior Kurt Hinish’s pads, drove him off the ball and put the veteran nose tackle on his backside. Correll got very good movement in the run game thanks to his combination of pad level, power and motor.
Sinclair recruiting notes Spoiler Thursday Notre Dame Recruiting Notes VIP ByKEVIN SINCLAIR 5 minutes ago 0 (Photo: Matt Cashore, 247Sports) Spring practice is in full swing and a significant list of visitors is on deck. It’s going to be very busy and informative at Irish Illustrated in the coming weeks. Today, more than a half-dozen recruits will visit Notre Dame with a morning practice open to the media. And this weekend, several priority recruits will hit South Bend, some spending two days on campus. Below, I’ve laid out a combination of thoughts on this week’s visitors, some details on summer entry freshmen, and additional notes I’ve gathered this week. Howard Cross off-season notes I spoke with Howard Cross this week. In my opinion, the St. Joseph’s Regional star is one of the more intriguing summer entry freshmen considering his stellar prep career as a state champion and Defensive MVP in his region, and the position flexibility he brings to the defensive front. There isn’t a lot to report on Cross but he did inform me that he’s currently weighing in at 265 pounds and is under the impression that he’ll likely compete at the three-technique position. With injuries to Ja'Mion Franklin and Hunter Spears, Notre Dame has a thin, young core at both nose and defensive tackle this fall. Certainly, Cross will be welcomed addition inside. Lance Taylor going to work this weekend As we know, Notre Dame fans are anxiously awaiting developments at the running back position in the 2020 recruiting class. That group may be in luck this weekend as top priority running back Chris Tyree returns to South Bend while Tirek Murphy makes his debut trip to South Bend. In a sense, many (myself included) feel a one-two punch that looks like Tyree (5-9, 175, elite speed) and Murphy (6-0, 220, power back) would benefit the Irish a great deal. That’s why this weekend should be an exciting one for Irish fans, and hopefully a productive one for Lance Taylor. Both of these backs are high character prospects who should mesh well with the coaching staff – Murphy taking the trip with his mother who already has Notre Dame high on her personal list. Tackles en route to South Bend As we get ready for Notre Dame to host the majority of its top 2020 offensive tackle recruits over the next two-and-a-half weeks, Tosh Baker, Jimmy Christ, Roger Rosengarten, and Andrew Gentryincluded, two of the top 2021 tackles will hit South Bend this weekend as well. We’ve discussed Maryland behemoth Landon Tengwall several times, a Top 50 prospect set for a two-day visit starting Friday. As much excitement as that visit brings, don’t forget another Top 100 tackle hitting Notre Dame this week. In-state sophomore tackle Blake Fisher will take the trip from Avon to South Bend on Saturday, one of several early Notre Dame visits for the 6-foot-6, 300-pounder. With tackle being a priority for the Irish currently, Jeff Quinn has an outstanding opportunity to build momentum this week. In total, Notre Dame will host five Top 100 tackles over the next few weeks. Top 100 Sophomore WR Trio Over the next three days, Notre Dame will host three Top 100 sophomore wide receivers. Today, a pair from the West will spend the day in South Bend including what I believe to be a future five-star in Emeka Egbuka. And from St. John Bosco is Beaux Collins, another outstanding young talent who will be alongside multiple teammates, a squad which regularly ranks within the Top 10 programs in the country. On Saturday, Top 100 Georgia wide out Deion Colzie will take his second trip to Notre Dame. In speaking with the 6-foot-4, 192-pound pass-catcher out of an excellent program in Athens Academy, Colzie stated that Notre Dame is a ‘dream school’ in his eyes. Although Notre Dame plans to load up at wide receiver in the 2020 class, after potentially falling short at the position group in 2019 (we will know more this summer when Cam Hart and Kendall Abdur-Rahman arrive), the Irish could very well prioritize wide receiver again in 2021. With that, getting this group of exciting sophomores on campus this week could prove to be crucial down the road. Tidbits * In developing my story on Notre Dame’s 2019 trio out of Atlanta and their training sessions this spring, I was told that Kyle Hamilton has added quality strength, now tipping the scales at around the 200-pound mark. We know Hamilton certainly has the athleticism to compete in 2019. If there is an area he needs to develop, it’s the strength component. From what I hear, that off-season goal is being accomplished. * For those of you wondering if the commitment of Tyler Buchner has caused a ripple effect within Notre Dame’s recruiting efforts as a whole, in speaking with several highly-rated 2021 prospects recently, multiple big-name athletes expressed excitement about Notre Dame adding the elite passer. That group included offensive tackle Landon Tengwall and a few additional Top 100 prospects. Certainly, I expect this notion to become a trend as Notre Dame develops its 2021 board. * When it comes to pipeline programs for Notre Dame, St. Peter’s Prep is certainly on the shortlist. We know that Cody Simon is the next key prospect from the Jersey program for Notre Dame. But don’t forget about defensive tackle George Rooks – a disruptive 2021 recruit who holds an Irish offer. Speaking with Rooks recently, he tells me that he is working on a planning a Notre Dame visit for the near future. Although Rooks is currently unranked, many programs who have offered would disagree with that listing, including Auburn, Michigan, Notre Dame, Penn State, Virginia Tech, and others.
Omalley - offense Spoiler Practice Report: Offense (March 21) VIP ByTIM OMALLEY 5 hours ago 13 Notre Dame, Ind. — Inclement weather continues to trap Brian Kelly’s Irish inside the Loftus Center though with warm weather purportedly headed our way, Practice no. 6 on Saturday is expected to move outside. Today’s first unit offensive line offers the only major “change” with Josh Lugg initially beginning at left guard and the spot’s incumbent, Aaron Banks, behind Liam Eichenberg at left tackle. Banks however started at left guard in most 11-on-11 situations where he was replaced by Lugg. It is presumed (through a source) that Banks’ reps are limited as he recovers from an undisclosed injury. Regardless, the most often viewed OL alignment in team action was as follows: LT: Liam Eichenberg, Cole Mabry LG: Aaron Banks or Josh Lugg, Dillan Gibbons C: Jarrett Patterson, Luke Jones, Zeke Correll RG: Tommy Kraemer, John Dirksen RT: Robert Hainsey, Quinn Carroll O-Line Observations Though he received far fewer team reps than Luke Jones with the second unit, it was the freshman Correll that authored the block of the day, bulldozing starting nose tackle Kurt Hinish in a 3-on-3 running drill. The ferocity was noted by three different media members more than 100 yards away (Binoculars identified Correll). - Correll’s fellow early enrollee Quinn Carroll did the same, albeit to a walk-on rather than starting nose tackle, one snap later… - The interior first unit excelled early in practice and was solid thereafter. I was surprised by the push provided by the front as a whole in full-tackle outside zone work. - New starting center Jarrett Patterson had a low and a high snap back-to-back (the former fumbled by Ian Book) but he was otherwise not notable in our first viewing of him working shotgun in live action. - Tommy Kraemer moved well in the 3-on-3 drill, engaging quickly and maintaining outside leverage while driving his defenders back into the pile . - 5th-year senior Center/Guard Trevor Ruhland remains sidelined as he recovers from arthroscopic knee surgery. He’s joined in that regard by walk-on center Colin Grunhard (shoulder) who likely would be working with the second unit if available. - Pass-Rushing drills vs. the offensive front were not only 80 yards away, but blocked by large human bodies of the team’s backups entirely, so there is nothing to report from our vantage point. Wide Receivers Kevin Austin was the story of the day, catching nearly everything in his vicinity (he had one late blue zone drill drop) though it should be noted, top cornerback Troy Pride was rarely his matchup. Austin caught a deep post touchdown from Phil Jurkovec, made a diving catch on an out route in which he stabbed the pass a few inches off the Meyo Field turf, and also dragged his feet for an apparent catch despite solid coverage by Avery Davis. Add a slant and a corner route and the rising sophomore nearly ran the route tree gamut in 1-on-1 and 7-on-7 action. - Also impressive was Braden Lenzy who accelerated for extra yardage after a pinpoint crossing route from Ian Book (7-on-7), took a deep ball in for the score from Jurkovec, and ran away from Noah Boykin on an in-cut. Lenzy lost to Tariq Bracy in a goal line situation (Jurkovec) and to Houston Griffith who smothered his classmate on a poorly thrown fade route (Jurkovec). Lenzy is on the all-improved list since last August to be sure. - Chase Claypool and Troy Pride are going to make each other better all spring, though I’d say today Pride got the best of the matchup (considering the situation favors the offense). Claypool’s most impressive feat of athleticism, however, was scooping up a football he had fumbled (post-play) and firing a perfect spiral in one motion that nearly embedded into the cement wall 25 yards away. - Chris Finke caught about 15 passes today including faking out DJ Brown twice in a two-yard space. I’m not sure if Brown new the rep was ongoing, but the senior Finke sure did. Finke caught a deep crossing route from Book that was thrown late and the receiver thus had to wait for, getting crushed upon securing the pass downfield. The alignment today was as follows: X: Michael Young, Kevin Austin, Isaiah Robertson W: Chase Claypool, Joe Wilkins Z: Chris Finke, Lawrence Keys, Micah Jones (first we’ve seen him in the slot). - Michael Young had a deep post touchdown early; made a beautiful one-handed catch on a corner route, and also dropped a fade touchdown late that popped into the air for an interception…Lawrence Keys ran a crossing route beating Jalen Elliott for a significant gain (7-on-7). As Keys set up Elliott with an outside foot and sharp in-cut, a colleague nearby accurately described the move in real-time with the following: “Bye…” - I thought Michael Young had a good day if I didn’t make that clear above, but his concentration drop was picked off…in the end zone…Joe Wilkins is solid: the others each possess a more defining singular trait (Lenzy speed; Keys quickness; Austin imposing athleticism)…Claypool beats everyone other than Pride with regularity, though I liked the battle Houston Griffith put up on a leaping completion… - There was a healthy dose of Jet Sweep action early in practice, with Michael Young, Lawrence Keys, and Jafar Armstrong showing well. Tight Ends And Running Backs Who are you and what have you done with Brock Wright? The 10 pounds Wright shed in the off-season were apparently all in his feet, because the rising junior moves much better than at any point in his three springs since arriving in January 2017. Wright and classmate Cole Kmet riddled Derrik Allen and Paul Moala throughout 7-on-7, both scoring touchdowns on the sophomores in Blue Zone drills. - Kmet had more than one rep in which he was simply taller, stronger, and could jump higher than Moala in one-on-one action. I don’t believe Moala will be alone in that regard, however… - Heckuva day for Tommy Tremble who runs to open space exceptionally well. The redshirt-freshman scored a touchdown (in 11-on-11, which is far more relevant) on a deep corner route though it appeared Shayne Simon (at Buck) either blew the coverage or expected help. Tremble added another TD in close late in practice. - George Takacs dropped two dead-to-rights passes today. One of them was basically handed to him. Poor concentration on both. I assume he’ll bounce back but I twice checked to see if # 85 was a walk-on. (I know the offensive coordinator is high on Takacs’ potential, however). - Jafar Armstrong and Tony Jones are 1A and 1B in terms of practice reps…I wish I had more to report from them today but Jones’ best carry was clearly a blown run fit by Derrik Allen. - Jahmir Smith shows quick feet in drill work. He and Kyren Williams were both on the field at the outset of practice with the second unit with Williams taking the place of a No. 2 tight end… - C’Bo Flemister with an impressive jump cut to “score” in blue zone work. The sophomore bounced it outside though there was no contain after his initial cut over left tackle… Still waiting for a standard running back screen to work from snap to whistle… - There was a healthy dose of “12 Package” today including the outset of 11-on-11 QUARTERBACKS It’s our first real practice viewing, but in this particular two-hour session, Phil Jurkovec’s accuracy remained inconsistent. There’s no other relevant report regarding the team’s clear No. 2 quarterback. The ball comes out with velocity but it’s sprayed at times. A few head-shaking misses—not of the Wimbush variety in terms of layups— but rather: why would he miss that open cross by 3 yards (behind) after hitting a perfect post route? He’ll drop a nice corner route, then throw behind the receiver on an arrow route…those can go the other way for six points. Jurkovec did fire a quality throw to Isaiah Robertson on a dig route. I never charted Jurkovec better than 2-for-4 in any blue zone segment (7-on-7) and that includes a 1-for-4 to open. (He was victimized by a Takacs drop after connecting on two straight at one point.) Book, conversely, was 4-for-6, 6-for-6, 2-for-4 (with two PD courtesy Troy Pride) in the same segment. The senior is developing a nice rapport with Lawrence Keys among the backup ranks. Keys ran a pretty pivot route in 7-on-7 action and Book delivered on time. Book must stop throwing late on the deep ball, though that’s often a requirement on play-action fakes. A half-tick earlier would’ve been a 60-plus yard touchdown to Finke on a deep cross rather than 13COMMENTS — As an aside, Jonathan Doerer kicked well today, drilling from 40 and 45 yards (or 37 and 42, perhaps, we were on the other side of the field so it was difficult to gauge). His only miss was on a hideous hold/snap. We’ll have more accurate down-and-distance measurements for Doerer when the Irish move outside. Brian Kelly spoke to Javon McKinley on the sidelines for at least 15 consecutive minutes. McKinley was reinstated today and will be re-evaluated to that end at the conclusion of the spring semester. That’s official news courtesy of the program. Unofficially from sources, he is not under disciplinary action from the university, that due to student-privacy laws, that’s likely to be made official/public anytime soon.
Prister - Defense Spoiler The majority of players sidelined during Thursday’s early-morning practice on Meyo Field inside Loftus Sports Center were from the defensive side of the football, including red-shirt sophomore linebacker Drew White, who is scheduled for surgery Friday for what was called an AC joint repair of his right shoulder for a “non-football related injury.” Also sidelined, as they will be throughout the spring, were cornerback Donte Vaughn, defensive tackle Ja'Mion Franklin, defensive tackle Hunter Spears and cornerback/nickel Shaun Crawford. DEFENSIVE LINE Two players who are noticeably larger this spring are ends Julian Okwara and Daelin Hayes. Okwara’s appearance was striking Wednesday during Pro Day as he watched his former teammates go through the paces. Still listed at 240 pounds, Okwara now has a towering presence to his 6-foot-4 ½-inch frame. That presence grows in game situations when he becomes unblockable. Hayes really fills out his uniform now at 6-foot-3¾, 268 pounds. He’s not the pure pass rusher that Okwara or even Khalid Kareem is. But as Mike Elston has explained in the past, Hayes creates sack opportunities for his teammates, even more so now at his current size. I have a lot of confidence that Myron Tagovailoa-Amosa and Jayson Ademilola are going to be a productive pair of defensive tackles for the Irish. Jerry Tillery good? It remains to be seen if they can be the penetrator he was. Actually, it remains to be seen whether Tagovailoa-Amosa can be the penetrator Tillery was because Ademilola has some very natural gap-penetrating skills. He’s just not nearly as long as Tillery. This will be a quality duo nonetheless, one that’s even better in 2020-21 than 2019. The praise for mid-year entry Jacob Lacey from Brian Kelly and Mike Elston has been ample. I didn’t see validation with my own eyes Thursday as Lacey got caught up in some double teams and wasn’t able to get off blocks and make plays. But I trust the words of Kelly and Elston as it relates to Lacey’s daily grind. Personally, I thought Lacey was going to come in looking more like a three-technique as opposed to a nose tackle. But the latter is a more natural description, and that’s where he’s playing behind Kurt Hinish. A fine play by Jamir Jones against the run early in the drills on a play that drifted to his left. If the Irish are indeed going to preserve a year of eligibility for Jones to lend stability to the end position after Okwara, Kareem and Hayes graduate following the ’19 season, he’s probably going to make it difficult for them to make that decision. He helped in 2018 and he can help in 2019. We’ve heard some positive things about early-entry freshman end NaNa Osafo-Mensah. He obviously gives away some size and strength to the older defensive ends at this time, but the word is Osafo-Mensah has had a good start to his spring. He can run. We saw evidence of that Thursday. LINEBACKER An interesting day of observation at the two inside linebacker positions with a whole bunch of mixing and matching going on. Asmar Bilal, because of his football experience, is cross-training at Mike linebacker, which makes sense as the Irish try to get their best duo on the field. To me, the best duo looked to be Bilal and Jordan Genmark Heath. Now, in order to get them on the field together, that means Bilal would have to play Mike. Defensive coordinator Clark Lea does not want to cross-train Genmark Heath because he wants him to settle in and get comfortable at one position, particularly since he’s still transitioning size/strength-wise from safety. That means Bilal would have to play Mike. He’d pop back to Buck because Lea wants to get more bodies on the field this fall at inside linebacker. There were several other combinations at Mike and Buck linebacker minus Drew White due to the injury. We saw Bo Bauer at Mike and Genmark Heath at Buck, Jonathon Jones at Mike and Bilal at Buck, Jones at Mike and Genmark Heath at Buck. For pure physicality, Bauer is the guy. But can he find the correct run fits that a more veteran player like Bilal should be able to find? This remains a work in progress for the foreseeable future. But if I had to bet on how they will end up, I would lean toward Bilal at Mike and Genmark Heath at Buck. Genmark Heath clearly is the rangiest of the linebackers beyond Bilal because of his safety background. Jack Lamb remains an interesting Buck prospect because of his length and football instincts. He’s still giving away a little bit of bulk, but he’s an interesting option. At Rover, it’s clearly Shayne Simon’s position to lose. Not having seen Simon in the mix at Rover last August, this is the first real opportunity the media has had to see what the 6-foot-2¾, 230-pound sophomore-to-be looks like in the starting lineup and playing full tilt. A former safety himself, Simon clearly has a ton of range and is more decisive than at any point since he arrived last summer. Simon likely was the one at fault on a deep ball in which he was matched up against speed on the inside. But unless the Irish find two certain starters inside that would allow Bilal to move back to Rover – that’s almost undoubtedly not going to happen – Simon is the man. Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah received his share of the reps at Rover. He has some zip and can cover some ground, but he can’t bring the physicality to the position at 215 pounds the way Simon can. He likely would be a better matchup in coverage, but again, Simon trends toward bringing the best of both worlds of size and coverage ability to Rover. DEFENSIVE BACK No one worked harder during Thursday’s two-hour practice session that veteran cornerback Troy Pride Jr. He shared reps with TaRiq Bracy throughout the practice at field cornerback, but Pride got the bulk of the action and worked himself into exhaustion late in the practice when he tagged out with Bracy. As with any cornerback, there were times when Notre Dame’s promising young receiving corps got the best of Pride. But he saved some of his best work for last with back-to-back plays against Chase Claypool and Braden Lenzy. Pride – who was in press coverage throughout most of the action – batted down a pass to Claypool and then forced a no-throw with his excellent coverage against Lenzy. Pride played like the leader of the secondary Thursday in the absence of safety Alohi Gilman, who was in uniform and took some positional work but nothing live. Clearly a commitment has been made to Houston Griffith at boundary cornerback. Avery Davisreceived some reps behind him, but for the most part, it was No. 3 handling the bulk of the boundary corner work. Personally, I still have questions about his coverage skills, but they are much less acute at the boundary than they were on the island that is nickel. On one occasion, Griffith was not able to reach Lawrence Keys on a reverse, which prompted “encouragement” from cornerbacks coach Todd Lyght to make the play. Griffith is physical enough to play the spot and needs every rep he can get, which is why he handled most of the work Thursday. Avery Davis has a lot of potential but needs extensive cornerback work. He has the physical skills, both in terms of speed and physicality. But technique is an ongoing process. As in most instances with players transitioning from a skill position on offense to cornerback, the process of working backwards and making plays behind him are an unnatural act. It will take time. The physical skills are there. Great play by TaRiq Bracy against Isaiah Robertson along the sideline. Bracy used his backside to force Robertson to and beyond the sideline. Robertson caught the football, but had to go out of bounds and back in-bounds to make the catch. Bracy later had a difficult time – like most – on a deep ball from Ian Book to Claypool. With Gilman sidelined from live action, it was Jalen Elliott with three youngsters at safety – Paul Moala, Derrick Allen and D.J. Brown. Of the three youngsters, I was most impressed with Brown, who has transitioned from cornerback. He’s light on his feet and covers a lot of ground. He also probably knows the least about safety play right now among that group because he is so new to the position. But it’s no wonder there’s been talk of Moala moving to Rover in recent days, which is a combination of factors, including Moala’s better play closer to the line of scrimmage as well as Brown’s quick adaptation to his new position. 4COMMENTS As an in-the-box safety or a Rover, Moala makes more sense. Moala gave up a perfectly-thrown deep ball from Phil Jurkovec to Kevin Austin. Moala had difficulty on a crossing route against tight end Cole Kmet. Moala excelled, however, against the run in the box. He fills and hits well, but in space, he tends to fight it. Brown, to me, looked more like a natural safety than Allen Wednesday. That’s not to say that Allen isn’t a safety, but I’m not sure he’s a Whip whereas Stud might make more sense. He had trouble in coverage against both Kmet and Brock Wright. Let’s take a look at Allen in ensuing practices for confirmation. The word on Allen prior to today had been more positive. Brown received some first-team reps alongside Elliott.
shamrock secrets - offense Spoiler We'll learn A LOT more about this team over the next few weeks, especially since we get 7 open practices, starting tomorrow. But over the last week I've done some digging and talked to multiple sources about where the team is NOW before the spring really gets hot and heavy. OFFENSE * There is no question that Ian Book is the unquestioned leader of the offense, so the following isn't about a QB challenge but rather updating a talented younger player. That would be QB Phil Jurkovec. Talking to various sources, the thing that stands out are three things. 1) Jurkovec is still a work in progress from a fundamentals (footwork) and knowledge of the system standpoint. Long way to go there, but he's also come a long way. 2) His arm is tremendously strong. Everyone I talk to mentions how hard he throws and that his deep ball is really good. 3) The one thing I gathered from multiple sources is that Jurkovec works, he wants it, he wants to be great. One source flat said that, "He has a long way to go, but he wants to be great and he's willing to put the work in to get there." * Everyone is raving about the running back room. Jafar Armstrong is a guy that I'm told has been a monster in the weight room and is really pushing hard to become "the man" at RB. I'm also told by someone who has been down on Tony Jones Jr. the last year and a half that he's a completely different kid now, and he's looking more like the guy he was two springs ago, when he was one of the team's standouts. Armstrong is setting the tone and Jones is working every day to match it, and the duo is working well together. I'm told that Jones has been a bit of a follower, and some of the folks he followed are gone, and that's a positive for him because they weren't great examples. Now he's starting to come into his own and it's making him a harder worker and a more serious player. * The whole RB room gets praise depending on who you talk to, and I'm talked before about Jahmir Smith. But the previous update was more about focusing on the vets, not that the younger guys aren't also working. * I talked to a couple of sources who have both been very down on Chase Claypool in the past for the same reason I have. All the talent in the world but he just didn't want it enough and wasn't willing to admit he wasn't working hard enough. He started to improve in the fall but even when the season ended he wasn't where he needed to be, which is why he wasn't named a SWAT Team leader. I'm told since January he's been a monster, and not just on the field. Like Jones, some of the negative influences he's had are gone and he realizes that his NFL dream is right in front of him, but he's going to have to work for it now, and he's starting to do so. I had one source tell me if he keeps doing what he's done so far he'll have an All-American season. We'll see if he can continue being focused, but so far so good. * What I've said before about Braden Lenzy is what you hear no matter who you talk to. He has been a dog this offseason and has absolutely blown folks away with his work. One source told me he was down to about 160 pounds during the fall, and he just couldn't stay healthy because of it. He made the decision not to run track on his own and I was told he came back from the winter break a completely refocused young man. I'm told he's a legit 180 pounds now and gaining, but he's actually gotten more explosive. One thing he struggled with as a freshman was confidence as a pass catcher, he fought the ball a bit, but I'm told starting in January he was back to being the guy he was in high school and catching the ball extremely well. * The folks I talk to love Kevin Austin's talent and they think he can be a star someday, but he's got a lot of growing up to do. He's still learning how to go about his business the right way on a daily basis. When he's locked in he's really good, but he's not locked in enough. I'm told he's been better this winter and spring, but he put himself behind the eight ball with how things went late in the fall. Also, with the other talent at the position (folks at ND love Lawrence Keys III and Joe Wilkins Jr. is going to play in the fall if he stays healthy), the staff is in position where they don't have to play Austin or any other WR, those players have to earn PT because of the depth. That wasn't the case in the past, and I'm told Austin gets that and is starting to put in the work, but he still has a long way to go. * Talked to a couple different sources about rising senior left tackle Liam Eichenberg. The two agreed on one thing. Eichenberg is the team's most talented offensive lineman. I spoke to a third source recently - a former OL at Notre Dame - and he said the only OL on the roster the last three years with more talent than Eichenberg is Quenton Nelson. The issue for Eichenberg has been consistency and getting in his own way. He's really hard on himself and at times it causes him to press way too much and causes him to make mistakes. When he makes mistakes it snowballs. That is what the staff is working with him on this spring. Eliminate mistakes, stay within yourself and the system, but when you make a mistake let it go. The feeling is that if he can do that he'll be outstanding and the tackle tandem of Eichenberg and Robert Hainsey (who has had a monster offseason) could be one of the nation's best. * A source I spoke with said that if Jarrett Patterson wins the starting center job the run game is going to look a lot different. Patterson has a significant athleticism and length advantage over former starter Sam Mustipher, and the lack of athleticism at center at right guard last year limited how much Notre Dame could use schemes like the outside zone and Buck Sweep and the counters, and when Alex Bars went down those schemes got really bad for the most part and it limited the run game. With Tommy Kraemer in way better shape (according to a source), with Aaron Banks at left guard and with Patterson at center the staff thinks its run game could get a huge, huge boost because its such a more athletic interior compared to last season once Bars went down, especially prior to Banks taking over at guard. There is a "let's pump the brakes" attitude right now because Patterson has a long way to go, but the reason they made the move right away is because of what I discussed at the beginning of this note. * A young OL I've heard is really coming along is sophomore Cole Mabry, and overall I'm told the sophomore OL continue to be better than some expected the class would be. * At tight end, Cole Kmet is expected to become a standout next season, but Brock Wright is a guy that has really taken his work ethic and game to a better level so far. The feeling is that if Wright can continue to develop it will allow them to use him and Kmet the way ND used Tyler Eifert and Troy Niklas in 2012. That's why I talked about this the way I did on the podcast Monday for those that listen. Wright also knows he has George Takacs and Tommy Tremble - a pair of sophomores the staff is super high on - breathing down his neck.[/spoiler}
shamrock secrets - defense Spoiler DEFENSE Not as many defensive nuggets, but here goes. * Don't be surprised to see a safety moved to rover tomorrow, but it's not who many predicted. It won't be Derrik Allen, who I'm told has worked with the first team defense the last three practices. Two sources have now told me that Paul Moala is either already moved to rover or going to move to rover. I'm told that he played some scout team linebacker in the fall and the offensive coaches raved about his physicality and instincts, and they felt he was better closer to the ball. That has been reaffirmed so far in spring practice. I don't know this next comment for a fact and it's somewhat me reading between the lines, but I don't think the staff would be moving Moala after already moving Houston Griffith if there wasn't some confidence in how well Allen is coming along. * Not surprising, Avery Davis has a long way to go as a cornerback. I'm told not to expect much from him early in the spring. The staff loves his athleticism and he's working hard, but he never really played defense so he's basically starting from scratch. He'll flash some impressive traits, but he's got a long way to go. * Sophomore Shayne Simon is the present and future at rover, but the staff is not pushing him too much right now from an expectations standpoint. Simon is a really, really smart young man and takes coaching very well. Sometimes too well, and I talked about this on the podcast recently, but sometimes he's robotic in how well he takes coaching. I'm told the staff is working to get him to relax and react more than think. When he does, I'm told he's really, really good, and that's why he's the guy there right now. Folks at ND love his length and athleticism and work ethic, he just has to put it all together. * A source told me that as good as Julian Okwara was last year, he's come back this spring with even greater focus and fire. All four of the senior ends (Okwara, Kareem, Hayes, Ogundeji) are having strong springs so far, but Okwara has been, and I quote, "A monster, he's unblockable." I'm told it doesn't matter what tackle he goes against, he wins. I'm told that Okwara, Khalid Kareem, Ade Ogundeji and Daelin Hayes are all very tight. The problem with that is they all kind of work at the same pace, so if one or two of them aren't locked in they all kind of lose track. At least that was an issue in the past. I'm told from multiple sources that the four of them have really taken to challenging each other every day, and there is a greater sense of accountability in that group, which is scary for opposing tackles next season. * The nickel defense isn't really a focus right now, and likely won't be for much of the spring, but I am told the staff is thinking hard about having Jayson Ademilola be the player that replaces Jerry Tillery at nose tackle in that look. Ademilola was more of a run stopper as a freshman, but a source told me that he's been dominating the guards during spring practice as a pass rusher. I'm told the competition between Ademilola and Myron Tagovailoa-Amosa has been really good right now and both players have had strong winters. Right now Ademilola is the more advanced pass rusher while MTA is the more powerful player, and that complement of each other has the staff working on ways to use them together at times.
Reading these practice reports and I’m just nodding my head Team is fucking deep So nice to recruit competently
I knew this was coming, I’ve been writing over and over again that I thought this 2019 team would be the deepest team in modern ND history. ND just has not missed on the recruiting trail and it’s awesome. We gripe about 3 star running backs but there’s going to be 6 players at the position, someone will emerge. When ND used to miss at a position it would take three years to fix because they just didn’t sign anyone. 2019 might not be the most talented ND team but with the current coaching staff plus the great depth I think ND is going to grind ppl to death. I’m the most optimistic I’ve been about the program since the end of Weis’s first year (shudders) 6-6 season incoming now
We are the same....it’s like the lb position. It will not be on par with coney and tranquill but they will rotate some very capable guys and someone will take over. Just not too worried about this team. The schedule is tough on the road though.
Yep, Ryan did the exact same after announcing his transfer. I understand drawing the line in the sand for the program, but in both of those situations, Brey should have bent IMO
Brey got what he deserved this season, his stubbornness with his roster management created back to back shit seasons