Manti

Without a doubt Irish fans got some of the best news they could have hoped for this week - Manti Te’o will be back for his senior season.  Since before the first time Te’o made his first tackle in a Notre Dame uniform, we knew he was going to be something special.  Manti came out of Hawaii as a highly touted recruit who many thought would end up at rival USC.  I still remember Te’o’s first game for the Irish and thinking, “wow, we get this for four more years (well I hope four),” and on Sunday my wish came true.

When Manti announced he was coming back, Notre Dame retained arguably their best defensive player (if not their pest player period), they hung onto a leader on and off the field as well as a great student athlete and positive member of the South Bend community.  Even with the loss of Ethan Johnson and Darius Fleming, the Irish should be more than dominant and experienced as well as deep at the linebacker position. 

On the experienced side of play at inside linebacker Te’o will get to work with Dan Fox and Carlos Calabrese.  At 6’1 245 lbs., Calabrese (although another inch or two would be nice) is a fit at the middle linebacker position.  Last year as a sophomore, Carlos played in 11 games (missed two due to injury), starting in eight of them where he was fifth on the team in tackles (60).  He seemingly would have been starting this season next to Manti but was edged out by fellow sophomore Dan Fox.  Fox was initially recruited as an outside linebacker but at 6’3” 240 lbs. moved inside.  As a sophomore, Fox did play in all 13 games, mostly on special teams.  Although Dan was listed as the starter, he and Carlos split time next to Te’o.  Both Fox and Calabrese did not see any action during their freshman seasons, and therefore, both could be back for two more years.

On the potential side of things at middle linebacker, the Irish have a lot to look forward to.  Two sophomores stand out above the rest, Prince Shembo (6’2” 250lbs) and Kendall Moore (6’1” 245lbs).   As a freshman, Moore did not see any game action (saving him a year of eligibility), but was named Defensive Scout Team Player of the Year.  This season, Kendall has appeared in several games, racking up a handful of tackles.  Out of high school he was a Super Prep and Prep Star All-American.  Prince Shembo, who can and has been put at the outside linebacker because of his freakishly athletic and aggressive play, is one of the most exciting players on the Irish roster (images of Lawrence Taylor).  Although Shembo is only a sophomore, he also has played in two dozen games (collecting 6.5 sacks) for the Irish in supportive roles.  Keep an eye on freshman Jarrett Grace, who may not have been the most recruited high school prospect in the country, and at 6’2.5” 240 lbs. isn’t the biggest backer we have ever seen, but Defensive Coordinator Bob Diaco is high on this kid and that carries some weight.

With Brian Kelly’s recruiting and coaching philosophy of getting great athletes and football players and positions will take care of themselves, there are other linebackers listed primarily on the outside who may switch around in defensive schemes.   New York State High School Player of the year Ishaq Williams, who saw some action this season, has a big upside at 6’5” 255 lbs., and the kid teammates call “Hercules” (Troy Niklas - 6’6.5” 252 lbs.), who has also seen his fair share of action this year, are helping solidify Notre Dame’s defense.  Finally I am curious to see how Danny Spond fits into the picture.

Quarterbacks

By now we all know that Dayne Crist has asked for and has been granted his release from his Notre Dame Football scholarship.  This allows him to graduate this month and play for another team next season without sitting out a year.  Dayne would be a good pick up for a team looking for a talented and experiences signal caller for one year, it worked out will for Wisconsin.  Although Crist has had his issues in South Bend, mostly due to injuries he has carried himself with poise and could be a very good quarterback somewhere even make it at the next level in the NFL.  Irish fans should thank Dayne for his service and wish him well.

With the Crist era over at Notre Dame the Irish have three scholarship players to line up behind center.  Brian Kelly has named Tommy Rees as the starting quarterback for the Champs Sports Bowl in Orlando Florida against the Florida State Seminoles.  Kelly has also made it clear that redshirt sophomore Andrew Hendrix will see action in Orlando.  Technically Everett Golson has moved into the third string slot but there is little to no chance he will get onto the field. No matter the situation in the bowl game Kelly should prepare and play Mathew Mulvey if needed, and if god forbid Mulvey goes down Luck Massa was recruited to South Bend as a quarterback before being moved to wide receiver.

Tommy Rees was put into the first game of the season halfway through after starting quarterback Dayne Crist was ineffective and has been the starter ever since.  This mirrors last season where Rees was inserted during the Tulsa game after Dayne proved to be ineffective.  Although Tommy has not amassed the same winning percentage as last year he has done well going 8-3 as Notre Dame’s starting quarterback.  Normally that would be pretty good for a true sophomore but one this is Notre Dame 8-3 will never be good enough, second Rees has just not developed as we had hoped, he has seemingly stayed the same.  Finally Brian Kelly’s spread offense has been shackled with Rees at the helm; he is simply not enough of a runner for its full throttle speed.  I don’t know how Tommy will fit into Brian Kelly’s offense I would not be surprised if he is the starting quarterback next September but it will be interesting with better running quarterbacks Andrew Hendrix and Everett Golson knocking on the door.

Redshirt sophomore Andrew Hendrix who has three more years of eligibility played in four games this year (two of them had quality time and participation).  Since he stepped on campus Hendrix has had the strongest arm on the team, add his ability to run the ball it is no surprise that Kelly inserted offensive packages for him.  Looking at the big picture Hendrix fits in better to the spread offense Brian Kelly is trying institute then Rees. 

Freshman Everett Golson is thought to be the future of the Irish offense.  He is listed at 6 feet but he is stretching to reach 5’11”.  Word from practice is mixed.  I have heard he is as athletic and talented as advertised but I have also heard he is having trouble picking up the offense. Everett was awarded the Offensive Scout Team Player of the Year by his teammates this year.

Brain Kelly had to go with either Crist or Rees to start this season as the only two quarterbacks with college game experience.  Christ is a solid player and Rees was winning.  Crist is gone and Rees has not grown as we had hoped and does not fit into Kelly’s spread as well as other options.  As of right now the Irish do not have a quarterback commit coming in next year but Indiana’s Mr. Football Gunner Kiel is considering Notre Dame along with LSU.  Either way Rees could be the starter or the odd man out.

As big of fan as I am of Tommy Rees it’s time to start moving in Kelly’s direction if he is going to work out and Rees does not fit.  Ideally Golson comes in and shreds defenses with his arms and legs for the next four years while Hendrix comes in with packages set up for him to keep defenses on their toes.  More probable Hendrix starts and Golson comes in with specific packages next year and we go from there.