Spring to Fall: Running Back

Everyone loves a good quarterback competition and I am sure that the Irish Fans will have one that they can banter about all fall.  However there is going to be some solid competition for touches at the running back position again this fall.  Rotating players at any position can be a blessing or a curse.  The ability to rest between plays and put in personal that may be better suited depending on the play call.  Brian Kelly and Mike Denbrock have a potential three headed monster in their backfield that if played right could make the Irish faithful very happy.

Most consider Tarean Folston to be the number one back heading into the fall and with good reason.  As a freshman Folston showed that he has the potential to be a number one back at the college level rushing for 5.3 yards per carry highlighted by a 140 yard performance against Navy.  Folston is an all around talent with speed, power and pass catching ability (5 receptions for 35 yards).  I would not say he is overly great at one specific are but very good at all of them.   Folston would be the logical choice to be the starting running back on August 31 but he won't be the only one getting meaningful carries.

Cam McDaniel is the elder statesman of the group entering his senior season.  Next to Cam's name for position he should be listed as football player.  During his three seasons in South Bend McDaniel has played both running back and cornerback.  Brian Kelly should have red-shirted him to start his career especially with the stable of talent Kelly had in 2011.  Cam burned a year of eligibility playing on special teams and rushing three times for a total of nine yards.  With McDaniel running backs coach Tony Alford knows what he is getting; a tough running back who has deceptive speed.  He is no burner but he moves fast enough when he needs to.  Cam is also counted on when short yards are needed.

Finally as much as we know what we are getting with Camp McDaniel the same can be true about what the potential is with Greg Bryant.  He is the wild card of the group.  It terms of athleticism, his high school resume, potential and being as cut as anyone one the team Greg could be good, real good.  We have seen glimpses of greatness last season in very limited exposure and some solid runs this spring.  We have also seen signs he could be good at best.

Overall Irish fans should be excited about the running game this season.  The potential is there for something special.  Even though Kelly had more options for talent in his stable of running backs (George Atkinson has moved on to try his hand at the NFL and Amir Carlisle has moved out to the Slot) I think the Notre Dame Offense has moved up at the position.  I think Kelly had too many options and none of them were able to get traction (no pun intended) until later in the season.

Expect Folston and McDaniel to start the season with the majority of the carries and Bryant worked in.  Bryant's season will depend on how well Folston and McDaniel do as well has how great he is when he gets his touches.  I expect both Folston and McDaniel to perform well meaning Bryant will really have to impress when he gets his opportunities.  If Bryant does not excel at a very high level his time will be limited.  Greg needs to take carries away from the incumbents, he cannot sit around and wait for them to give him a chance or he will be waiting until 2015 to show us what he can do.

Spring to Fall

We have over three months before practice starts for the 2014 season and over four months until Her Loyal Sons take the field for their first game against Rice.  If we are lucky there may be some insight to player development when they are spending their time with Strength and Conditioning Coach Paul Longo (the only Irish Staff allowed to have structured workouts with the players via NCAA rules).  Until then there will be speculation, following of players on twitter, praying they keep their heads on straight so I hope the Blue and Gold Game gave you enough to keep you satisfied for the next few months.

The week after the Spring Scrimmage I have watched the game several times looking for any nuggets that I can focus on until practice starts.  Of course the reality is most of these spring games are really the final practice of the spring at best that have been hyped up by college athletic and marketing department s and of course rabid fans thirsty for collegiate football outside of the fall months.

First and foremost the most important thing that should be taken away from the game is there were no injuries.  Even though the quarterbacks are untouchable,  there are no kickoffs and all punts are fair catches anytime players take the field especially with any kind of contact injuries are a risk.  Of course these rules are set in place by design to prevent injuries.  It is a compromise that shorts us on insight to kick returns and coverage, an area the Irish have been weak in seasons past.   It also limits the opportunity to evaluate the true scrambling ability of our quarterbacks.

In the months to come Talking Irish will reflect back to the Blue and Gold Game to break down players and schemes while spinning speculation as to what the fall may hold for Notre Dame Football fans.  For now let's take a big picture look at what we can take away from the scrimmage which wrapped up spring practice.

Overall it was a good scrimmage with no big surprises good or bad.  Without a doubt freshman (will be a sophomore for the 2014 season) wide receiver Corey Robinson was the most impressive player on the day.  There did not seem to be a ball thrown that he could not catch.  What is most exciting thing about Robinson is that he is only going to be a sophomore, he is still learning the game and looking at his father he may get even taller, making him a very dangerous offensive weapon.

If Robinson was the most impressive the most surprising was Malik Zaire.  What made Zaire's play surprising was how it was matched up against the play of Everett Golson.  Malik has shown he is confident and not planning on backing up Golson this season with his statements , “Without a doubt. There will only be one guy starting on Aug. 30th against Rice at Notre Dame Stadium, there will only be one guy out on the field, and I believe that will be me” in the Blue and Gold he gave validity to those remarks.

Over the next several weeks Talking Irish will be reviewing the Blue and Gold Game (as it is all we have for several months) and breaking down players, coaches and plays.

Notre Dame's newest verbal commit.

Here is a quick look at 6'2" 180lb Safety out of South Oak Cliff High School in Dallas Texas Prentice McKinney.

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Junior Season Highlights

 

 

Highlights and notes from Coach Kelly's Press Conference after the third spring practice 3/19/14

 

CLICK for Full Press Conference

 

 

 

There is allot of talent along with excitement as well as a need for growth as some players now have new roles.

He will use allot of sub-packages and they need to evaluate players to put players in those roles.

Sophomore James Onwualu (who moved from receiver to safety)might be able to handle roles on offense and defense.

Timing was off a bit today after returning from spring break.

Christian Lombard has a sprained wrist from his last drill today from position work.

They won't run Golson to get three yards they will run him when the defense gives them the opportunity to get big plays.  They will use him to set up big plays.

Kelly sees Sr. tight end Ben Kayak as a veteran will be a guy who will settle the offense down if needed and is a reliable receiver.

Greg Bryant has handled himself well and has settled in well at Notre Dame off the field and can now focus on football.  Now he needs to learn the offense.

Jaylon Smith is being given a number of different looks (inside / outside), moving him all over the place.

Sophomore offensive lineman Mike McGlinchey used his reps in practice last season has accelerated his learning curve.

Jr. Linebacker Romeo Okwara has been extreme strong in the weight room but has some work to do.

Incoming freshman Johnny Williams has been on the sidelines for practice.  He has put on some weight from being in the weight room.

Look to see Amir Carlisle be more of a receiver this fall.

On the left side of the O-line Elmer and Stanley are working well. 

Max Redfield has a learning curve to work on although he is an incredible athlete.

Malik Zaire is doing well, Kelly likes the track he is on.

 



Class of 2015 Targets

With spring practice under way and the Annual Blue & Gold Game coming up all eyes are on the current players and the fall of 2014.  However if you want to take a peek into the future here are a handful of Irish targets for the class of 2015.  These are recruits that are both desirable to Notre Dame and have legitimate interest in coming to South Bend.  Keep in mind Brian Kelly and his crew make over 100 offers each year.

Current Class of 2015 Verbal Commits; Offensive Guard Tristen Hoge, Quarterback Blake Barnett Offensive Tackle Jerry Tillery

Defensive End Jashon Cornell 

 

 

 

 

 

Offensive Guard Zach Roberson

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Defensive Tackle Elijah Taylor

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Inside Linebacker Josh Barajas

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Offensive Tackle Reno Rosene

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Running Back  T.J. Simmons

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Safety Prentice McKinney

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Tight End Miles Boykin

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Of course there is plenty of time for recruits to gain and lose interest in and by Notre Dame.

Bold Predictions

We saw some good BOLD predictions for the Irish in 2014 on Rockne's Roundtable and we thought we would share some and comment on them.  We passed on the too bold of predictions posted, i.e. undefeated season, Heisman Trophy talk, National Championships and so on.

Malik Zaire will have at least one TD pass and one rush TD in non-trivial game situations, meaning not when the game has already been decided. This could be either due to Golson injury or wrinkles introduced in the offense with 2 QBs in the game. The latter is preferred. - from NDPR

Although I don't think this is a bold prediction I do think and hope that Malik Zaire does get some playing time as an opportunity to see what he has, prepare for the future and build up some confidence.  Of course this should happen because we want it to not because it has to because of injury or poor play by Golson.

Ben Koyack will be out-performed by Durham Smythe. - from ND89

I doubt it.  However It having Smythe emerge as a very effective number two tight end would be nice.

Greg Bryant will lead the team in rushing yards. - from Tom Loy

Possible but not probable with McDaniel and Folston returning.

Jaylon Smith will earn All American honors - from Tshea

No.  At least not first team.  A more realistic bold prediction would be an Honorable Mention somewhere or a long shot of third team.

Golson announces after Bowl Game he's turning pro with a mid to late 2nd round grade. - from BMD

Possible, but he would be more likely a later lick than 2nd round.

Russell wins the Thorpe award for best DB. - from Amosirish03 & Russell becomes a consensus All American.  - from BMD

It looked like that may be a fair thought after his freshman season however his sophomore campaign would make me think twice about either one of these.

Pre Spring Practice Press Conference

Now that Spring Practice has kicked off here is a snapshot of Brian Kelly's Annual Spring Practice opening Press Conference.

Because of the cold temperatures the team will begin practices inside.

This in the earliest practices have started.  There will be 2 practices then spring break and back for the remaining practices before Easter.  (There are a total of 15 practices)

There are new coaches on both sides of the ball, notability in the coordinator positions.  Mike Denbrock - Offensive Coordinator/Wide Receivers and Brian VanGorder - Defensive Coordinator/Inside Linebackers.  There have also been some coaching responsibility changes. 

Kelly describes the team as "a talented team but inexperienced in a number of areas"

On Golson; he is a hard workier and they are going to work on consistancey and communication.

Although Nick Martin is listed as a guard/tackle his IS  a center.

Matthias Farley was moved from Safety to Cornerback.  Farley came to South Bend as a Receiver.

James Onwualu was moved from Receiver to Safety.

Areas of inexperience as stated by Brian Kelly; quarterback, defensive line and inside linebacker.

On starting left tackle.  Kelly mentions Elmer, Stanley, McGlinchey and Lombard.  Although Kelly does not buy into the blind side left tackle.  Mentioning most athletic and size Ronnie Stanley, most comfortable and time there it's Steve Elmer.  They mostly identify players as a tackle not a left or right.

Ishaq Williams will play like Prince Shembo coming off the edge with his hand on the ground but he can and will drop back into coverage.

Injury Status as it pertains to contact

Nick Baratti everything but full contact

Nick Martin - No contact

Ben Council - No contact

Devin Butler - out for spring

Jarrett Grace - slow progress, still healing.

Tony Springman - out for spring

Positions are up for grabs this spring.  There are no guaranteed positions.

On Jaylon Smith.  Looking for more consistency and leadership.