I think that the 2nd half last week was a turning point for this team.   The team, for the first time, felt momentum.  They felt fire, and they felt like they could actually win a game. 

Who sparked that belief?  Two players on the minds of UCLA’s defensive back field:  Golden Tate and Duval Kamara

The Orange County Register talked to some of the Bruins about what they’ve seen on tape.  A few highlights…

“He’s [Tate] brought an explosion to their offense,” free safety Dennis Keyes said. “They have a deep threat now. That helps any offense, when you have that deep threat you can stretch the field and that opens up a lot of things.

“That’s something we’re going to have to prepare for this week — being able to guard all levels of the field. He came in and really changed that offense.”

[Up until Purdue...] They couldn’t pass the football, and they couldn’t rush the football. They couldn’t make a play.  But that changed with the emergence of Tate and Duval Kamara, another freshman receiver. In the second half of the loss at Purdue, Notre Dame passed for 298 yards.

Both have shown that a comfort level within the offense is not a prerequisite to making plays. Kamara, who has 11 receptions for 116 yards, is 6-foot-5 and athletic. Tate has the ability to run by opposing defenders, which shows clearly on tape.

UCLA defensive coordinator DeWayne Walker said Tate will be the fastest outside receiver the Bruins have had to defend this season.

“These are some really good young players, and we are concerned. We’re going to have to treat them like they’re seniors. We’re not going to treat them like they’re freshman,” Walker said. “We’re going to have to line up and play them like they’ve been there for a long time.”

So what’s so interesting about this?  Not that Tate is fast, or that Kamara can play.  We all knew that.  What’s interesting is that our upcoming opponents are focused in on Freshman.  Freshman.  They are respecting the talent and acknowledging that these young players are by themselves changing the Irish offense.  There’s no Brady Quinn or the Shark or Darius on the lips of UCLA defenders.  Just a couple of kids that just 5 weeks ago had never played a single down in college football.  5 WEEKS AGO.

I know things are bad, but it’s things like this that only point to a brighter future.  When Notre Dame is bringing the fastest receiver a team has faced to the Pac-10, you know that times are changing.  We have athletes now that we haven’t had in 10 years.

And let’s face it, the kid’s got wheels.

Combining our Frosh and Sophomore classes with our current recruiting class, assuming it holds together, will bring the talent level at ND to a level I have not seen.  Ever.  There won’t be a lot of experience, and it will take that experience to make this team great.  But the team will be better. Then really good.  Then awesome. 

This season is what happens when Freshman are the guys the other team is worrying about.  When Freshman have to be the game-changers and breakers.  It’s a tall order to fill, and so far the talent hasn’t made up for the lack of experience. But I think last week was a turning point in the development of this team.  They started to have that fire and determination.  All sparked by a couple of 18 year old frosh. 

In two years, we’ll see what it’s like when it’s those same players, as Juniors, are the concern for our opponents. 

Look out.

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