Still, a game with rainy conditions, in Florida, on New Year’s Day, facing an opponent with a solid defense, especially in the secondary against a shaky passer, with multiple key ND players suspended, and seeing a last minute stripping of a captaincy from a defensive star didn’t inspire much pre-game confidence. An opening 35 yard strike from Brandon Wimbush to Equaniemous St. Brown restored it. Watching Josh Adams rush for a loss of three on a 4th and 1 behind the Joe Moore Award winning offensive line snatched it back away.

And so started another ride on roller coaster that is Irish fandom. The defense, as they have so often this season, upheld their part of the bargain. While they failed to register a single takeaway all game from an LSU team that does a fantastic job protecting the ball, although in this game, it appeared they really wanted the Irish to recover one of their many fumbles, they forced the LSU offense to enter in to a first quarter punt fest.

The problem: Notre Dame decided LSU needed another team to tango and joined the dance.

But with the maddening frustrations the first half, Wimbush failing to complete the easiest of passes, the Irish running questionable trick plays, and #33Trucking trying to figure out how to start its collective engine came glimmers of hope. The Irish defense stood tall on the goal line to force an LSU field goal which they promptly missed. After the Irish forced another LSU field goal attempt, this time with a different LSU kicker missing the try, Ian Book took the helm in the two minute drill and, showing shades of Thomas Rees (I cannot believe I just typed those words), led the Irish down the field for successful Justin Yoon field goal.

The 3-0 Irish lead at the half still wasn’t much to inspire confidence. Whether Wimbush was still suffering from migraines or just flat-out failing to execute, it was hard for us to all believe that Notre Dame once again was staring a QB controversy in the face. Not only that, it was abundantly clear that Book had to take over.

And, in seemingly true Irish fashion, the QB issue that we all thought would dominate the second half ended up being the last thing on anyone’s mind. An almost inexplicable error on a rolling punt saw a ball careen off an Irish player’s leg and into the waiting arms of the LSU punt team. The Tigers made the Irish pay for the mistake, scoring the first touchdown of the game via a pass completion to stud LSU RB, Derrius Guice.

If 7-3 didn’t seem an already insurmountable task to come back from in this sloppy game, Ian Book threw an interception after leading the Irish into LSU territory. Not only that, the play preceding the interception was a fantastic nine yard run from Tony Jones Jr. that put the Irish into the red zone that was promptly wiped out by a terrible illegal shift penalty that made the already nearing purple-faced Brian Kelly want to explode on the sidelines.

All the nightmares for Irish fans came rushing to the surface. Notre Dame found themselves trailing. They made far more mistakes than their opponent. LSU looked content to bleed the clock, showing the Irish they could dominate on a 75 yard TD drive that lasted 6:34 to bring the lead to 14-6 in the fourth quarter. Hope was all but lost. Painful reminders of past failures from this team and this coaching staff swelled to the surface. Same song, second verse. We’ve all seen this story before and we know how it ends.

Little did we know Book would rewrite the ending to this story.

An impressive 75 yard TD drive, highlighted by a 31 yard Dexter Williams run (who, sadly was promptly yanked after having far too big a role in a sack the next play), a 29 yard completion to Miles Boykin and a career-first TD reception from Louisiana native, Michael Young, brought the game to 14-12. We all knew what was coming next: a two-point try in the rain. If thoughts of the failures in a rain-soaked game at Clemson weren’t already in the front of my mind, my wife made sure that I would by asking me why ND would do this with about half the fourth quarter to go.

This time around, the Irish executed on a beautiful play call. It was a pass, but a high percentage shovel. It put the ball into Josh Adam’s hands. It called upon the strength of the Irish team, the offensive line, to blow LSU off the ball and Quentin Nelson gets all the bonus points in the world for his effort.

pic.twitter.com/xGQVI3kbeX

— OL Watchdog (@OLineScout) January 1, 2018

With the game tied up 14-14, LSU did their best to rip out hopeful Irish hearts. Then the unthinkable happened. We saw an opposing coach play not to lose, kicking a field goal just inches away from the goal line. Coach O’s inexplicable desire to not go for the throat after a review confirmed Guice fell just short of the goal line, on a similar shovel pass that the Irish just converted their two-point conversation, gave a Book-led Irish team one more chance.

After complaining all season that Irish receivers failed to make big plays, we got an all-timer:

ABSOLUTELY JUKED 2 DEFENDERS FOR THE NOTRE DAME WIN. #SCtop10 pic.twitter.com/AQ0wY0ZLbw

— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) January 1, 2018

One of the best secondary’s in the nation flat out got dunked on. An offense led by a Purdue QB transfer, despite how good a game he played, wasn’t enough regardless of how much time the Irish left LSU. Book ended the game with a single kneel down and that was that. The Irish had their first fourth quarter comeback of the season to claim their first January bowl victory since the 1994 Cotton Bowl against Texas A&M.

I will absolutely revel in this fantastic start to 2018 (especially considering Michigan and Stanford both blew leads in their bowl games, Southern Cal got embarrassed in theirs and, if your pettiness extends to Miami and Boston College, you can laugh at them as well); however, you won’t see me walking around in a Citrus Bowl Champion gear. There is still much work to be done and this game alone had examples of every issue that plagued the Irish all season. Plus, ND now stares yet another QB competition this season that will see four horses in the race, a trend that is getting highly concerning in the Brian Kelly era.

Still, this win is quite sweet. Notre Dame beat another quality opponent on a rather decent stage at a neutral site. LSU came to play and threw one hell of an effort at the Irish. Personally, I’m excited to see whether or not the Irish will be able to build off of this victory into the 2018 campaign.

The post There and Back Again: A Citrus Bowl Tale appeared first on Her Loyal Sons.

So, as great as the win against Miami of Ohio was, we can’t help but feel concerned about Brandon Wimbush’s 7-18, 119 yard performance. Yes, three of those passes were for TD’s, allowing for his QBR to not dovetail into horrendous territory, although a 61.5 will earn no more than a solid “meh”. In fact, Wimbush would agree as he gave himself a “C/C+” when interviewed on the NBCSN postgame show.

With this in mind, I wanted to break down every single pass and try to parse his performance. This means looking at every single passing play, whether it was a scramble, sack, thrown away, drop or a play wiped out by a penalty. Here’s what I charted for Wimbush in the game:

That’s 11 out of 20 passes (55%) that were good throws. Oddly enough, one of his completions was an underthrown at Deon McIntosh’s feet. Needless to say, this is far from encouraging.

I was close to bumping this up to 12 on target passes (60%) and crediting Adams with a drop on the opening drive. The pass went off his finger tips and was eerily similar to the great catch Chris Finke made in the fourth quarter on Ian Book’s bomb. I went ahead and credited Wimbush with the overthrow as I feel it’s more fair to put the onus on Wimbush for a more accurate pass rather than a running back laying out for a catch.

However, with that in mind, and looking at who these passes were being thrown to, I found a rather interesting pattern. Take a look at the below:

To me, it’s clear Wimbush has a lot of trust in both ESB and Claypool. Save for the lone overthrow on a long play action attempt to ESB, everything else was on traget to those two. This includes a 50/50 fade that Wimbush trusted Claypool to make a play on, resulting in a TD.

Boykin is the other lone Irish receiver pulled down a completion on a great Wimbush pass (a long TD bomb). This also stood out a bit as my mind immediately went back to the Blue/Gold game in which Wimbush to Boykin seemed like it was going to be a more regular thing than it is now.

Wimbush also looked to make an effort to get Stepherson going in this game. While the drop was a called screen for Stepherson, the other pass that was completely off target looked to be a total miscommunication between the two as Wimbush threw to a route that Stepherson wasn’t running (and Claypool was running wide open beneath him). This drive resulted in the only three and out for the Irish as Wimbush took a sack the very next play (the fake punt saved the Irish from two on the day).

This leads me to wondering if Wimbush is pressing more on throws to people not named Equanimeous and Chase (and maybe even Miles). While Wimbush certainly is having mechanical issues, I do wonder I Wimbush has a mentality of “make this perfect” to receivers he may not have complete trust in, leading to everything going haywire.

The only thing that I can personally relate to is back when I pitched. If my defense made a brutal errors behind me, more often than not, it led to me pressing–not a good thing for someone that didn’t have good strikeout stuff. Anytime this happened, my mechanics, and therefore my accuracy, went to hell. Before long, I’d get the hook and a seat on the bench for losing control of the game.

Part of me wants to feel better about this theory. On one hand, ESB and Claypool have stepped up to be the clear #1 and #2 threats for the Irish. Plus, this has some signs of Wimbush doing what any other first-year starter does, slowly building trust/timing to his WR corps. On the other hand, there’s the terrifying possibility that Wimbush is in his own head and that’s something that’s very hard to simply coach/break someone out of.

Time, and the rest of the season, will tell which is true. I see the encouraging possibilities and potential for this offense as the season goes on. It’s up to Wimbush to execute, excel, and make the passing game into a deadly weapon for the Irish.

The post Let’s Talk About Wimbush and Accuracy appeared first on Her Loyal Sons.

I remember being a ninth grader the last time Notre Dame won the National Championship. Back then, I thought his would happen regularly. Time and adulthood has proved otherwise, but still we press on.

It is funny how our fandom evolves or even ebbs and flows. I buy “The Shirt” every spring, for starters. I think it is a good cause, but more importantly it is a sign post leading to the start of the season.

For years, I was a buyer of the Blue and Gold preview Notre Dame preview magazine; however, I stopped buying after a particularly disappointing season and I thought the magazine had become “too optimistic”. I’m happy to say I’m back now; in fact, I’ve already pre-ordered this season’s edition.

In a summer that has been slow (as always no news is good news), I was heartened last week when Kirk Herbstreit took to twitter to sing the praises of Brandon Wimbush.

All about how much the Irish Defense can improve with new DC. Offense with Wimbush will be nasty! Brandon is gonna have a HUGE year! https://t.co/sHPiYwrZwY

— Kirk Herbstreit (@KirkHerbstreit) June 22, 2017

Over the years, Herbstreit and his buddies at Gameday typically don’t fill the role of avid Notre Dame believers. Yet, here we are and with a simple tweet, we find some hope in the air!

Via Flicker, Credit: Nick Kenrick.

I equate this time to waiting on the phone back in the pre-cell phone era. I feel like I’m back in high school waiting for my buddies to call, anticipating the endless possibilities of roaming the mean streets of suburbia on a Saturday Night! Or, even better, waiting patiently on a girl who I’m sure is going to call…yes possibilities.

But right now, is 4-8 far enough in the rear view mirror?

An inexperienced quarterback, zero collegiate starts…blah who cares about that.

Difficult early test versus Georgia (a dreaded SEC team) at home, no problem! See 2014 Music City Bowl vs. LSU.

What about all the coaching changes? Is that a problem? Nope…I see my beer glass more than half full on that one, especially given the chaos that ensued last year. Things on the coaching front simply have to be better, right?!

Trips to Michigan State, Miami, and Stanford…difficult but doable!

Yes, summer affords us the possibilities of Greer Martini morphing into Thor and turning in a Butkus Award caliber season. Drue Tranquill matches football IQ with enormous potential and makes plays all over the field on defense. The offensive line finds a consistency and dominance that eluded them too often last season, allowing Josh Adams to punch giant holes in opposing defenses.

If nothing else, summer is a time that rekindles my hope and rejuvenates my Notre Dame football spirit. The perceived and apparent blemishes our team may have can be carefully covered up by hope. At the end of last season, I thought that, given all the change, 7-5 was realistic, but the hope of summer has me thinking bigger!

Please, phone, ring soon!!!

The post Waiting for the Phone to Ring appeared first on Her Loyal Sons.

Notre Dame’s James Onwualu tackles NC State’s Matthew Dayes. (Grant Halverson / Getty Images)

I was happy to turn the page on the new year if nothing else than to turn the calendar on one of the worst years of Notre Dame football that I can remember.

Starting on New Year’s Day of 2016 and throughout the season it was seemingly one bad moment after another. Now with the national title playing out tonight, our long Notre Dame nightmare can end.

Or can it?

Since the end of this season, there have numerous coaching changes. When the Irish tee it up on opening day next year, the offensive coordinator, defensive coordinator and special teams coordinator will all be new. Additionally, Paul Longo will not be returning as the strength coach. That is four major components of a football program all in a tremendous state of flux as we head towards the 2017 spring practice season. How those changes are viewed will vary but given the direction of the program over the last twelve months’ change was certainly in order.

Backup QB Brandon Wimbush looking at 2017 like “Hell yeah.” (Photo credit: SupermanTDJesus)

The Irish will also be breaking in a new signal-caller in the spring and the months to follow. Brandon Wimbush will come in with lofty credentials and tons of “potential” but the fact remains he has attempted five career passes. He should get a boost in the return of Josh Adams and Mike McGlinchey both of whom figure to help boost an Irish run game that was far too inconsistent in 2016.

LOWERED EXPECTATIONS

My early view is the Irish will have tepid expectations from the national media. The talking heads will likely focus on the “major changes” the Irish are undergoing and the “hot seat” Brian Kelly is on when discussing Notre Dame football.

The schedule is no peach either. Though the Irish open against a Temple program that is replacing their coach, they match up in week 2 vs. SEC mainstay Georgia.  September closes with back to back road trips to BC and Sparty, followed by a home date with Miami of Ohio. I think a 3-2 September is very likely. October features the bye week and home dates with USC and NC State after an Oct. 7 date with UNC. USC is always hard to figure; they have been so inconsistent lately but looked formidable with a freshman quarterback in the Rose Bowl.

I think the Irish likely head into November at 5-3.  I’m largely basing this on the fact that they squeak out a win over either USC or UNC. At this point, I’m not sure which one. Notre Dame’s luck was so bad last year; I think they will likely get a few breaks from the football gods this fall. November closes the season with trips to Stanford and Miami and home dates with Wake Forest and the always dangerous Naval Academy.

As it looks in early January, I’m going to go 7-5 and a trip to the New Era Pinstripe Bowl. If that is the finish it will be very likely that this year’s off-season changes will give way to bigger ones next off-season.

The post My Early Prediction For Next Year appeared first on Her Loyal Sons.

For the Irish: #9 Malik Zaire (Sr.) and #14 DeShone Kizer (Jr.)

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While either Malik Zaire or DeShone Kizer will take the first snap against Texas on Sept. 4, the Irish ostensibly don’t have a fixed starter.

Coach Brian Kelly announced Aug. 17 that both would play in the opening game.

“We are best prepared to beat Texas by playing both DeShone and Malik,” said Kelly. “If I list our top five playmakers, they are in it. So my ultimate decision was I couldn’t put one of those guys on the sideline against Texas. As it relates to running the offense, the offense is seamless when one of them would come out of the game. There’s not a big change when one is in versus the other. There’s play call differences, but that doesn’t require much change at all. And then there are some situational down and distance and field position consideration that will go into that, as well. This is not a first quarter, second quarter, third quarter, fourth quarter, one guy plays the first and third and one guy plays the second and fourth.”

The shorthand on Kizer is that he is the more accurate passer (with the weaker arm), an adequate runner, a proven winner and a better known entity. Zaire has a smaller body of work, but has a stronger arm and is almost as accurate as Kizer. He’s an exceptional runner and a real headache for opposing defensive coordinator when the play breaks down and he improvises.

This January, Irish Elvis and I debated who should start at quarterback. You can read our arguments for Zaire and Kizer, as well as a hypothetical about Brandon Wimbush.

While I personally prefer Kizer, I’ve long said that I want the quarterback who can give the Irish the best opportunity to win as many games as possible. Kelly thinks playing both of them increases his chances of beating Texas and I trust his judgment.

Credit: CFB Film Room

For the Enemy: #15 Brad Kaaya (Jr.)

Credit: Miami Herald

After starting under center for the Hurricanes for two years, Brad Kaaya is being showered with pre-season accolades.

The 6-foot-4, 215 pound signal caller is a preseason Heisman favorite, on the Manning Award watch list, named to All-ACC preason teams and mentioned when quarterbacks in the 2017 NFL draft are discussed.

Kaaya’s 2015 campaign was certainly impressive. He completed 61.2 percent of his passes for 3,238 yards and 16 touchdowns. He threw just five interceptions. With new coach Mark Richt, himself a former quarterback, calling the shots in Coral Gables, many expect Kaaya to improve in his junior campaign.

Here’s the book on Kaaya: He’s an experienced player who is good at reading through his progressions and making the right call. Kaaya appears perfectly comfortable in the pocket. When facing pressure last year, CFB Film Room says he took off running less than 1 percent of the time.

I watched three of his games last year – Cincinnati, Clemson and Virginia Tech – and was struck by two things. His receivers last year dropped a lot of balls. And Kaaya tends to airmail his throws when he misses. On the whole, I felt he was pretty careful with the football. I thought he showed quick decision making and wasn’t afraid to take what the defense was giving him. That limited the sacks during a season where the offensive line showed real holes. Kaaya’s accuracy suffered when he was pressured, so getting in the seasoned QB’s face is going to be a must to limit his effect on the game.

Half of Notre Dame’s opponents this year will be breaking in new quarterbacks. Kaaya is a unique exception in that he’s already started 25 games. While I don’t personally think he’s worth all the preseason hype, he is – by far – the quarterback on the Irish’s schedule who concerns me the most.

Credit: CFB Film Room

The post Quarterback: Know Thyself, Know Thy Enemy appeared first on Her Loyal Sons.

Tight end Henry Mondeaux (19) and quarterback Will Grier (13) listen as coach Jordan Palmer during the Nike 7on7 elimination play at Nike World Headquarters. Credit: Steve Dykes / USA TODAY Sports

“I hate it,” Jordan Palmer told FOX Sports’ Stewart Mandel and Bruce Feldman on Monday (listen here). “As a quarterback, you’ve got to get into a rhythm. You’ve got to know that hey, we went three-and-out on this last drive but I’ve got a lot more drives today. It puts quarterbacks in a situation where they try and force it. If you’ve got the curl and you’ve got the flat and you’re not sure you have the next series or not, you’re always going to throw the curl. And sometimes it’s going to be forced in there.”

Palmer, who was introduced by Feldman as the “less famous brother of Carson Palmer,” knows Zaire, Kizer and sophomore quarterback Brandon Wimbush well. The former UTEP star either worked with the trio at quarterback camps such as Elite 11 or studied their game film.

Palmer suggested that “politics” had crept into Kelly’s decision making, suggesting that picking Kizer over Zaire would have put an arrow in other schools’ quiver when recruiting.

“It makes it really tough when you have Malik battling back from an injury, it’s hard to just go with someone else,” he said. “Because, from a recruiting standpoint, that allows a lot of other schools to sit there and go, ‘Hey man. They replace guys. If you get hurt, you’re out.’”

While Palmer implied that he preferred Kizer over Zaire, he added a tidbit that should make Irish fans smile.

“I’ve heard some murmurs that the most talented quarterback on the roster is Brandon Wimbush,” he said.

Here are Palmer’s full comments regarding the Notre Dame quarterback race:

FELDMAN: You know both Malik Zaire and DeShone Kizer really well. You know Brandon Wimbush really well as well. What did you make of the quarterback news there when they said both guys would play?

PALMER: “You know, I think it’s interesting because with what’s happening right now with these quarterbacks, there is an element of politics involved. And if I’m Brian Kelly, and Malik Zaire gets hurt, DeShone Kizer comes in and takes the job. I don’t want a player at a key position like quarterback to lose his job due to injury. So it makes it really tough when you have Malik battling back from an injury, it’s hard to just go with someone else. Because, from a recruiting standpoint, that allows a lot of other schools to sit there and go, ‘Hey man. They replace guys. If you get hurt, you’re out.’

“From my understanding, it was pretty close. But it’s hard to compare those two guys. I mean, DeShone is 6-foot-5, 245 (pounds) and can run. I think with DeShone he offers a better opportunity to open the offense. I think he’s further along in terms of understanding the intricacies of the playbook. And with Malik, you get a lot of improvisation and his ability to extend the play. But two great kids. Two really talented guys, just really different styles.

“Lastly, I’ve heard some murmurs that the most talented quarterback on the roster is Brandon Wimbush. So that’s going to be something really interesting to watch down the road when they get past the season.”

FELDMAN: How feasible is it for two guys to rotate in and out for a long period of time and have success with that?

PALMER: “I think it’s tough. I hate it. As a quarterback, you’ve got to get into a rhythm. You’ve got to know that hey, we went three-and-out on this last drive but I’ve got a lot more drives today. It puts quarterbacks in a situation where they try and force it. If you’ve got the curl and you’ve got the flat and you’re not sure you have the next series or not, you’re always going to throw the curl. And sometimes it’s going to be forced in there.

“I don’t like it. I also think the other 10 guys in the huddle need to see the same guy every single time. Every play matters in college football. You only get so many snaps and so any of these little things like who’s calling the play and who’s in right now – that changes the energy level in the huddle. That changes the different people’s opinions. I think it’s a really tough situation. So my hope is that one of those guys separates themselves week one and they can hurry up and pick a starter.”

The post Former NFL QB: I “Hate” ND’s Time Share Idea appeared first on Her Loyal Sons.

Depth, baby! Everything this fall will revolve around the exceptional depth that has slowly been built year over year. The coaching staff has recruited exceptionally well over the past few years (the 2017 class aka #IRISHEL17E and the 2018 class aka #IrishBouND18 are stacking up quite nicely as well) especially addressing specific positional needs.

The depth is far and above where it has been in years past. The offense returns multiple assets at every position. Proven running backs Tarean Folston and Josh Adams will lead the ground game along with Dexter Williams guaranteed to be fighting for carries.

The offensive line depth is nothing short of incredible considering it lost two future NFL starters from last year in Ronnie Stanley and Nick Martin. Junior guard Quenton Nelson has been named a Sports Illustrated preseason All-American and senior tackle Mike McGlinchey is garnering elite status as the 64th best player in the nation – according to ESPN. These two woolly mammoths will anchor the left side of the offensive line, and the right side anticipates a battle between junior Alex Bars and seniors Hunter Bivin and Colin McGovern.

Tight end, once a surging position of depth, took a hit in the academic ineligibility ruling against Alize Jones. As reported, Jones will miss the entire 2016 season. The return of transferring/not transferring Tyler Luatua provides the group with a huge (255 lbs. pun intended) veteran h-back, and his decision to not transfer now proves to be vital to the position group. Nic Weishar and Durham Smythe are both capable and consistent targets from a three point stance and split wide – this groups presence and overall utility within the red zone should not be understated.

Credit: Matt Cashore

The wide receiver cupboard is full – yet unproven. The only shoe-in to start is senior Torii Hunter Jr. Behind him will be an intriguing battle between Equanimeous St. Brown, Corey Holmes, Miles Boykin, C.J. Sanders, and potentially true freshman/early enrollee Kevin Stepherson. Finishing on the offensive side of the ball, who could forget the quarterback situation, in which the Irish arguably have the most collective talent at the position in the entire nation (including Brandon Wimbush)? *Insert your own opinions about the QB situation* and find my own here.

The defensive line (also unfortunately known as the Irish’s Achilles heel in recent years) is loaded with talent and (FINALLY) depth. Isaac Rochell, Jarron Jones and Daniel Cage are battle tested veterans while Andrew Trumbetti, Jay Hayes, Jerry Tillery, Jonathan Bonner, Micah Dew-Treadway and Elijah Taylor all look to make significant impacts and potentially break out. Also, look for the word “sub packages” to be thrown around as highly talented true freshman defensive ends Daelin Hayes and Khalid Kareem could be utilized as pass rushers in such schemes.

Nyles Morgan (Credit: Chicago Tribune)

Nyles Morgan is an automatic upgrade at the Mike linebacker position, and while replacing the “once in a century” freakish athleticism of Jaylon Smith is no small task, the linebacker corps is well stocked with young talent. Te’von Coney saw limited action last year and is reported to be fully recovered from a shoulder injury suffered in the Fiesta Bowl. His classmates and other blue chip linebacker recruits, Asmar Bilal (2015 defensive scout team player of the year) and Josh Barajas redshirted last year. This young talent will push upperclassmen, Greer Martini and James Onwaulu for reps.

The secondary returns Jekyll and Hyde aka Max Redfield along with sixth year Cal transfer Avery Sebastian and fan favorite Drue Tranquil – all at safety. Garnering spring ball notoriety was true freshman and early enrollee Devin Studstill, who was my “most likely to make an immediate impact” of the 2016 recruiting class.

Rounding out the secondary at cornerback is senior multi year starter Cole Luke along with juniors Nick Watkins and Devin Butler. They are surrounded by younger talent in sophomore Nick Coleman and Shaun Crawford, who was slated to be the team’s starting nickel back last year until suffering a torn ACL in fall camp. Crawford drew incredibly high praise during the 2015 fall camp before his injury, and his return provides a massive athletic boost to the secondary.

Credit: UHND.com

Over the past few years the Notre Dame special teams have often been regarded as the “not-so-special teams.” Last year, however, the group made great strides and improvements. Returning “The Big Three” key specialists in kicker Justin Yoon, punter Tyler Newsome, and long snapper Scott Daly should pay dividends for the special teams in 2016. DeShone Kizer has been relieved of his holding duties and he will be replaced by Montgomery VanGorder. The Irish also have the luxury of Sanders’ electric and ever-elusive return skills. As a true freshman, Sanders returned both a punt and a kickoff for a touchdown last season. The special teams should continue to build off of last year’s success.

With the well-rounded depth in place, #NDFB is primed for an entertaining fall. Don’t forget that it is your civic duty as a Domer to recite one Hail Mary each day of camp for the shake of keeping this vital depth healthy!

Cheers and Go Irish!

The post Analyzing the Fall Camp Depth Chart appeared first on Her Loyal Sons.

Credit: Gameface Media

Perhaps you’ve heard of the “beer mile,” where participants drink a full-sized beer and then run a quarter mile four times over. It’s a competitive event, sure, but not one I’d suggest doing during the hot August heat in South Bend, Ind.

Fall camp under Brian Kelly usually opens in the first week of August, which is great if you’re not happening to reach legal drinking age soon thereafter. So let’s pour one out for senior TE Durham Smythe, junior RB Justin Brent, junior S Drue Tranquill and junior DE Jay Hayes who will be turning 21 between Aug. 9 and Aug. 16 this year. (Incidentally, Smythe was born on the day Jerry Garcia died.)

Here are some other facts about the Notre Dame football team, some stranger than others:

• The most popular day to be born among scholarship players is Wednesday. The least popular day is Sunday.
• The most popular month to be born was October – 11 players. The least popular was February, May and November – three each.
• Four of the players born in October were born on a Wednesday – junior OL Jimmy Byrne, sophomore NG Brandon Tiassum, sophomore S Nicco Fertitta and freshman WR Kevin Stepherson.
• Six players will have game this year on their birthdays: OL Hunter Bivin & LB James Onwualu (vs. Texas); Stepherson (vs. Syracuse); OL Colin McGovern & RB Josh Adams (vs. Miami); and TE Jacob Matuska (vs. Navy).
• The Notre Dame football team went 5-0 on days their players were born, beating Washington twice and Vanderbilt, Navy and Michigan once apiece.
• There’s a whopping 2,025 days difference between the team’s oldest player (OL Mark Harrell, 23) and its youngest (LB Jonathan Jones, 17).
• Harrell is the team’s lone 23 year old. There are three 22-year-olds, 16 21-year-olds, 17 20-year-olds, 21 19-year-olds, 21 18-year-olds and 2 17-year-olds.
• 

  Credit: C’est La Vie Cakes

  Freshman DE Ade Ogundeji is likely the only player on the team whose shoe size (18) is higher than his age (17).

• Harrell, a fifth year senior, is older than 6th year safety Avery Sebastian.
• DL John Montelus is the youngest senior on the team. He won’t be 21 until September. Sophomore K Justin Yoon is 29 days younger than Montelus.
• WR Corey Holmes is the oldest junior on the team. He’s already 21. TE Tyler Luatua is the youngest junior; there are nine sophomores older than him.
• DT Micah Dew-Treadway is the youngest sophomore. He’s 18 and there are six freshman older than him.
• S Spencer Perry is the oldest freshman. He’s 19.
• Players who share the same exact birthdate (day, month & year): Bivin & Onwualu; junior OL Alex Bars & Montelus; junior OL Quenton Nelson & NG Peter Mokwuah; Luatua and sophomore CB Nick Coleman; sophomore QB Brandon Wimbush & long snapper John Shannon; freshmen WR Chase Claypool & S Jalen Elliott.
• Yoon was born four days after O.J. Simpson was found not guilty of double murder.
• Freshman S Donte Vaughn was born on the same day that musician John Denver died.
• Wimbush and Shannon lived on the same Earth as comedian Chris Farley for just one day.
• The Drudge Report gains national notoriety after breaking news of President Bill Clinton’s affair with intern Monica Lewinsky. The Eichenberg family welcomes their son Liam the following day.
• Freshman S Devin Studstill and J.K. Rowling’s second Harry Potter novel, “Harry Potter & The Chamber of Secrets” emerged on the same day.

Thanks to Blue & Gold Illustrated’s fall preview for the birthdates of most Notre Dame players.

The post Four Irish Footballers Turning 21 During Fall Camp appeared first on Her Loyal Sons.

Courtesy of FOX Sports 1

Former Notre Dame quarterback Brady Quinn says redshirt junior Malik Zaire should be named the starter in 2016 – and he laid out his argument to FOX Sports’ Bruce Feldman Tuesday.

Quinn, who is now a FOX Sports 1 analyst, said he believed “seniority should rule” in choosing the signal caller for the game versus Texas and beyond. He also believes starting redshirt sophomore DeShone Kizer at quarterback could lead to a potentially unstable situation.

“[If] they go with Kizer first – if you bench him and Zaire flourishes and he plays really well, it could damage the confidence of DeShone Kizer. Who knows if he can rebound from that?” asked Quinn. “Let’s just say…Kizer starts and doesn’t play well. Zaire replaces him. And he [Zaire] ends up being the quarterback at Notre Dame for another year or maybe he leaves because he doesn’t feel like he was treated right in the first place. Who knows? But then you’ve got another guy in Brandon Wimbush, who may be nipping at his [Kizer’s] heels, looking to beat him out again. It just doesn’t seem like a stable situation and the best way to go about it.”

I admire Quinn, who reigned over one of the most potent offenses in Notre Dame history and holds more than 30 records at his alma mater. But the only part of that thought I agree with is: “Who knows?”

Coach Brian Kelly should pick the player that can execute his offense the best and put Notre Dame in the best position to win. But Quinn wants to hedge, reasoning:

• If Zaire starts, but falters, who really cares? You’ve got DeShone Kizer and Zaire will leave.
• If Kizer starts, but falters, then you’ve alienated Zaire and given Kizer a crisis of confidence.
• Therefore, start Zaire.

I believe Quinn overlooked something important. If Kizer’s confidence is so shattered by a benching in 2016, then Notre Dame is going to start 2017 with a supremely talented Brandon Wimbush. Quinn says Kizer has a “calm, almost unwavered personality” – so why does he think Kizer may be permanently distraught by a demotion?

The coaching staff will surely be second guessed if the player they start stumbles and his backup proves capable. But I’d much rather Kelly and his crew pick the individual they think can win them ball games than make decisions based on arbitrary factors like “seniority.”

Here’s another point for Quinn to consider: Kizer has 724 snaps under center; Zaire has 212 snaps. Zaire may have had more time with the playbook, but Kizer is more experienced where it counts.

Here’s the entirety of Quinn’s thoughts on the QB situation, starting with a comparison to a similar dilemma Ohio State encountered last year.

“Most universities would love to be in a position that Notre Dame is in right now. Granted, that comes with some potential headache if you don’t manage it right. And actually, one school that was in that exact position last year – after coming off of winning a national championship – was Ohio State. Now I think there’s some similarities and there’s some differences between what Ohio State was presented with in regards to their quarterback situation and what Notre Dame is presented with this season going into their quarterback position. So I’ll try to show you a little bit of both.

“In Ohio State’s case, they had a guy in J.T. Barrett who really kind of won them the Big Ten that season after replacing Braxton Miller, right? So I think a lot of people had seen the body of work and what he was able to accomplish. So, coming into last season, I think a lot of people thought he should have been the guy – at least, in my opinion, that’s how I felt. He had the greater body of work. Whereas Cardale Jones kind of lead them – now granted, they were very, very, very pivotal games given the Big Ten championship, (national) semi-final game, national championship. But it was only three games. And it was a very run-heavy offense behind Ezekiel Elliott, so it seemed like everyone else was doing a bunch of heavy lifting around Cardale Jones. It wasn’t necessarily him doing that.

“So, going into the season, of course instead they did the exact opposite. Cardale Jones ends up being the guy, then getting benched and J.T. Barrett gets in. It’s almost as if they couldn’t find a rhythm because they didn’t know who to go with in the first place that would given them the best chance at the beginning of the season. I kind of feel like Notre Dame is in a similar situation in the sense that DeShone Kizer now has the greater body of work. If you go back to last season, he was 8-3 as a starter. Malik Zaire – coming off – the few instances that he’s had of actually playing and starting. I think if you go back to the Music City Bowl versus LSU a couple of years ago and then limited action – Texas last season and Virginia a little bit last year. And then ever before that – the second half vs. USC two years ago when he kind of emerged onto the scene.

“Through those small instances, you’ve seen flashes of what he’s capable of. I think he’s got a lot of explosiveness running the football, maybe moreso than Kizer even though Kizer had like the second longest rushing touchdown for a Notre Dame quarterback in its history. I still think he’s the better runner of the two and probably the bigger arm. But you have this calm, almost unwavered personality in the way in which DeShone Kizer likes to lead. I think the coaches see that and they feel comfortable with that and they feel like he’s probably the better of the two to get them in the right position and into the right play. But I don’t think it’s going – I don’t know if it will play out that way, because you’re have to look at it from this angle, Bruce. You can probably tap in with some of this.

“You know, Malik will be graduated after this year although he’ll have another year of eligibility. So you have to look at it this way: If you put in Malik Zaire first and he goes out and he plays the way he showcased a little bit last season in some small instances that we’ve seen in the past of him, then you’re not necessarily in a bad situation. Because then Kizer is still a year behind. He’s still going to have some time like to showcase exactly what he did last season. Whereas if Zaire doesn’t do well, you can always bench him and go to Kizer. And then Malik Zaire would be able to transfer and he’ll still have that extra year and Brandon Wimbush would the backup competing against all the rest as they continue to stack up.

“If you switch it around the other way – and they go with Kizer first – if you bench him and Zaire flourishes and he plays really well, it could damage the confidence of DeShone Kizer. Who knows if he can rebound from that? I mean, again if you go back to last year – if you look at Notre Dame’s situation with Zaire and Golson competing for the quarterback job, DeShone Kizer was nowhere even in the discussion. You know, Brandon Wimbush has a lot of upside, a lot of ability. If you go and – let’s just say that there in place – Kizer starts and doesn’t play well. Zaire replaces him. And he ends up being the quarterback at Notre Dame for another year or maybe he leaves because he doesn’t feel like he was treated right in the first place. Who knows? But then you’ve got another guy in Brandon Wimbush who’d maybe be nipping at his heels looking to beat him out again. It just doesn’t seem like a stable situation and the best way to go about it. In my opinion, I always – seniority should rule. And they should go with the older guy. And hopefully they will in this case.

“I think that’s what’s a little bit different than Ohio State scenario. And there’s X factors to them both, too. I think, in Ohio State’s case, the absence of Tom Herman, who was the OC during the national championship year – his absence had a big factor in how that offense struggled to really find a rhythm, regardless of the quarterback.

“In Notre Dame’s case, I actually think the X factor is the fact that you’ve got a lefty and a righty. And your entire team has to adjust to a different spin on the football and the fact that the plays are going to be formatted in a different way. And teams are going to attack you differently based on the arm of your quarterback because now his weakness will be the opposite side of the other one. So the whole entire team has to adjust around the quarterback, depending on which one is in the game.”

QUINN ON DESHONE KIZER

“I just think it’s his pocket presence. He seems to be unflappable in the pressure situations. … I love his presence. I love how calm he is. And he’s just a football player in the sense that he’s not the most athletic, as you pointed out. He’s not going to be the one you go down the field on, who really excites you as far as how explosive he can be or the big plays he can make. But understands the offense. He knows how to get into his quick throws when he needs them. He knows how to protect himself when he needs to. He works the system the best of the three. And I think that’s why the coaches probably feel most confident in him going into training camp this year.”

The post Brady Quinn: Start Malik Zaire At QB appeared first on Her Loyal Sons.

Courtesy: @BigPermU93 / Twitter

Sixteen Notre Dame football players signed autographs and met community members as part of a fundraiser Thursday for Prevent Child Abuse St. Joseph County.

The meet-and-greet was part of a four-day event called Roofsit, which is in its 20th year. It’s the brainchild of two U93 DJs who wanted to help abuse victims. This year, their on-air marathon and fundraiser is happening at Martin’s Super Market in Granger.

Players who participated were: QBs DeShone Kizer (#14), Montgomery VanGorder (#4) and Brandon Wimbush (#7); TE Nic Weishar (#82); P Tyler Newsome (#85); K John Chereson (#43); CB Jalen Elliott (#21) and Troy Pride Jr. (#18); S Drue Tranquill (#23); RBs Austin Ross (#28), Bailey Ross (#49) and Josh Anderson (#46); LB James Onwualu (#17), LS Scott Daly (#61); DE Isaac Rochell (#90, but not wearing a jersey). I’m not sure who #41 is, but it looks like WR Buster Sheridan. (It’s walk-on linebacker Jimmy Thompson, according to BGI’s Lou Somogyi.)

To my knowledge, this is Pride’s first reveal of his jersey number. Pride said in a May 19 interview with Blue & Gold Illustrated that he has a fondness for the number 17, which he first wore during Little League. The South Carolina speedster wore #5 in high school, but said he didn’t care what number he was assigned. “I could be a number 63, and I’ll go out there and be a lockdown 63,” he told the publication.

Today is the final day of the Roofsit fundraiser. You can donate in one of four ways:

• Visit Martin’s Super Market, 7355 Heritage Square, Granger.
• Visit the online donation page.
• Call the fundraising hotline: 1-800-853-KIDS (5437)
• Write a check, payable to Roofsit, and send it to P.O. Box 6535, South Bend, IN 46660

In its two decade history, Roofsit has raised more than $2 million funds. Last year’s grantees were agencies that assist survivors of abuse and educate the public about child violence. They included: CAPS of Elkhart County, CASA of St. Joseph County, The Center for the Homeless, Dunebrook, Kidspeace, St. Margaret’s House, Hannah’s House, The CASIE Center and Healthy Families of St Joseph County, among others.

The post ND Football Supports Fundraiser To Prevent Child Abuse appeared first on Her Loyal Sons.