'10 UT S Chris Badger (BYU Transfer)

[GoldenIsThyFame]

“@ChiTribHamilton: Chris Badger may return early from Mormon mission, eyeing #NotreDame spring practice. Trib story: http://t.co/ofPUj5F”

 

[Old Man Mike]

Interesting. If Kelly has solid affirmation of this, it could make a recruiting difference this year. I.e. one less DB necessary.

 

[tadman95]

Wouldn't he have been back next year anyway? I guess he will get the benefit of spring ball plus the training table and workout program.

 

[Old Man Mike]

My Kelly comment was predicated on the thought that a springball-readied Badger would be more likely to be fit for duty than a summer-only Badger. May not make any difference in Kelly's mind, but....

 

[jason_h537]

Interesting. If Kelly has solid affirmation of this, it could make a recruiting difference this year. I.e. one less DB necessary.

I dont think it'll have an impact since they are focused on a 3rd corner, and you take Shaq regardless

 

[Big23Head]

Here is the full article about Badger trying to come back:

Mission man Badger eyeing early Notre Dame return

 

[GoldenIsThyFame]

The return of Chris Badger, a freshman safety who left Notre Dame last September for a two-year Mormon mission, is apparently up in the air. Badger is in the second year of teaching in Guayaquil, Ecuador. He was expected to be available for the Irish at the start of the 2012 season.

“We’re not really sure,” Kelly said. “We’re going to take the bye week to kind of figure that one out. I haven’t had any contact and we’re really going to have to sit down and figure out what that situation is.”

Notre Dame coach Brian Kelly talks injuries, personnel

 

[Buster Bluth]

So he may not want to play? Not want to play at Notre Dame? Kelly could probably put that scholarship up to good use if that were the case.

 

[NDPhilly]

Tommy Schutt anyone?

 

[ErieIrish13]

So he may not want to play? Not want to play at Notre Dame? Kelly could probably put that scholarship up to good use if that were the case.

If thats the case, Im not sure why he wouldn't. I took it more as they don't know when he's returning. Hopefully he shows up because he's a player.

 

[Whiskeyjack]

So he may not want to play? Not want to play at Notre Dame? Kelly could probably put that scholarship up to good use if that were the case.

It's when he comes back, not if, that's up in the air. Badger will need special dispensation from the Mormon church to cut his mission short and return in time for spring camp. No one knows if he'll get it.

 

[Rhode Irish]

So he may not want to play? Not want to play at Notre Dame? Kelly could probably put that scholarship up to good use if that were the case.

If thats the case, Im not sure why he wouldn't. I took it more as they don't know when he's returning. Hopefully he shows up because he's a player.

I think its definitely unclear what Kelly's quote means. I'm not sure if it was a bad job by the reporter in not explaining it fully or if Kelly was intentionally vague, but this is certainly a situation worth monitoring.

 

[Whiskeyjack]

From an Eric Hansen article published today:

If safety Chris Badger still feels like ND is the place for him after he completes his two-year Mormon mission this spring, then the number becomes six under

Perhaps there is some doubt over whether Badger is coming.

 

[IrishinSyria]

Do we even want him on scholly when he comes back? 2 years is a looong time to be off the field and- more importantly- off any sort of training regime.

 

[tadman95]

The fact Kelly/staff haven't had any contact with him is a concern, especially since he was apparently trying to come in early a few months back. Since it's October, you would think the communication would be pretty solid at this point for a January enrollment.

Hope it works out.

 

[ndfi78]

His brother has repeatedly said on this very forum that he wants to come back to ND.

 

[TerryTate]

From his brother on II:

Some where asking for an update on Chris....

He's doing well.

There was some question when he would be allowed to be released from his mission. The idea of trying to come back to catch the Spring semester was thrown out there and we tried to make it happen, unfortunately Chris didn't get approval to do that.

His official "release date" is still up in the air but worst case scenario, he'll still be able to report to ND in early June for summer.

Rules during mormon missions are pretty tight so he's not allowed to call anyone or email for very long. He does send weekly updates to the family and he cc's the player personal/rep at ND on those. I also know that he writes Coach Martin often to keep him in the loop.

In regards to working out, he's been working out each day by waking up an hour early (500 am). Mormon missionaries are worked like dogs.. He wrote in his last email about his daily schedule:

-up at 5 to workout.. get ready from 6-630, eat breakfast until 7, study language/Bible/Book of Mormon from 7-9, then they have to be out of the house doing service projects, helping members or proselyting until 9 at night. States he's never finished his day before 9 once on his mission. Then he tries and do 30 minutes of working out before bed at 1030.. They get 1/2 day a week "off" where is the only time to write home, shop, do laundry... Hasn't had a full day off in over a year (no vacation time, ect).. So its not like Tim Tebow posing with kids in the Phillipines during Spring break, it's fairly intense stuff...

He says he's doing sprints/speed training drills 4x a week, then the other times lots of abs/core, heavy sand bag, resistance training. He says he's dropped about 5-10 pounds and is at about 190 from 200 at his peak. He did say that his "abs never looked better!!"

In terms of transitions after mormon missions, its a legitimate concern by some. Following Utah/BYU kids closely and from a far, seems like everyone is different. For some, they're never the same. For others, it gives them time to blossom so to speak. I do know that Chris has done more out there in terms of trying to keep up than any of those guys. So we're optimistic.

Never once has he mentioned any other school. He talks about ND each week in his emails and how excited he is to get back to see his buddies on the team and to start training again. So he's 100% coming back to ND from every indication I've seen and has stated that repeatedly.

Each week he writes how excited he is to come back "and train 12 hours a day" and having been the main one through his football/training his whole life I've never seen him see as fired up and with such a chip on his shoulder to prove he can play at this level.. He wrote and said he keeps clippings on his mirror from the internet from a Florida St Scout forum that was ripping on him when they found out that Florida St offered a white safety from Utah early in the process and also other stuff that says he doesn't "fit" what ND is recruiting now (I send him that )

He'll obviously have a long way to go coming back, getting in shape and fighting the depth chart, so we'll see. But he states he's learned a lot about committing oneself to a cause with 100% conviction and about truly working hard. He talks about weekly how much he misses football, the contact and camaraderie. So, you'll see a pretty hungry and motivated kid when he gets back, so will see how it all turns out.

 

[ClausentoTate]

6-1, 190lb safety with a great work ethic and a body that's two years more developed than the incoming freshman class... can't wait to have him! Also can't wait for Longo to get ahold of him and for him to have more than 1-2 hours a day to train.

Thanks for the update, much appreciated.

Definition of RKG.

 

[NDFANnSouthWest]

There is a reason BYU players look so big...because they work their butts off while on thier missions. This kid will show up in June and turn heads...mark it.

 

[Buster Bluth]

Great read. I think that settles it. That is some serious, serious effort too.

Does anyone else see the irony in going to a Catholic university after spending two years in Ecuador (I think it's like 97% Catholic) on a Mormon mission (i.e. converting a bunch of Catholics)?

 

[phgreek]

From his brother on II:

...this kid hit my RADAR because of ND...never really get too much into the locals because they are almost always BYU, Utah...

just watching and listening to him...I had a sense he was not the typical kid. He seemed much more calm, comfortable in his own skin, wiser...in a word mature.

I think he put way more into this decision than alot of kids who commit. I don't know how he'll turn out, but I think he has some good raw talent...I have no doubt he has poise and composure....yet he is very fierce.

One thing I am comfortable saying...based on his gifts and traits, he'll turn heads on special teams no matter what else he does his first couple years...can he punt?

 

[BeauBenken]

From his brother on II:

Gotta love a man on a mission.



I didn't mean for that to be a pun or anything. lol I just really like that he is out to prove something. He is going to work his *** off and that is just awesome.

 

[BGIF]

Do we even want him on scholly when he comes back? 2 years is a looong time to be off the field and- more importantly- off any sort of training regime.

I do. ND isn't Alabama. ND honors commitment.

 

[BGIF]

The fact Kelly/staff haven't had any contact with him is a concern, especially since he was apparently trying to come in early a few months back. Since it's October, you would think the communication would be pretty solid at this point for a January enrollment.

Hope it works out.

That's NOT a fact! Kelly noted "HE" hadn't heard from Chris. Kelly didn't mention any of the other coaching staff, faculty, administration, nor any member of the Badger family he might have gotten a second hand report from.

 

[NDdomer2]

Notre Dame football: Johnson still possible for Air Force - southbendtribune.com

 

[IrishJayhawk]

There's also something to be said for a kid being 2 years older. He could be 24 years in his 4th year of eligibility. That could be an incredible asset as the general of the defensive backfield.

 

[BGIF]

Notre Dame football: Johnson still possible for Air Force - southbendtribune.com

The man is on a mission!

 

[Grahambo]

Add him to the roster in the spring (free):

IrishIllustrated.com - Badger in line to return


"I think it'll still be kind of an uphill battle but overall he's worked out as hard as he possibly could out there," Troy Badger said. "He's 190 pounds. I think when he left he was 200. He should be able to put that on pretty quickly. Wind sprints, he's doing speed training three times a week and feels like he's maintained that. Improving that would that would probably be the main obstacle coming back"

 

[Whiskeyjack]

Good news. Getting Badger in this spring will help with S depth. It also means he'll count as one of our EEs.

 

[TerryTate]

He won't start until June, so he's not an EE.