'11 CA DE/OT Troy Niklas (Signed Notre Dame LOI)

[Bogtrotter07]

It's a pipeline!

What we have here is a failure to communicate!

 

[anarin]

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[Domer4ever]

No one we have in our linebacking core is better suited in the 4-3 and guys like Nix and Lynch are better suited for the 3-4.

Ishaq is our most vauable linebacker and since presumably shembo starts at one OLB then if Councell/Spond starts u would have 2 elite OLBs (Ishaq and Niklas) on the bench and if Ishaq starts then u still have 1 elite OLB (Niklas) on the bench. makes more sense to have him on O where rotation is easier

I don't agree with that at all. All the interior guys (Teo, Calabrese, Fox, Moore) played much better behind the more stacked defensive front. The USC game was a perfect example of this as Notre Dame played most of the game in a 34 look and were destroyed trying to stop the Trojan running game because of the gaps up front and offensive lineman running free to the second level and taking out the LB's. Throw in the fact that Notre Dame has not generated much of a pass rush out of the 34 and I don't see much of a benefit going with that as the primary defense when they don't have anybody proven as an OLB that makes the defense worth running. The move of Niklas makes this even more puzzling as he certainly received the most playing time and arguably showed the most potential out of the young players at that position. I think you can throw in some of the other young LB's on the team (Grace, Rabasa, Spond) and they would certainly have the talent and athleticism to run an effective 43 from a LB perspective.

To me the thing that kills going with a 34 as the primary defensive look is the talent Notre Dame finally has along the defensive line. Why not take advantage of that? I don't buy for a second that guys like Lynch and Nix are more effective in a 34. Those guys are big time players that are going to thrive in any front. I thought Nix and Tuitt completely dominated the interior last season playing the DT positions in the 43 and Lynch is just a beast that is going to continue to get better as a pass rusher. Between Kapron Lewis-Moore and Ishaq Williams at the other DE spot, Notre Dame could field one of the best defensive line's in the country and when is the last time anybody has said that? Throw in Hounshell, Day, Jones, Schwenke, and Springman as the backup's and that is just a lot of talent. Putting more of these guys on the field to set the tone and get after the QB would make more sense than having to rely on these "hybrid" guys to generate the pass rush. Again, I took the move of Niklas as a sign that we would see more defensive lineman and less hybrid's next season defensively and they wanted to find a way to get him on the field.

 

[Patulski]

Not to hijack the thread, and you would certainly know better then myself, but I am curious as to why that would be? They looked to certainly have more success the second half of the season going with the more stacked defensive line looks on top of the talent along the line being deeper than it ever has before. Teo and the other LB's stayed cleaner with more bulk up front covering them.

On the flip side, they have not had much success rushing the passer out of their 34 looks and frankly don't have anybody proven that would justify going with that as the base D to exploit their talents. Ishaq looks much more comfortable with his hand in the dirt and I kind of took his tweet about "getting swol" this offseason as he was bulking up to perhaps get more looks as a DE in a 43. If they were sticking with the 34, then why move Niklas who seemed to be the most talented of the young OLB's?

I'm with you Domer4ever. I don't think any of our OLB's were ever effective in space, and Fleming was wasted every time he was dropping in zones last year instead of rushing the passer. Having Ishaq dropping out there instead of using his size and speed would be more of a waste. We played a lot of 4-3 last year, and even played what Minter did with Mike Richardson in 2006 against FSU, which was a 4-3 with Slaughter replacing one of the OLB's. I'd love to see Ishaq and Lynch as defensive ends, with a rotation of Nix/Tuitt and KLM as tackles. That's a heckuva talented front 4.

 

[Bogtrotter07]

KLM is not a tackle. No way. He has a brutal outside rush, and plays maybe the best contain on the team.

 

[Domer4ever]

KLM is not a tackle. No way. He has a brutal outside rush, and plays maybe the best contain on the team.

I think on 3rd down passing situations you use KLM like they do in the NFL and kick him inside to tackle to replace the space eater, which in ND's case would be Nix. That way it puts the best pass rushers on the field at the same time to get after the QB. I would think something like this:

Base Defense:

DE- Lynch
DT- Nix
DT- Tuitt
DE- KLM

3rd Down/Passing Situations:

DE- Lynch
DT- KLM
DT- Tuitt
DE- Ishaq Williams

 

[Bogtrotter07]

Ing-stress-ing!

 

[woolybug25]

I think on 3rd down passing situations you use KLM like they do in the NFL and kick him inside to tackle to replace the space eater, which in ND's case would be Nix. That way it puts the best pass rushers on the field at the same time to get after the QB. I would think something like this:

Base Defense:

DE- Lynch
DT- Nix
DT- Tuitt
DE- KLM

3rd Down/Passing Situations:

DE- Lynch
DT- KLM
DT- Tuitt
DE- Ishaq Williams

I'm on board with this.

 

[Whiskeyjack]

Keith Arnold's recent article addresses Niklas' potential move to TE. There's not much there we haven't already discussed, but it reminded me that during Niklas' recruitment, most analysts felt his ceiling was highest at OT.

Perhaps the staff plans on using him as a jumbo TE in 2012 as a way to transition him to OT for 2013 and 2014.

 

[ResLife Hero]

That kind of reminds me of Armstead from this past year. Maybe Niklas really wanted to take a shot at D but, at the end of the year, both sides agreed OT was a better career remove.

 

[Irish YJ]

Would love to see him on both sides of the ball. In general on D, redzone on O. He has Gronk size already. I certainly think his ceiling is high as OT, but I think he helps the team more on D or TE. Either way, any position, got to love his skillset, and you have to love BK trying to figure out how to get the 22 best guys on the field.

 

[Irish2015]

Keith Arnold's recent article addresses Niklas' potential move to TE. There's not much there we haven't already discussed, but it reminded me that during Niklas' recruitment, most analysts felt his ceiling was highest at OT.

Perhaps the staff plans on using him as a jumbo TE in 2012 as a way to transition him to OT for 2013 and 2014.

Honeslty there is no chance I could see him at OT. He'd have a hell of a time putting on the necessary weight for that position and I doubt he'd be able to.

 

[Irish YJ]

Honeslty there is no chance I could see him at OT. He'd have a hell of a time putting on the necessary weight for that position and I doubt he'd be able to.

IDK... He was huge coming in. Now with the benefit of a year under Longo, and more to come, I'm sure he could push 290 by start of next season. IMO that, coupled with his strength and speed, would be enought to put him in play for the 2013 season.

But.... I don't want to see it happen. Unless we're hurting big time on the OL, why mess with a good thing. I'd hate for Hercules to grow a gut and become Hurcublob.

 

[Whiskeyjack]

Honeslty there is no chance I could see him at OT. He'd have a hell of a time putting on the necessary weight for that position and I doubt he'd be able to.

Niklas is listed at 6'7'' 250 lbs. He absolutely has the frame for OT, which is why he projected as one on this level. If anything, the staff has had to keep him underweight to play OLB.

He could easily put on 20-25 lbs by fall to be a nasty blocking TE for us, which would ease his transition to OL later on. I'm not saying it's a sure thing, but Niklas to OL makes a lot more sense in the long-term than Niklas to TE.

Unless he blows up and turns into a Mackey-caliber TE. Then these posts will mysteriously disappear.

 

[IrishLax]

Niklas is listed at 6'7'' 250 lbs. He absolutely has the frame for OT, which is why he projected as one on this level. If anything, the staff has had to keep him underweight to play OLB.

He could easily put on 20-25 lbs by fall to be a nasty blocking TE for us, which would ease his transition to OL later on. I'm not saying it's a sure thing, but Niklas to OL makes a lot more sense in the long-term than Niklas to TE.

Unless he blows up and turns into a Mackey-caliber TE. Then these posts will mysteriously disappear.

I think this is pretty spot on. He can play TE at his current weight and if he bulks up more he could be a really strong asset in the redzone as it would effectively allow you to have an OT sized blocker with the ability to move athletically and catch passes. I'm interested to see how this works out.

 

[Irish YJ]

Niklas is listed at 6'7'' 250 lbs. He absolutely has the frame for OT, which is why he projected as one on this level. If anything, the staff has had to keep him underweight to play OLB.

He could easily put on 20-25 lbs by fall to be a nasty blocking TE for us, which would ease his transition to OL later on. I'm not saying it's a sure thing, but Niklas to OL makes a lot more sense in the long-term than Niklas to TE.

Unless he blows up and turns into a Mackey-caliber TE. Then these posts will mysteriously disappear.

20-25lbs in his sleep. But, would love to see him and Eifert out there together in a redzone formation with Golson. How can you defend that. If he can pick up the playbook and execute, easily a Gronk type guy by his junior year. I would just hate to see our two TEs in the wings get past up this year. With the lack of a go-to WR, and inexperience, I certainly understand why. Just hate to lose him on D right now. Even if Ishaq and others step up, I'd hate to lose the depth. Would love to see him stay on D (at least 2 deep and situational), play in 2 TE sets, and definitely redzone situations.

 

[NDPhilly]

Didn't Kelly say he has really good ball skills or something like that?

 

[Irish YJ]

Didn't Kelly say he has really good ball skills or something like that?

Yep, both BK and his HS coach. I think USC raved about it too prior to NSD

 

[NDPhilly]

IMO he stays at TE and gets his weight up to 260 ish like Rudolph. He will be a huge mismatch on offense.

 

[Irish YJ]

Irish Gronk

 

[Irish2015]

Niklas is listed at 6'7'' 250 lbs. He absolutely has the frame for OT, which is why he projected as one on this level. If anything, the staff has had to keep him underweight to play OLB.

He could easily put on 20-25 lbs by fall to be a nasty blocking TE for us, which would ease his transition to OL later on. I'm not saying it's a sure thing, but Niklas to OL makes a lot more sense in the long-term than Niklas to TE.

Unless he blows up and turns into a Mackey-caliber TE. Then these posts will mysteriously disappear.

He could not easily put on 20-25 pounds. He's already pretty filled out as it is trust me.

 

[TheTurningPoint]

I feel the staff knows their players and what they can and cant do. Kelly is turning this ship around in a good way. Is it taking awhile to do it? Yes in some eyes, but ND is trying to recover from the past 10 years of recruiting mishaps, and lack of depth pretty much every where.

Now this is just a "thought" but you may see some of that "Green Bay Packers" defense this year to maximize those "athletic" players some of you were referring too.

 

[irishog77]

I feel the staff knows their players and what they can and cant do. Kelly is turning this ship around in a good way. Is it taking awhile to do it? Yes in some eyes, but ND is trying to recover from the past 10 years of recruiting mishaps, and lack of depth pretty much every where.

Now this is just a "thought" but you may see some of that "Green Bay Packers" defense this year to maximize those "athletic" players some of you were referring too.

That 32nd ranked "Green Bay Packers" defense??

 

[Buster Bluth]

That 32nd ranked "Green Bay Packers" defense??

That'll happen when the offense scores so quickly and consistently.

 

[NDinFL]

That 32nd ranked "Green Bay Packers" defense??

Don't they generally base those rankings off yards given up per game?

 

[Rocket89]

He could not easily put on 20-25 pounds. He's already pretty filled out as it is trust me.

I agree.

I think people projected him at tackle in high school because of his height and overall athleticism. But unlike someone like say, Tate Nichols, he didn't have a little bit of a gut or that pudgy body that can just keep adding mass.

Troy is jacked as a mofo already. Where would all that extra weight go? I think he's pretty much topped out already, maybe adds another 10 pounds.

His body has tight end or defensive end written all over it.

 

[NDhoosier]

I agree, I think it would be hard to put much more weight on him, the guy looks stacked already (no homo). Much more weight and I think it would hinder him and his athletic ability.

 

[Domina Nostra]

I love this move.

 

[ChiRish]

I think it's a great move that will work out. Kelly recognizes what a mismatch his super athletic tight ends create on offense. I think the success of some tight ends these days as well plays into that. Given the depth at the position, I wonder if he sits for a year to really learn it?

 

[GBdomer]

Props to Turning Point.