2015 Roster

[Domina Nostra]

Here is where I think the 2015 roster stands as of now, may need some corrections:

Player/Grade/Eligibility (starters bolded)

QB
1) Everett Golson, ??? '15
2) Malik Zaire, Jr. '17
3) Deshone Kizer, So. '18
4) Brandon Wimbush

RB (Likely 4 on roster)
5) Tarean Folston, Jr. '16
6) Greg Bryant, Jr. '17
7) Josh Adams
8) Dexter Williams

WR-slot ( + 1 recruit)
9) C.J. Prosise, Sr. '15
10) Torii Hunter, Jr. '17
11) CJ Sanders

WR-boundary
12) Chris Brown, Sr. '15
13) Will Fuller, Jr. '16
14) Corey Robinson, Jr. '16
15) Justin Brent, So. ‘17 (move him to safety, the depth chart is stacked!)
16) Corey Holmes, So. '18
17) Equanimeous St. Brown
18) Jalen Guyton
19) Miles Boykin

TE
20) Mike Heuerman, Jr. '17
21) Durham Smythe, Jr. '17
22) Tyler Luatua, So. '17
23) Nic Weishar, So. '18
24) Aliz’e Jones

OT
25) Ronnie Stanley, Sr. '16
26) Mike McGlinchey, Jr. '17
27) Hunter Biven, Jr. '17
28) Alex Bars, So. '18

OT/OG
29) Steven Elmer, Jr. '16
30) Quentin Nelson, So. '18

OG/C
31) Nick Martin, RSS
32) Mark Harrell, Sr. '16
33) Colin McGovern, Jr. '17
34) John Montelus, Jr. '17
35) Jimmy Byrne, So. '18
36) Sam Mustipher, So. '18
37) Tristen Hoge
38) Trevor Ruhland

DT
39) Sheldon Day, Sr. '15
40) Jarron Jones, Sr. '16
41) Jacob Matuska, Jr. '17
42) Daniel Cage, So. '17
43) Jonathan Bonner, So. '17
44) Peter Mokwuah, So. '18
45) Jerry Tillery
46) Brandon Tiassum
47) Elijah Taylor

DT/SDE
48) Isaac Rochell, Fr. '16
49) Grant Blankenship, So. '17
50) Jay Hayes, So. ‘17
51) Micah Dew-Treadway

DE
52) Romeo Okwara, Sr. '15
53) Andrew Trumbetti, So. '17
54) Jhonnie Williams, So. ?

RUSH
55) Kolin Hill, So. '17
56) RUSH- Bo Wallace

SAM
57) Jaylon Smith, Jr. '16
58) John Turner, Sr. '16
59) Josh Barajas (start him off behind Smith so he can see the field as a reserve, swap he and Bilal next year)

WILL
60) James Onwualu, Jr. '16 (nickel?)
61) Greer Martini, So. '17
62) Dough Randolph, Jr. '17 (Is he really a DE?)
63) Asmar Bilal

MIKE
64) Joe Schmidt, RSS
65) Michael Deeb, Jr. '17
66) Nyles Morgan, So. '17
67) Tevon Coney

SS
68) Matthias Farley, RSS (nickel)
69) Elijah Shumate, Sr. '15
70) Dru Tranquil, So. '17
71) Nicco Fertitta (nickel)

FS
72) Max Redfield, Jr. '16
73) Devin Butler, Jr. '16 (this seems like a given to me)
74) Mykelti Williams

CB
75) Cole Luke, Jr. '16
76) Nick Watkins, So.
77) Nick Coleman
78) Shaun Crawford
79) Ashton White (I'd move to safety is Russell is back)

ST
80) Scott Daly, Jr. '16
81) Tyler Newsome
82) Justin Yoon

Here is who will be fighting for 3 spots, if all else holds.
???
Kevarie Russell
Ishaq Williams
Jarrett Grace
Matt Hegarty
Amir Carlisle

Based on the depth at boundary WR, I would definitly move Brent to safety for the Spring. Unless you think he is going to be a superstar at WR, give him a chance.

 

[Polish Leppy 22]

Looks pretty solid, but Heuerman at #1 TE? Doubt it.

 

[PANDFAN]

Looks pretty solid, but Heuerman at #1 TE? Doubt it.

he wasn't saying he is the #1 option..

 

[Domina Nostra]

Looks pretty solid, but Heuerman at #1 TE? Doubt it.

It's not meant to be a depth chart. The list is by class, the bolded kids are the presumed starters.

 

[Polish Leppy 22]

It's not meant to be a depth chart. The list is by class, the bolded kids are the presumed starters.

Gotcha

 

[BobbyMac]

Does Scott Daly have a scholarship?

If not, would you give him one?

*** Nevermind, Google says yes.

.

 

[pkt77242]

Here is where I think the 2015 roster stands as of now, may need some corrections:

Player/Grade/Eligibility (starters bolded)

QB
1) Everett Golson, ??? '15
2) Malik Zaire, Jr. '17
3) Deshone Kizer, So. '18
4) Brandon Wimbush

RB (Likely 4 on roster)
5) Tarean Folston, Jr. '16
6) Greg Bryant, Jr. '17
7) Josh Adams
8) Dexter Williams

WR-slot ( + 1 recruit)
9) C.J. Prosise, Sr. '15
10) Torii Hunter, Jr. '17
11) CJ Sanders

WR-boundary
12) Chris Brown, Sr. '15
13) Will Fuller, Jr. '16
14) Corey Robinson, Jr. '16
15) Justin Brent, So. ‘17 (move him to safety, the depth chart is stacked!)
16) Corey Holmes, So. '18
17) Equanimeous St. Brown
18) Jalen Guyton
19) Miles Boykin

TE
20) Mike Heuerman, Jr. '17
21) Durham Smythe, Jr. '17
22) Tyler Luatua, So. '17
23) Nic Weishar, So. '18
24) Aliz’e Jones

OT
25) Ronnie Stanley, Sr. '16
26) Mike McGlinchey, Jr. '17
27) Hunter Biven, Jr. '17
28) Alex Bars, So. '18

OT/OG
29) Steven Elmer, Jr. '16
30) Quentin Nelson, So. '18

OG/C
31) Nick Martin, RSS
32) Mark Harrell, Sr. '16
33) Colin McGovern, Jr. '17
34) John Montelus, Jr. '17
35) Jimmy Byrne, So. '18
36) Sam Mustipher, So. '18
37) Tristen Hoge
38) Trevor Ruhland

DT
39) Sheldon Day, Sr. '15
40) Jarron Jones, Sr. '16
41) Jacob Matuska, Jr. '17
42) Daniel Cage, So. '17
43) Jonathan Bonner, So. '17
44) Peter Mokwuah, So. '18
45) Jerry Tillery
46) Brandon Tiassum
47) Elijah Taylor

DT/SDE
48) Isaac Rochell, Fr. '16
49) Grant Blankenship, So. '17
50) Jay Hayes, So. ‘17
51) Micah Dew-Treadway

DE
52) Romeo Okwara, Sr. '15
53) Andrew Trumbetti, So. '17
54) Jhonnie Williams, So. ?

RUSH
55) Kolin Hill, So. '17
56) RUSH- Bo Wallace

SAM
57) Jaylon Smith, Jr. '16
58) John Turner, Sr. '16
59) Josh Barajas (start him off behind Smith so he can see the field as a reserve, swap he and Bilal next year)

WILL
60) James Onwualu, Jr. '16 (nickel?)
61) Greer Martini, So. '17
62) Dough Randolph, Jr. '17 (Is he really a DE?)
63) Asmar Bilal

MIKE
64) Joe Schmidt, RSS
65) Michael Deeb, Jr. '17
66) Nyles Morgan, So. '17
67) Tevon Coney

SS
68) Matthias Farley, RSS (nickel)
69) Elijah Shumate, Sr. '15
70) Dru Tranquil, So. '17
71) Nicco Fertitta (nickel)

FS
72) Max Redfield, Jr. '16
73) Devin Butler, Jr. '16 (this seems like a given to me)
74) Mykelti Williams

CB
75) Cole Luke, Jr. '16
76) Nick Watkins, So.
77) Nick Coleman
78) Shaun Crawford
79) Ashton White (I'd move to safety is Russell is back)

ST
80) Scott Daly, Jr. '16
81) Tyler Newsome
82) Justin Yoon

Here is who will be fighting for 3 spots, if all else holds.
???
Kevarie Russell
Ishaq Williams
Jarrett Grace
Matt Hegarty
Amir Carlisle

Based on the depth at boundary WR, I would definitly move Brent to safety for the Spring. Unless you think he is going to be a superstar at WR, give him a chance.

why is Rochell listed as a freshman?

Edit: Good job overall.

 

[blueNDgold44]

Don't think Nyles starts over Joe at Mike.

 

[greyhammer90]

Who else is excited that no matter who Kelly has in at RB this year people won't be bitching?

 

[pkt77242]

Who else is excited that no matter who Kelly has in at RB this year people won't be bitching?

They will just find something else to bitch about. Team Golson vs Team Zaire being the big one next year.

 

[PANDFAN]

ready to take a break from recruiting? Well, the clock is ticking for the 2016 recruiting class. Notre Dame has already handed out over 100 offers to current high school juniors and will be turning their attention now to Junior Day and the summer camp season for the next crop of recruits.

For the past few cycles we've initially had forecast 16 or 17 scholarships for that coming February class but Notre Dame has been able to welcome three straight classes of at least 20 recruits--the first time that's happened in the modern era of recruiting since Rivals began ranking classes back in 2002. With those three straight big classes numbers will initially be tight, however, the rising senior class is only 12 players with just 7 of those eligible for a 5th-year in 2016.

With Ronnie Stanley almost assuredly going to the NFL after 2015--and Jarron Jones with KeiVarae Russell also highly rated pro prospects--the 5th-year crop for 2016 could be a maximum of 5 players: C.J. Prosise, Mark Harrell, John Turner, Nicky Baratti# and Scott Daly. Any way you slice it there will be very few 5th-year seniors coming back in 2016.

# Baratti was expected to medically retire but Kelly mentioned in his NSD presser that he'll be practicing (non-contact) this spring. He may very well retire anyway but we have to count him for now.

The current projection as of today for the 2016 class--with Jones and Russell going pro--is a small number of 11 players.

2016 Academic Classes:

5 Graduate Students
22 Seniors
23 Juniors
24 Sophomores
11 Freshmen
85 Total Scholarships

It's going to be tough to get to a class of 20 which makes sense because I don't believe the Irish have brought in four straight 20+ player classes since the mid-to-late 1990's.

Now, you could get strict on the fifth year players (Turner & Harrell might not come back) plus you can factor in Jaylon Smith leaving early too. There will also be inevitable attrition elsewhere on the roster over the next year. Last year the Irish lost Rashad Kinlaw (transfer), Will Mahone (transfer), Nile Sykes (transfer), and Tony Springmann (medical).

But remember, in the past we've been starting at 16 or 17 and then we see attrition and the NFL Draft raise the scholarship limit. Right now, we're having to project that attrition just to get back to over 15 scholarships for 2016.

So, the numbers are tighter than they've ever been in the Brian Kelly era and that's okay. It's a sign of a healthy roster as long as you don't have too many players who are struggling to make an impact.

*Need on a scale of 1 (pass this cycle) to 10 (major focus)

*Number of years of eligibility beginning in 2015 in parentheses

QUARTERBACK

Need: 4

Roster: Golson (1), Zaire (3), Kizer (4), VanGorder (4), Wimbush (4)

You should take a quarterback every year, right? There is every indication that Notre Dame is looking at bringing in another top-flight quarterback for 2016.

Even without factoring in VanGorder (Kelly mentioned in his NSD presser that scholarships to walk-on athletes are 1-year deals but his father's employment muddies the water on that issue) who may come off scholarship there's going to be a lot of young talent for a 2016 signal-caller to deal with when he steps on campus.

RUNNING BACK

Need: 7

Roster: Folston (2), Bryant (3), Adams (4), Williams (4)

Brian Kelly's offense is typically associated with one-back sets and the riding of the hot hand over multiple games. This leads to what I believe is the misconception that Notre Dame is completely fine with just a few running backs. However, in each of the last 3 seasons there have been 3 running backs with at least 50 carries, and it's terrible for development not be able to keep at least another body or two in reserve in case of injuries.

This position should be one of the top focuses for 2016. There's a possibility Folston leaves early for the NFL although I don't think he's among the elite rising juniors but you never know with tailbacks. The staff should have a good sense mid-season where Folston is leaning and if he's bolting then two backs for 2016 would be ideal because it's also doubtful Greg Bryant will be around for a 5th-year in 2017.

WIDE RECEIVER

Need: 2

Roster: Carlisle (1), Brown (1), Prosise (2), Robinson (2), Fuller (2), Hunter (3), Brent (3), Holmes (4), Guyton (4), Sanders (4), Boykin (4), St. Brown (4).

It's not going to happen but Notre Dame could conceivably skip receiver in 2016 if they felt compelled to do so. There's quality balance, a lot of bodies, and a trio of senior starters could return in 2017. Even if someone were to leave early (Fuller, perhaps?) there's enough young talent at a position that is conducive to getting underclassmen on the field.

There have been some rumblings that Brent or Holmes could be switching positions soon. If either of them move the need at receiver jumps up a little bit, but not much.

TIGHT END

Need: 3

Roster: Smythe (3), Heuerman (3), Luatua (3), Weishar (4), Jones (4)

The scary thing for Notre Dame is that 1 career catch from Durham Smythe is all that returns from the entire tight end group. However, 17 years of eligibility is a ton of time left for five young tight ends. This is Notre Dame though, so at least one tight end will be an easy requirement.

OFFENSIVE LINE

Need: 5

Roster: Martin (1), Hegarty (1), Stanley (2), Harrell (2), Elmer (2), McGlinchey (3), McGovern (3), Bivin (3), Montelus (3), Nelson (4), Bars (4), Mustipher (4), Byrne (4), Hoge (4), Ruhland (4)

With incoming freshman Jerry Tillery beginning his career on defense there are only 2 offensive linemen for the 2015 class. The typical reaction to such a haul is to feverishly demand OL be targeted hard in the next cycle but as you can see there are still two full lines of underclassmen stocked in the cupboard.

We don't know the fifth-year situation for 2015 but they don't matter for 2016 projections anyway. But here's the thing, there have been rumors of at least one serious medical issue for an offensive lineman, add in the fact that Stanley is surely leaving for the NFL after next year, and that Harrell is far from a lock for his own fifth-year in 2016. That means this list could get down to 10 bodies rather quickly.

Three more linemen in 2016 feels like a good target.

DEFENSIVE END

Need: 8

Roster: I. Williams (1), Okwara (1), Trumbetti (3), Blankenship (3), Hill (3), J. Williams (4), Wallace (4)

Barring a redshirt situation with Okwara (he's still 19 years old and won't turn 20 until the summer!) we're looking at 5 ends coming back for 2016. That's not terrible but at least two prospects should be an early target for the upcoming recruiting class.

Andrew Trumbetti had a nice freshman season (21 tackles, 5.5 TFL, 5 QBH) and has a promising career ahead of him as a likely multi-year starter. The rest of this position group has a lot of question marks. The defense could really use a Top 150-type talent who can make an impact as a freshman in 2016.

DEFENSIVE TACKLE

Need: 4

Roster: Day (1), Jones (2), Rochell (2), Matuska (3), Hayes (3), Cage (3), Mokwuah (4), Bonner (4), Tiassum (4), Dew-Treadway (4), Taylor (4), Tillery (4)

All. The. Bodies. You can see why moving Tillery (besides his potential being greater at OT per just about everyone) is a bit of a head scratcher. Nevertheless, Rochell is kind of a swing guy at the end position plus if Jarron Jones turns pro after 2015 and Tillery goes back to offense, then the depth here could move from overflowing to merely well stocked.

I prefer this spot to be a little over-recruited and that's exactly what they've done recently. There's flexibility to start out looking at one spot but when the numbers inevitably grow shooting for a second body isn't a bad idea.

LINEBACKER

Need: 4

Roster: Schmidt (1), Grace (1), Turner (2), J. Smith (2), Onwualu (2), Randolph (3), Deeb (3), Morgan (3), Martini (3), Bilal (4), Barajas (4), Coney (4)

The linebacker situation could best be described as healthy, although now is not the time to pull a Diaco and lose focus on bringing in additional bodies. The staff has brought in 6 players over the last two cycles (if you're inclined to include Tranquill as he might end up at linebacker long-term) and that is about as much young depth as you can build in a 4-3 with 85 scholarships to work with.

The one thing that is concerning is that two seniors are moving on after 2015, Turner has made no impact throughout his career, Jaylon could easily go pro, and we're still unsure what kind of development we're going to see out of the likes of Randolph and Deeb.

This position feels a lot like defensive tackle in that it won't be a major focus early on but another body probably gets targeted later in the process.

CORNER

Need: 6

Roster: Russell (2), Butler (2), Luke (2), Watkins (3), Coleman (4), Crawford (4), White (4)

Despite bringing in 3 corners a couple days ago this position should remain among the most important for 2016. There's been plenty of talk about Butler or White moving to safety so who knows how that will play out. We're also not sure if Russell will even entertain coming back for a fifth season (70/30 that 2015 is his last year, IMO) and Cole Luke's stock could be high enough for an early entrance into the NFL, too.

Brian Kelly mentioned yesterday that corner (not safety) was the major focus for 2015 and you can surmise that was largely due to the feeling that Russell and Luke may not be around much longer. It would seem without a doubt that two more corners is the initial target for 2016.

SAFETY

Need: 9

Roster: Farley (1), Shumate (1), Redfield (2), Tranquill (3), Williams (4), Fertitta (4)

In our initial outlook for 2015 last February I mentioned that grabbing 2 safeties would be fine. However, Farley and Turner switched positions, Hardy isn't coming back for a 5th-year, Tranquill may already have grown into a linebacker, plus one of the safeties in this class (Fertitta) isn't expected to play strong or free safety in his career.

We're leaving Farley and Fertitta here but if they're not 'true' safeties then there are even worse problems with depth. Brian Kelly mentioned bringing in another graduate transfer (or two!) and it's expected someone is coming to play safety, but irregardless, Notre Dame is basically in the same position they were in last year needing two or three safeties for 2016.

SPECIAL TEAMS

Need: 2

Roster: Daly (2), Newsome (4), Yoon (4)

Time for some new blood as Newsome and Yoon move into starting positions on the same eligibility track, although the former came in last cycle and will be a redshirt freshman.

Unless either of those players perform poorly it'll be another couple years before the staff needs to think about using scholarships, although replacing both of them at the same time isn't ideal. As a long snapper Daly has two more years but it's basically a 50/50 proposition that his position will use a scholarship once he's gone.

363 Days Away Guess at the Positional Targets

1 QB
2 RB
1 WR
1 TE
3 OL
2 DE
1 DT
2 LB
2 CB
2 S
That's a class of 17 bodies. One way to get that 17 is for Prosise and Daly to be the only 5th-year seniors, Jaylon Smith goes pro, and there is attrition for 2 more players. Not entirely implausible, right?

A class any bigger would require attrition much greater than usual.

An Early Look at the Positional Needs for the 2016 Notre Dame Recruiting Class - One Foot Down

 

[PANDFAN]

https://notredame.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=1734317

great article on the pwo at ND for this year

 

[Irish Fam]

Seems like as good a place as any to put this.

ISD Freebie:

Class Of 2015 Superlatives - Irish Sports Daily


Lots of love for Barajas in there. And the vine of Alize is Odell Beckham Jr esque

 

[BobbyMac]

Seems like as good a place as any to put this.

ISD Freebie:

Class Of 2015 Superlatives - Irish Sports Daily


Lots of love for Barajas in there. And the vine of Alize is Odell Beckham Jr esque

Mike Frank gets a lot of love in Irish country, him not putting Aliz'e Jones in his top 5 was a simple oversight somehow right?

.

 

[Rizzophil]

It's my opinion, but Mike frank isn't a pro-Domer

 

[NDdomer2]

It's my opinion, but Mike frank isn't a pro-Domer

evidenced as he was the only one to not provide some discussion for his picks.

Correction, we got one comment from MF, "I love linemen."

 

[Luckylucci]

So after reading that I'm really wondering if there was something more to the Terry Godwin recruitment than we know about. Freeman says that if we pushed for a visit we could have gotten one. How do we not pound down Godwin's door for a visit.

 

[ThePiombino]

It's my opinion, but Mike frank isn't a pro-Domer

You're not being serious, are you?

 

[irishff1014]

So after reading that I'm really wondering if there was something more to the Terry Godwin recruitment than we know about. Freeman says that if we pushed for a visit we could have gotten one. How do we not pound down Godwin's door for a visit.

Maybe Tony should have been his recruiter.

 

[scUM Hater]

Question: Do university of notre dame employees kids' get a discounted rate for tuition?

 

[Redbar]

Question: Do university of notre dame employees kids' get a discounted rate for tuition?

I know that they used to about twenty years ago. I would assume that they still do but I am not certain of it.

 

[BobbyMac]

In the old days it was almost a given if you got in, you went for free. My coach's kids went for free to Valpo and also within a group of same level academic schools that included Drake, Bradley, Marquette, Creighton, Evansville, Dayton, Xavier, Loyola and Butler that belonged to a tuition trade program. Miami U was included in that list too even though it's public.

.

 

[stlnd01]

Question: Do university of notre dame employees kids' get a discounted rate for tuition?

Depends how long you've been there but the short answer is yes.

Notre Dame Classes - Children // Office of Human Resources // University of Notre Dame

They'll even give you 30% of Notre Dame's tuition (or about $12,000) towards another school.
Other Colleges & Universities - Children // Office of Human Resources // University of Notre Dame

It's a pretty phenomenal benefit in this day and age.

 

[PANDFAN]

A solid depth chart allows recruiting flexibility. In future years the staff can take a flyer, or two or three at some of those highly rated impact players who seem to wait until signing day to make a decision. With the cupboard stocked, seeking reward of a “great players” and getting shut out has a more manageable risk level.

To understand the extent and the spacing of the depth, let’s jump past the 2015 season and go right to the Spring of 2016, some 14 months from now. We’ll list the players by position grouping, categorized by their remaining years of eligibility. Please not that this understates the depth as it will not reflect the 2016 recruiting class. We will make some guesstimates about participation, fifth year players, early pro departure (Jaylon Smith) and frosh participation in 2015. For this purpose, we will project only Yoon, Jones, Williams, Sanders (kick returner), Crawford and Fertitta (special teams) as participating in 2015.

That is unbridled conjecture, nothing more.

Defensive Line

1 year of eligibility -Isaac Rochell, Jarron Jones
2 years of eligibility – Jacob Matuska, Kolin Hill, Andrew Trumbetti, Grant Blankenship, Jay Hayes, Daniel Cage
3 years of eligibility – Jonathan Bonner, Jhonny Williams, Peter Mokwuah
4 years of eligibility – Micah Dew-Treadway, Elijah Taylor, Brandon Tiassum, Jerry Tillery, Bo Wallace
16 defensive linemen ready to practice in Spring 2016

There has been an urban legend in South Bend that Notre Dame can not “recruit defensive linemen.” Hogwash! This staff has shattered that myth.

Offensive line

1 year eligibility- Steve Elmer, Mark Harrell (surprised if he’s givien a fifth year)
2 years eligibility- Mike McGlinchey, Hunter Bivin, Collin McGovern, John Montelus
3 years eligibility- Alex Bars, Quenton Nelson, Sam Mustipher, Jimmy Byrne
4 years eligibility- Trevor Ruhland, Tristen Hoge, Tommy Kraemer
13 players (and preferred walk-ons flesh out the practice squad)

Wide Receiver

1 year eligibility – C.J.Prosise, Corey Robinson, Will Fuller
2 years eligibility – Torii Hunter Jr, Justin Brent
3 years eligibility – Corey Holmes, CJ Sanders
4 years eligibility – Equanimeous St. Brown, Miles Boykin, Jalen Guyton
10players

Tight End

2 years eligibility – Durham Smythe, Mike Heuerman, Tyler Luatua
3 years eligibility – Aliz’e Jones, Nic Weishar
5 players

Quarterback

2 years eligibility -Malik Zaire
3 years eligibility – Deshone Kizer
4 years eligibility -Brandon Wimbush
3 players

Running Back

1 year eligibility – Tarean Folston
2 years eligibility – Greg Bryant
3 years eligibility – Dexter Williams
4 years eligibility – Josh Adams
(we are here projecting that Williams plays in 2015 and that Adams redshirts)

4 players

Linebacker

1 year eligibility – Jaylon Smith, James Onwualu, John Turner, Jarrett Grace
2 years eligibility – Nyles Morgan, Greer Martini, Michael Deeb, Doug Randolph
4 years eligibility – Tevon Coney, Josh Barajas, Asmir Bilas
(here we assume that all of the 2015 linebackers redshirt)

11 players

Then we reach two areas in which 2016 recruiting must add bodies, where the depth is not yet at equilibrium.

Cornerback

1 year eligibility – Cole Luke, Devin Butler
3 years eligibility – Watkins, Shaun Crawford
4 years eligibility – Nick Coleman, Ashton White
6 players

Safety

1 year eligibility – Max Redfield, Nicky Baratti
2 years eligibility – Drue Tranquill
3 years eligibility – Nicco Fertitta (identified by Kelly as likely to play on special teams)
4 years eligibility – Mykelti Williams
5 players.

There is strength and power in these numbers. In addition to allowing roster flexibility and player shifts it allows the staff to be methodical and strategic in future recruiting classes. It is possible, but not assured that the best is yet to come.

At Long Last, Depth for Notre Dame Football // UHND.com

 

[NewBrunswickIrish]

Linebacker

1 year eligibility – Jaylon Smith, James Onwualu, John Turner, Jarrett Grace
2 years eligibility – Nyles Morgan, Greer Martini, Michael Deeb, Doug Randolph
4 years eligibility – Tevon Coney, Josh Barajas, Asmir Bilas
(here we assume that all of the 2015 linebackers redshirt)

At Long Last, Depth for Notre Dame Football // UHND.com

They predict that Asmar Bilal not only redshirts but changes his name. College must really change him lol