2016 Spring Practice Thread

[Luckylucci]

OMG he is so explosive off the line. i'm judging that from one rep in shorts at spring practice lol.

Trumbetti's get off was pretty impressive as well. You don't need to see too many reps to see traits like explosiveness. However, there is a lot more that goes into it, so I hear what you're saying.

 

[FightingIrishLover7]

Watched some of the highlights from practice...

Is it just me, or does Wimbush have an absolutely gorgeous throw?

 

[PANDFAN]

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">It was obvious watching the DL today that his coaching is really taking hold. I mentioned earlier, DL hand play has dramatically improved.</p>— Bryan Driskell (@BGI_CoachD78) <a href="https://twitter.com/BGI_CoachD78/status/710159024742731776">March 16, 2016</a></blockquote>
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[tko]

Uncle on Max Redfield and "progress." Poop or get off the pot for God's sake. I've completely lost faith that he will ever be a top performer on this squad. Will he be this year's Joe Schmidt?

 

[PANDFAN]

Uncle on Max Redfield and "progress." Poop or get off the pot for God's sake. I've completely lost faith that he will ever be a top performer on this squad. Will he be this year's Joe Schmidt?

the problem was reported that until Max takes the teaching and not act like he knows it all he won't progress....seems to be open to it a bit it sounds as he is just learning proper footwork as a SENIOR ...mind boggled....this doesn't sound like a staff issue

 

[woolybug25]

the problem was reported that until Max takes the teaching and not act like he knows it all he won't progress....seems to be open to it a bit it sounds as he is just learning proper footwork as a SENIOR ...mind boggled....this doesn't sound like a staff issue

Just being a little bit of a Devil's Advocate here, but isn't getting guys to be receptive to coaching part of being a "teacher"?

Five star kids that think they know it all happen with every program. There is some level of responsibility on the coaches to motivate these types of raw talent guys into actually learning the details. Right?

 

[Luckylucci]

Just being a little bit of a Devil's Advocate here, but isn't getting guys to be receptive to coaching part of being a "teacher"?

Five star kids that think they know it all happen with every program. There is some level of responsibility on the coaches to motivate these types of raw talent guys into actually learning the details. Right?

That's my feelings. I've often thought that, maybe, BVG isn't very good at relating to his players, hence not getting the best out of them. I think really successful college coaches, can do exactly what you are explaining. No reason that we should have a defensive group of Jay Hayes, Nyles Morgan, Max Redfield, Andrew Trumbetti, Nick Watkins, etc. and not get quality production out of them. We don't see that on the offensive side of the ball very often and for those that don't pan out, BK and staff usually have other players immediately ready to fill in. Not saying that he can't or won't but it is there for him to mold, now he just has to do it. I'd put less responsibility on him, if his position coaches were able to have position meetings. That's how it works if you want to run the whole show.

 

[SoIll]

Who has had video highlights from today so far??

Sampson, Loy

Anyone else?

 

[IrishLax]

Watched some of the highlights from practice...

Is it just me, or does Wimbush have an absolutely gorgeous throw?

He's stupid good. Imagine we sign him instead of Golson in 2011... Wimbush starts 3-4 years, no questions asked.

It kills me that we can have 3 elite QBs... a situation where you only play one guy... but can't find a single competent MIKE linebacker for years, can't get a single free safety that doesn't horrendously blow assignments, etc. The offensive recruiting/development just drastically outpaces our ability to field a functional defense.

 

[PANDFAN]

Just being a little bit of a Devil's Advocate here, but isn't getting guys to be receptive to coaching part of being a "teacher"?

Five star kids that think they know it all happen with every program. There is some level of responsibility on the coaches to motivate these types of raw talent guys into actually learning the details. Right?

you can lead a horse to water but you can't make them drink

 

[Pops Freshenmeyer]

That's my feelings. I've often thought that, maybe, BVG isn't very good at relating to his players, hence not getting the best out of them. I think really successful college coaches, can do exactly what you are explaining. No reason that we should have a defensive group of Jay Hayes, Nyles Morgan, Max Redfield, Andrew Trumbetti, Nick Watkins, etc. and not get quality production out of them. We don't see that on the offensive side of the ball very often and for those that don't pan out, BK and staff usually have other players immediately ready to fill in. Not saying that he can't or won't but it is there for him to mold, now he just has to do it. I'd put less responsibility on him, if his position coaches were able to have position meetings. That's how it works if you want to run the whole show.

Redfield and Shumate were underperforming expectations before BVG got here. Remember the furrowed brows over Redfield riding the pine in favor of Farley?

As a whole, people may be correct to question BVG. I'm just saying ND's safeties were underperforming before Van Gorder's coaching or scheme changes came to be.

And this isn't an indictment of Redfield, necessarily. Safety is just a position which is a bit more demanding because mistakes are punished more severely by offenses.

 

[PANDFAN]

Redfield and Shumate were underperforming expectations before BVG got here. Remember the furrowed brows over Redfield riding the pine in favor of Farley?

As a whole, people may be correct to question BVG. I'm just saying ND's safeties were underperforming before Van Gorder's coaching or scheme changes came to be.

And this isn't an indictment of Redfield, necessarily. Safety is just a position which is a bit more demanding because mistakes are punished more severely by offenses.

but also the most glaring and easiest to see from watching on tv....its tough as you don't get the full field view

 

[Luckylucci]

Redfield and Shumate were underperforming expectations before BVG got here. Remember the furrowed brows over Redfield riding the pine in favor of Farley?

As a whole, people may be correct to question BVG. I'm just saying ND's safeties were underperforming before Van Gorder's coaching or scheme changes came to be.

And this isn't an indictment of Redfield, necessarily. Safety is just a position which is a bit more demanding because mistakes are punished more severely by offenses.

I disagree and not sure how you could even make that claim. Expectations for players rise as they get older. Just because a kid is a 5 star doesn't mean he's necessarily ready to contribute right away. It could because of his immense upside or physical gifts. Fairly confusing to say that Redfield as a freshman was more disappointing than Redfield as a Junior, not that, that is what you are saying but it seems like an easy out. "they were bad when I got here, and I just didn't make them any better" Not sure that goes over well in coaching circles.

BVG has been at ND for 2 seasons. this will be his 3rd. Therefore the only season BVG hasn't been Redfield's coach was his freshman. Also, Shumate had a pretty darn good freshman year. Now, he was only playing Nickel but he played Nickel better than anybody we've had under BVG.

This is a big year for BVG, I'm optimistic that he can put it together, he just hasn't yet.

 

[Irish#1]

I disagree and not sure how you could even make that claim. Expectations for players rise as they get older. Just because a kid is a 5 star doesn't mean he's necessarily ready to contribute right away. It could because of his immense upside or physical gifts. Fairly confusing to say that Redfield as a freshman was more disappointing than Redfield as a Junior, not that, that is what you are saying but it seems like an easy out. "they were bad when I got here, and I just didn't make them any better" Not sure that goes over well in coaching circles.

BVG has been at ND for 2 seasons. this will be his 3rd. Therefore the only season BVG hasn't been Redfield's coach was his freshman. Also, Shumate had a pretty darn good freshman year. Now, he was only playing Nickel but he played Nickel better than anybody we've had under BVG.

This is a big year for BVG, I'm optimistic that he can put it together, he just hasn't yet.

This illustrates how flawed these recruiting evaluations are. To me how well you know the position and have proper technique should count towards your rating as much as your vertical, 40, shuffle, etc..

Years ago when I coached youth football, I was coaching the All Stars. I was excited because I was going to have the absolutely fastest kid in the league on my team as an All Star. Kid was an absolute blazer. Much to my dismay, this kid couldn't remember or retain the most common dive or counter plays. Every rep he was going the wrong way or just stood there because he couldn't remember. I wondered how this kid managed to score so many touchdowns until I talked to his coach. He said he had the same problem with him and just told him to just run outside left or outside right. Needless to say his dad was pissed when he didn't play and didn't believe he couldn't remember the plays. Athletic ability alone does not make a 5 star player IMO.

 

[Luckylucci]

This illustrates how flawed these recruiting evaluations are. To me how well you know the position and have proper technique should count towards your rating as much as your vertical, 40, shuffle, etc..

Years ago when I coached youth football, I was coaching the All Stars. I was excited because I was going to have the absolutely fastest kid in the league on my team as an All Star. Kid was an absolute blazer. Much to my dismay, this kid couldn't remember or retain the most common dive or counter plays. Every rep he was going the wrong way or just stood there because he couldn't remember. I wondered how this kid managed to score so many touchdowns until I talked to his coach. He said he had the same problem with him and just told him to just run outside left or outside right. Needless to say his dad was pissed when he didn't play and didn't believe he couldn't remember the plays. Athletic ability alone does not make a 5 star player IMO.

And I would agree but I also thinks its flawed to say..... Well they weren't very good when I got here, so that's why they aren't now. The expectation is that each and every player see growth from year to year. Now is that going to happen, no. There are going to be some misses. However, if this season doesn't go well for the defense, its more than likely because we aren't seeing player growth on that side of the ball.

 

[Irish#1]

And I would agree but I also thinks its flawed to say..... Well they weren't very good when I got here, so that's why they aren't now. The expectation is that each and every player see growth from year to year. Now is that going to happen, no. There are going to be some misses. However, if this season doesn't go well for the defense, its more than likely because we aren't seeing player growth on that side of the ball.

Yeah, no argument there. Every player should show some degree of improvement year to year, especially the ones with the most athletic ability.

 

[ResLife Hero]

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Notre Dame 2016 Spring Practice Recap: Let the Rebuild Begin <a href="https://t.co/FCjYFMHAxw">https://t.co/FCjYFMHAxw</a> <a href="https://t.co/RRZAV98OpL">pic.twitter.com/RRZAV98OpL</a></p>— One Foot Down (@OneFootDown) <a href="https://twitter.com/OneFootDown/status/710228415438299138">March 16, 2016</a></blockquote>
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[koonja]

Justin Brent where the hell are you?

 

[Sherm Sticky]

Justin Brent where the hell are you?

He had a nice catch and of course looked extremely athletic.


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[Irishman77]

Just from the clips posted my takeaways are:

Wimbush is not like the others. I doubt he gets his shot this year, but when he does we are in for a treat!

We have a plethora of talent to throw footballs to

I think with the competition at OL and qb the rb situation is overlooked. Adams could surprise many by being amongst the very best. folston and dexter may have limited opportunities.

D. Hayes has a very disproportionate body halves. Earl Cambell from waist down and neve Cambell from waste up. When the shoulder heals and he fills out this kid has the prototype of a freak edge rusher. I really hope this pans out and not a Ishag 2.0

Brent looked fast! He has got to find the field somehow.

Overall I feel we have a very very good offense and if our D is average (top 50) we have a shot at the playoffs and if healthy who knows what could happen. I will say that until the team plays the first 5 minutes of the game like a pack of psychos instead of 85 humans battling the flu, we will have 12 more stroke alert drunk fests again.

GO IRISH!!!!!

 

[IrishLion]

Every spring, I make a ridiculous suggestion/wish that will never come true. The :30 practice clips bring it out in me.

This year, my wish is to see a diamond/full-house formation with Malik at QB and the three-headed RB dragon all on the field at once. Put Dexter and Josh on either side of Malik so they would be a threat on the stretch plays, and put Folston behind him so he has the entire zone to work with on any other runs. And of course, triple option. Put Alize and Durham on the field. Line them both up on the line or split them both out. Either way, get the blocking matchups at the edges that you want.

Please?

 

[tko]

Just from the clips posted my takeaways are:

Wimbush is not like the others. I doubt he gets his shot this year, but when he does we are in for a treat!

We have a plethora of talent to throw footballs to

I think with the competition at OL and qb the rb situation is overlooked. Adams could surprise many by being amongst the very best. folston and dexter may have limited opportunities.

D. Hayes has a very disproportionate body halves. Earl Cambell from waist down and neve Cambell from waste up. When the shoulder heals and he fills out this kid has the prototype of a freak edge rusher. I really hope this pans out and not a Ishag 2.0

Brent looked fast! He has got to find the field somehow.

Overall I feel we have a very very good offense and if our D is average (top 50) we have a shot at the playoffs and if healthy who knows what could happen. I will say that until the team plays the first 5 minutes of the game like a pack of psychos instead of 85 humans battling the flu, we will have 12 more stroke alert drunk fests again.

GO IRISH!!!!!

This might be the observation of the year, reps. To pull a Neve Campbell reference truly speaks to your age and intellectual depth, LOL

 

[zelezo vlk]

Coach D is all-in. He made a bold prediction that Nyles will be the best player on defense. He also was raving about the hand use by the D line. Has anybody else commented on it?

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[arrowryan]

I am really excited/anxious to see who our starting linebackers are going into Fall camp and going into the Texas game. Nyles seems to be the closest thing to a guarantee right now. Does JO keep his spot? Does Martini's production and knowledge of the defense get him a starting spot? Tevon Coney played a decent amount last year, does he replace Jaylon? Bilal was the defensive scout team player of the year last year and he seems that he is ready to contribute. There is a lot of talent at that position and it is going to be a fun position to watch.

I agree with everyone that has said that the EE's look the part physically. Studstill looks more like a junior than an EE. Other than Rochell, pretty much the rest of the defensive ends are unproven. Trumbetti doesn't have to worry about splitting time with Okwara anymore so lets see if he takes advantage of that opportunity. Blankenship has a chance to play a lot and possibly crack the 2-deep. And then the two freshmen, there is no way that Hayes (assuming he stays healthy) and Kareem redshirt. IMO, Hayes/Kareem are the best freshmen defensive linemen since Tuitt/Lynch. With all the unproven player behind Rochell, it wouldn't totally shock me if both Hayes and Kareem are starters after a month into the season.

The offense shouldn't miss a beat from last year. Yeah, they lost Fuller but BK has always found ways to replace his best receiver. There are too many talented wide receivers on this team to worry if we will be able to replace Fuller. The o-line is really the other question mark (if you really want to call it that). When Martin/Watt left everyone was fully expecting the o-line to take a step back; they did take a step back but it was a tiny step and they replaced Martin with another first round pick. I think McGlinchey can/will be better than Stanley; he's a mean SOB, had a great year last year, and is coached by the best o-line coach in the country. From a recruiting raking standpoint, this will be our best o-line in the Kelly era.

Basically, the 2016 Irish team will go as far as the defense will let them. BVG has to be coaching for his job at this point. He gets all of his injured players back so there is really no excuse. If the defense can just average, say, 25 points given up per game then Notre Dame should be sitting pretty in the playoff rankings at the end of the year. If the defense performs similar to last year then I'd expect another season like last year and BK will be rolling out a new DC in 2017.

 

[tko]

Over/under on personal foul penalties for Morgan this year? Can we add that to the prop bets when the time comes?

 

[IrishLion]

Over/under on personal foul penalties for Morgan this year? Can we add that to the prop bets when the time comes?

I'll set it at 1.5 for targeting ejections.

 

[woolybug25]

I am really excited/anxious to see who our starting linebackers are going into Fall camp and going into the Texas game. Nyles seems to be the closest thing to a guarantee right now. Does JO keep his spot? Does Martini's production and knowledge of the defense get him a starting spot? Tevon Coney played a decent amount last year, does he replace Jaylon? Bilal was the defensive scout team player of the year last year and he seems that he is ready to contribute. There is a lot of talent at that position and it is going to be a fun position to watch.

My preseason prediction... Both Bilal and Barajas will be starters at some point in the season.

 

[GrangerIrish24]

I'm intrigued by the potential of our d-line. Kelly has finally built up quality depth and Gilmore has been doing an excellent job by all reports. If Jarron Jones can stay healthy and motivated, I feel our d-line will be what carries this years defense.

 

[Irish#1]

Every spring, I make a ridiculous suggestion/wish that will never come true. The :30 practice clips bring it out in me.

Tends to effect quite a few on this board.

 

[woolybug25]

I'm intrigued by the potential of our d-line. Kelly has finally built up quality depth and Gilmore has been doing an excellent job by all reports. If Jarron Jones can stay healthy and motivated, I feel our d-line will be what carries this years defense.

Having a second string of Kareem-Cage-Hayes-Hayes makes my mouth water...