General team info

[#1rish]

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[woolybug25]

There's not much else to go on. There's the practice reports from this year, and his career 13 receptions. I'd agree with you if he had earned the benefit of the doubt based on past years. But he didn't really do anything his first year, was ineligible his 2nd year (goes along with being lazy), and now injured and allegedly being lazy through practice in his 3rd.

I think he can turn it around, though. He does have talent, and even if he's practicing poorly, maybe he's a gamer. It's not fair to everyone to be a gamer, but sometimes people just are.

To the same effect, he doesn't deserve to be bashed as having poor work ethic and trying to trick the staff into thinking he's hurt to miss practice. What if literally none of that is true? Think about it, these guys have barely seen any of fall practice and Alize sat out last year. What first hand (ie know for a fact) knowledge could they possibly have of those being true?

But they go on their show, bash the young man's character and make a bunch of people instantly turn on a kid and post it on forums for everyone else to spread. Info about a young man, by all other measures, seems to be all in. I think it's shoddy journalism and ethically questionable considering the amount of in person viewing they have had thus far in camp.

 

[IrishLion]

It's all an elaborate motivational ploy.

It's no coincidence that the new "reporting guidelines" are being ignored already... the coaching staff says "report what you want, as long as you put the info out there that blah blah blah, and also blah blah blah. That guy needs to get the message. If you do that, you can go ahead and report on the two deep from the hurry-up drill."

 

[koonja]

To the same effect, he doesn't deserve to be bashed as having poor work ethic and trying to trick the staff into thinking he's hurt to miss practice. What if literally none of that is true? Think about it, these guys have barely seen any of fall practice and Alize sat out last year. What first hand (ie know for a fact) knowledge could they possibly have of those being true?

But they go on their show, bash the young man's character and make a bunch of people instantly turn on a kid and post it on forums for everyone else to spread. Info about a young man, by all other measures, seems to be all in. I think it's shoddy journalism and ethically questionable considering the amount of in person viewing they have had thus far in camp.

I think you have to consider that Mike at ISD is very anti-bashing ND players. He makes posts about how players/parents read that stuff, and so he 'takes it easy' on the players publicly and doesn't allow posters to say overly negative things.

So to me, them saying what they did carries weight because he wouldn't allow it unless there was merit to it IMO.

But yeah - I hope they're wrong. Alize has talent, but so do the true freshman and he needs to push himself it seems. Maybe he'll get there as games get closer, some people just have a hard time getting excited at this time of the year, even though it'd help them in the fall.

 

[Domina Nostra]

To the same effect, he doesn't deserve to be bashed as having poor work ethic and trying to trick the staff into thinking he's hurt to miss practice. What if literally none of that is true? Think about it, these guys have barely seen any of fall practice and Alize sat out last year. What first hand (ie know for a fact) knowledge could they possibly have of those being true?

"Nothing going on"? So that means we should debate whether a kid has poor character? That's your idea of a good time, Koon? Sometimes I think you think our players are fake people that are only here for your amusement.

But they go on their show, bash the young man's character and make a bunch of people instantly turn on a kid and post it on forums for everyone else to spread. Info about a young man, by all other measures, seems to be all in. I think it's shoddy journalism and ethically questionable considering the amount of in person viewing they have had thus far in camp.

I don't see what guilt or innocence has to do with any of it. He is a public person. They are expressing their opinion. They can say whatever they want!

 

[Irish Man3]

Let see how the season goes before we start declaring players a "career bust".

Just to be clear, they didn't call his career a bust. They did say, however, that if his disdain for practice and injury prone off-seasons continue, he could get passed up by the young TE group. Considering he was the #1 TE prospect out of highschool, if that were to happen he would be considered a bust.

His attitude toward practice and off-season workouts along with his "convienent injuries" are not made up stories or anything new. Staff members from BG talked about this under the radar years ago.

The part that I don't understand fully, is if this kid was a flake, why did he stick it out last year?

Alize has Jordan Reed potential if the chips fall into place for him mentally. He is as gifted physically as any TE has had alongside Rudolph. Hopefully the work ethic and leadership qualities catch up.

 

[tko]

Maybe he should spend more time after practice working on one hand grabs from the throwing machine.

 

[IrishLion]

From Power Hour on the general subject:

Cam Smith being officially announced by Kelly as the number 2 receiver is a shot to Boykin, Claypool and Stepherson that they need to get to work.

On Claypool and Stepherson:

"Selective work ethic"

"They're not running every route as hard as they should be"

"They don't work hard enough"

"They have talent, but not enough talent to get away with it"


They don't mention that they've only seen ~10 actual plays from two practices, so either they're (1) making assumptions for shock value/conversation, (2) intentionally throwing shots out there to try and help motivate these guys, or (3) they're getting info from inside the program in addition to what they see, and it says that these guys are still not working hard enough to earn starting reps.


On Alize Mack:

He should be back this week, and he should be fully in the mix. This is a huge week for him. He's been banged up here and there and injured quite a bit.

If he doesn't step up "this might be end of his career because those two freshmen are very talented."

"BK doesn't have any inclination to wait around for Alize Mack."

"If he doesn't step up this week and start showing that he wants to be a great player, he's going to get passed."

Jaime doesn't go that far, but he thinks the young guys are coming on, and that Stepherson's situation is a message to the program. Alize could be the next Stepherson.

They aren't able to count on him, because he's always banged up. But they need him, because Wright and Kmet will be fine long-term, but Mack is needed immediately.

Freeman says he hasn't done anything, and he hasn't even made big plays in practice. He's seen more from Kmet in 2.5 practices than he's seen from Alize in the 2 (1.5) years he's been available.

He's not getting enough of out practice, which is something that they heard about from when he was in high school.

He HAS been injured, but BK is setting the tone, and Mack is on the borderline of being left behind like Stepherson.

They think (that BK thinks) that Kmet can do all the things Alize can do, both receiving and blocking, he just needs to get up to speed since he's a freshman.



TL;DR Sounds like standard speculation based on a talented guy not panning out yet, and a young guy(s) with a lot of potential breathing down his neck. It's just more noteworthy than during a normal Fall camp because Stepherson is an ACTIVE example of a guy that is getting left behind, and Mack could be next.

 

[woolybug25]

Just to be clear, they didn't call his career a bust. They did say, however, that if his disdain for practice and injury prone off-seasons continue, he could get passed up by the young TE group. Considering he was the #1 TE prospect out of highschool, if that were to happen he would be considered a bust.

His attitude toward practice and off-season workouts along with his "convienent injuries" are not made up stories or anything new. Staff members from BG talked about this under the radar years ago.
The part that I don't understand fully, is if this kid was a flake, why did he stick it out last year?

Alize has Jordan Reed potential if the chips fall into place for him mentally. He is as gifted physically as any TE has had alongside Rudolph. Hopefully the work ethic and leadership qualities catch up.

The bolded is my biggest beef. How in the hell would they know if any of that is the case today? They have barely any in person viewing of practices so far this year, and when they do, the drills and scrimmage is very vanilla by design. Then of course, he sat out last year. So how in the world would any of the guys talking about this have first hand knowledge that this is true today? They would have HAD TO heard it second hand or simply took info from a couple years ago and extrapolated it to today. Regardless, #fakenews.

 

[koonja]

The bolded is my biggest beef. How in the hell would they know if any of that is the case today? They have barely any in person viewing of practices so far this year, and when they do, the drills and scrimmage is very vanilla by design. Then of course, he sat out last year. So how in the world would any of the guys talking about this have first hand knowledge that this is true today? They would have HAD TO heard it second hand or simply took info from a couple years ago and extrapolated it to today. Regardless, #fakenews.

I admire that you always give the benefit of the doubt to the team, I really mean that. They don't just watch practices, though.

They talk to coaches and players daily. Matt in particular is very close to the players.

 

[woolybug25]

I admire that you always give the benefit of the doubt to the team, I really mean that. They don't just watch practices, though.

They talk to coaches and players daily. Matt in particular is very close to the players.

I don't mean this facetiously, but do you consider that first hand knowledge?

First, a coach would never tell a reporter that they think a player is faking injuries, etc. Second, even if they were getting info from another player, how can they know that it's true. For example, go ask every coworker their opinion of your boss and you'll get a wide variety of opinions. That isn't "first hand knowledge" in my opinion.

 

[koonja]

I don't mean this facetiously, but do you consider that first hand knowledge?

First, a coach would never tell a reporter that they think a player is faking injuries, etc. Second, even if they were getting info from another player, how can they know that it's true. For example, go ask every coworker their opinion of your boss and you'll get a wide variety of opinions. That isn't "first hand knowledge" in my opinion.

They trust what they see at practice and what they hear from the players. And I put faith in that because I know the guys at ISD are slow to point out negative things about players, and I personally trust what Matt says. I don't think he/they hear one thing from one person then run with it. I think if it gets to the point where they're reporting it openly, it's become a general consensus and viewed/talked about by a number of people.

There's no cold hard facts one way or another - but I do trust those guys. You don't have to. Either way, I hope Alize steps it up and has a 40 catch year.

 

[woolybug25]

They trust what they see at practice and what they hear from the players. And I put faith in that because I know the guys at ISD are slow to point out negative things about players, and I personally trust what Matt says. I don't think he/they hear one thing from one person then run with it. I think if it gets to the point where they're reporting it openly, it's become a general consensus and viewed/talked about by a number of people.

There's no cold hard facts one way or another - but I do trust those guys. You don't have to. Either way, I hope Alize steps it up and has a 40 catch year.

They barely have seen any practice this year and Alize sat out last year. Not to mention, the practices they have been allowed into were purposefully vanilla. So what practice are they basing this on?

 

[koonja]

They barely have seen any practice this year and Alize sat out last year. Not to mention, the practices they have been allowed into were purposefully vanilla. So what practice are they basing this on?

Why do you think they say Alize isn't impressing, and the two freshman are working their butts off and impressing if they haven't seen anything and what they have is vanilla?

My last post on this topic. I do hope you're right. And even if they are, I hope Alize turns it up in camp, and doesn't wait for the game time to do so. Because if he doesn't, he might not see as much game time as he thinks he's going to, and that'd be a shame because if all things are equal, he can help the 2017 team a lot more than the true freshman.

 

[woolybug25]

Why do you think they say Alize isn't impressing, and the two freshman are working their butts off and impressing if they haven't seen anything and what they have is vanilla?

My last post on this topic. I do hope you're right. And even if they are, I hope Alize turns it up in camp, and doesn't wait for the game time to do so. Because if he doesn't, he might not see as much game time as he thinks he's going to, and that'd be a shame because if all things are equal, he can help the 2017 team a lot more than the true freshman.

The problem with this is that the limitations on their viewing of practices is verifiable and real. They can and will opine on who "impresses" (they're reporters after all), but there is no debate on their opinions being based off very little actual first hand viewing.

 

[Irish Man3]

It's not just based on practice viewing. Some guys over at ISD, have been doing this a long time. They have trusted sources that have been there through the years. I admire that they stick to their sources, even when click-baiting other sites suggest otherwise. The outlook on Mack comes from multiple angles starting in highschool.

Let's just hope that Mack continues to grow and becomes a leader on this team. Super talented kid that we badly need on this team, especially considering what's going on with Stepherson.

 

[PANDFAN]

They barely have seen any practice this year and Alize sat out last year. Not to mention, the practices they have been allowed into were purposefully vanilla. So what practice are they basing this on?

he did practice all of last year despite being out if i remember correctly

 

[PANDFAN]

It's not just based on practice viewing. Some guys over at ISD, have been doing this a long time. They have trusted sources that have been there through the years. I admire that they stick to their sources, even when click-baiting other sites suggest otherwise. The outlook on Mack comes from multiple angles starting in highschool.

Let's just hope that Mack continues to grow and becomes a leader on this team. Super talented kid that we badly need on this team, especially considering what's going on with Stepherson.

this is what has come as a shock as well...i used to be a lot more into recruiting in years past and i just don't remember ANYTHING like this being mentioned

 

[dublinirish]

he did practice all of last year despite being out if i remember correctly

he even played defensive end on scout teams apparently

 

[snoopdog]

Disappointed to read that Claypool is suffering from the same lack of drive that is impacting Stepherson.

Being such a outlier in High School, he never really had to compete 100% every single day, so I recognize the learning curve. But this is year two. I do hope he steps it up and starts meeting the coaches expectations around day to day compete level.

 

[Old Man Mike]

I hope that none of the above still applies to Mack at the moment and that he shines this year --- but if he doesn't, then putting the rookies in there with Smythe probably bodes better for roughhouse two TE blocking formations, a la the hated Stanford crap we've had to endure these last several years.

I have yet to hear that Mack's heart is into the roughhouse contact part of being a TE and may view himself as a very big wide (some IE folk seem to always see him that way too, but it ain't power football like we really want in the redzone.)

 

[Greenore]

Disappointed to read that Claypool is suffering from the same lack of drive that is impacting Stepherson.

Being such a outlier in High School, he never really had to compete 100% every single day, so I recognize the learning curve. But this is year two. I do hope he steps it up and starts meeting the coaches expectations around day to day compete level.

Struck a chord with me too snoop. Claypool is a gifted athlete and I figured there would be a learning curve as he transitioned. He seemed to perform better than expected in his camps and a lot of us were really excited with his potential.

I hate reading this stuff but hopefully, (1) it is motivation driven, and, (2) it has the desired effect on Claypool, Stepherson and Mack. There is a lot of talent in the former sentence. Cheers!

 

[Veritate Duce Progredi]

Struck a chord with me too snoop. Claypool is a gifted athlete and I figured there would be a learning curve as he transitioned. He seemed to perform better than expected in his camps and a lot of us were really excited with his potential.

I hate reading this stuff but hopefully, (1) it is motivation driven, and, (2) it has the desired effect on Claypool, Stepherson and Mack. There is a lot of talent in the former sentence. Cheers!

There's a difference between lack of drive and lack of focus. It could be he's just learning how to keep focus. Hopefully they all turn a corner because that is a lot of athleticism.

 

[koonja]

How much of this is a reflection of Alexander? He’s the WR coach, and if the allegations are true that Claypool, Mack (who takes reps at WR), and Stepherson are dogging it and it’ll cost them PT, what does he have to say about that?

 

[dublinirish]

How much of this is a reflection of Alexander? He’s the WR coach, and if the allegations are true that Claypool, Mack (who takes reps at WR), and Stepherson are dogging it and it’ll cost them PT, what does he have to say about that?

Maybe he should become a hardass like Coach Lyght

 

[Ndaccountant]

How much of this is a reflection of Alexander? He’s the WR coach, and if the allegations are true that Claypool, Mack (who takes reps at WR), and Stepherson are dogging it and it’ll cost them PT, what does he have to say about that?

Crazy idea, but can we wait to see a few games before deciding?

 

[GrangerIrish24]

Is all of this being based off of Mike Frank during power hour?

 

[FightingIrishLover7]

How much of this is a reflection of Alexander? He’s the WR coach, and if the allegations are true that Claypool, Mack (who takes reps at WR), and Stepherson are dogging it and it’ll cost them PT, what does he have to say about that?

"maybe he's related to Longo" - Kuen

 

[snoopdog]

Is all of this being based off of Mike Frank during power hour?

For me, it is based on BK's comments about playing the players who have attention to detail over talent.

I thought he was specifically addressing Stepherson, but it appears by promoting Cam Smith to 1st team, that Claypool, and maybe Boykin could be included.

 

[dwshade]

For me, it is based on BK's comments about playing the players who have attention to detail over talent.

I thought he was specifically addressing Stepherson, but it appears by promoting Cam Smith to 1st team, that Claypool, and maybe Boykin could be included.

Would not include Boykin since he plays same position as EQ.