How about Jonas Gray!!

[irishandy]

I was glad to see James Aldridge finally have a good game against Washington, but Jonas Gray's quiet 61 rushing yards impressed me more. If we play Gray more our running game will be more efficient. Glad to see that Gray got some playing time.

 

[NeuteredDoomer]

He was impressive.

Hope he stays hungry and knows why,

 

[kmoose]

I was glad to see James Aldridge finally have a good game against Washington, but Jonas Gray's quiet 61 rushing yards impressed me more. If we play Gray more our running game will be more efficient. Glad to see that Gray got some playing time.

I was also impressed by Gray. He looks like he has that football speed that has been missing in the ND backfield, for years. However, simply plugging him in on more plays is no guarantee that our running game will improve. Gray's carries came in the 4th quarter of a game that was already over (and both teams knew it), and against the 116th ranked rushing defense.

 

[Junkhead]

Gray looked good. So did Aldridge. Next season we'll have SR. Aldridge, JRs Allen and Hughes, Soph Gray, and Frosh's Wood and Riddick. overcrowded maybe, but sick!

 

[rogosIRISH77]

overcrowded, yes... the only problem i have with this is that we are letting this affect our run game. we really don't know who to expect in the running game because we haven't stuck with anybody in perticular.

i think armando and hughes are the most consistent. you've got a great power back in hughes, and the elusive flashy back in armando. i would also love to see armando used in a slot and continue his activity in the passing game. really thats all we need are those two, just keep giving it to them!

don't get me wrong though, aldridge looked great against washington, but then again, its washington!

allen and hughes make for the most dynamic backfield combo

 

[Junkhead]

Hughes hasn't impressed me this year. He reminds me at times of a larger Darius Walker (no disrespect to DW). He looks a step slow and dances. Allen has made big strides this season, and I agree with putting him in the slot. Aldridge has been hitting the hole like a battering ram, no hesitation. For now, Allen and Aldridge should get the bulk of the carries. But Gray, and Hughes....ugh who knows.

 

[kmoose]

Gray looked good. So did Aldridge. Next season we'll have SR. Aldridge, JRs Allen and Hughes, Soph Gray, and Frosh's Wood and Riddick. overcrowded maybe, but sick!

Acutally, "sick" was 1991, when ND had Rodney Culver, Tony Brooks, Reggie Brooks, Lee Becton, Jerome Bettis, and Ryan Mihalko in the backfield.

 

[Junkhead]

Acutally, "sick" was 1991, when ND had Rodney Culver, Tony Brooks, Reggie Brooks, Lee Becton, Jerome Bettis, and Ryan Mihalko in the backfield.

This group *should* be that talented, if not more.

 

[alleycat9]

i have to wonder when we will see a ricky watters type back in the receiver corps more full time. then again our wrs are pretty talented on their own. however with all those playmakers its tough to find ways to use them all.

 

[phork]

But thats what good teams do. Playmakers get the ball to them someway, every game.

 

[jonesman]

Guys,
Don't go thinking Jonas needs a bunch of carries in front of James. Aldridge has earned every carry he gets. He looked good both UW and UNC games. I like the diversity we have in the backfield. It keeps the defense guessing

 

[ACamp1900]

I still don't get how people can give props to Hughes and none to JA... the rare times when JA has actually gotten the ball he has delivered... How many carries does Hughes have over three yards this season??? I don't get it, the difference in vision and ability is just night and day in James' favor

 

[ACamp1900]

Hughes hasn't impressed me this year. He reminds me at times of a larger Darius Walker (no disrespect to DW). He looks a step slow and dances. Allen has made big strides this season, and I agree with putting him in the slot. Aldridge has been hitting the hole like a battering ram, no hesitation. For now, Allen and Aldridge should get the bulk of the carries. But Gray, and Hughes....ugh who knows.

Completely agree... every time Hughes is in there we lose yardage or see a drive end...

1.) Allen
2.) Aldridge
3.) Gray
4.) Ace
5.) Anthony Vernaglia
6.) Robert Hughes


sorry, that was wrong, couldn't help it

 

[jonesman]

Acamp,
Don't go bashing Hughes like that. He has done some really nice things while at ND. He will have a productive career, but currently James is looking better at the power game. Let's all just celebrate that we have OPTIONS. I remember a couple years back when we had Darius Walker and Darius Walker. No back up at all. They are all good and all bring different skills.

 

[ACamp1900]

Acamp,
Don't go bashing Hughes like that. He has done some really nice things while at ND. He will have a productive career, but currently James is looking better at the power game. Let's all just celebrate that we have OPTIONS. I remember a couple years back when we had Darius Walker and Darius Walker. No back up at all. They are all good and all bring different skills.

Yeah even when I do it I feel bad about bashing him... He is one of our players, he is just a kid... He had a good year LAST year... but it is so frustrating watching him get carry after carry after carry ahead of JA and do nothing but fall two feet forword once he hits the line... all the while JA has looked really good in limited time... It's not Hughes fault but the guy should NOT be getting time ahead of JA....


better???

 

[NDinL.A.]

Yeah even when I do it I feel bad about bashing him... He is one of our players, he is just a kid... He had a good year LAST year... but it is so frustrating watching him get carry after carry after carry ahead of JA and do nothing but fall two feet forword once he hits the line... all the while JA has looked really good in limited time... It's not Hughes fault but the guy should NOT be getting time ahead of JA....


better???

Much better. Much niiiiiiiicer. Don't you feel better after you say such nice things?

I have to be honest, I though Hughes was going to have a breakout year this year. He looked fantastic at the tail end of last year. But he hasn't looked good at all this year.......with one exception. If you recall, he was ballin' in the SDSU game. Running and catching the ball out of the backfield, he was rolling. Then came that hit and the subsequent fumble plus injury (my friend's said it looked more like a loser's limp, but I digress), and he simply hasn't looked the same since. I agree, he does look bad. But I'm not writing him off yet. I think he's got a lot to prove, and he's going to show us the Hughes of last year, when he rolled over such powerhouses as Duke and Stanford .

As for Gray getting more carries, ummm, not quite yet. UCLA's fifth string tailback could have run through those holes. UW was a team that had given up already on their (wannabe) coach. He's got 3 guys ahead of him, and while I'd like to see him do some things in a meaningful game, we don't have the luxury to try things like that yet. We're simply not good enough. I trust the coaches have seen what he can do in practice, and that's why he's still 4th string. Remember, pass-protection is a huge part of a RB's game, and freshmen usually have an extremely hard time picking up that part of the game. If he's not ready for that, and teams pick up on it (they will, trust me), then we become one-dimensional, and we know our line can't open up holes against a run-stopping defense yet. But the future definitely looks bright at the RB spot! And I hope you are right and I am wrong, and he proves that he's more deserving of carries than Allen. I don't see it, but hey, I've been wrong before...

 

[coachjohnson]

Aldridge needs to get the carries that Hughes gets and Hughes get the carries that Aldridge gets. Competition breeds success, this would really help Hughes.

 

[rogosIRISH77]

I agree that Aldridge has done well recently. He hits the hole hard and drives his legs through tackles, but he does not have good vision at all. He hits that hole and runs straight forward. I mean it's better than an east-west runner, but I've seen him plow right into the guard or center countless times. Hughes is not as fast, but he has good vision and power. He may not be breaking the big plays, but he is consistent and loses yardage very rarely.

 

[IrishGrizz]

When CW was talking about Gray this week, he said he was in on some of the simple packages, cause those sets he was able to do what he needed. What he did not say except by exclusion, was Jonas was not ready for some of the more 'nuances' of some of the sets in the playbook. It will come.

 

[goldandblue]

I think Jonas is going to be great but right now I think Allen and Aldridge should get the bulk of the carries. Use Hughes in short situations for first downs and touchdowns.

What I would love to see would be Hughes playing fullback with Alllen and Aldridge playing RB. That is the thing about Schwapp, He is a 1 dimensional football player He can block (sometimes) and that's about it. Put Hughes in place of Schwapp and all of the sudden you have a multi dimensional Fullback. One that can Run the ball, Catch the ball, and I couldn't imagine with his size not being able to block. I guarantee you Hughes is a better athlete than Asaph so get him on the damn field however you can.

Can you say Jerome Bettis??? He lined down as fullback and was a fantastic player. I think it would be great having another Impact player on the field. Unfortunately Asaph is NOT an impact player. This is what an athletic multi dimensional fullback can do for you.<object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/1-MEt60Y0f8&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/1-MEt60Y0f8&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>

 

[GO IRISH!!!]

Jonas is going to have to put in some serious hard work over the summer. He not only will have to overtake the guys already ahead of him, but he is going to have to fend off Cierre Wood in the Fall. I am big fan of Cierre already and I really think he is going to make an impact as soon as he steps foot on campus. I like Jonas a lot, but the running backs are all going to have to put in some time over the Spring and Summer just to hold their place on the depth chart, let alone move up.