"ISD Intel"

[Classic Irish]

In Sheldon Day's thread EvilleIrish stated that one of Day's HS coaches told him that was Day's plan. Obviously things changed with injuries etc. Day never came out and said it but if you believe Eville then yes that was Day's original plan. It really isn't that shocking, most high 4*/5* recruits probably think that they will be good enough to go pro after 3 years.

Ok, that may be true, but he certainly didn't broadcast it publicly at a HS All-American game. That, to me, said a lot about Ross and how he views the college experience. I'm not surprised he didn't choose ND. IMO, he sounds like he belongs at a place like southern cal.

 

[Rocket89]

I thought they beat the subject to death (what'd they spend 45 minutes alone on ND's "effort"?) and are using a couple of examples (that aren't as cut and dry as they make it seem) as an indictment on said effort by Kelly & Co.

Frank has become unbearable at times this season. Regurgitates the same 5 or 6 negative talking points endlessly on every single podcast.

Coach D even caught him in a contradiction of how his complaining doesn't make much sense. That is, Kelly needs to put in more work and call recruits but Kelly calling recruits doesn't have the same impact it does when Meyer and Saban pick up the phone.

The whole effort angle is so vague, and largely tied to hindsight bias on a few recruits among literally dozens of prospects.

And getting so angst filled about 'not getting over the hump' and beating Meyer and Saban on the recruiting trail feels like a waste of time to me. Literally no one is going to beat those two, especially while coaching at Notre Dame.

I thought the podcast was too emotive and hard to listen to while repeating the same tired things over and over for so long.

 

[scUM Hater]

If you haven't listened to the first half hour of the podcast please do so before commenting further. The point they make is that on the defensive side of the ball we have a very weird approach and causes us to miss out on some really good players that could have been had by simply putting a little more effort in. Things as simple as BK making a phone call. They provide some pretty specific examples. If we have spots filled up at a position we tend to stop recruiting guys that could take that spot if something were to happen. This is what's happening with the Prentice situation. We are doing an awesome job pitching Reid and others but didn't put the time in earlier which puts off some of these recruits. It's really bizarre and easily correctable.

Go ahead and listen to these talking head types that cover all college football teams and they're saying the same thing I am sure. Maybe the staff had other likes and didn't pursue these kids as hard. Now that some of these guys are going elsewhere he has to focus on the others. Thank goodness they put so much time in the Vanderdoes's of the world. Plus they reference Urban Meyer only hammering a certain amount of guys? So they are bashing Kelly for doing the same thing?

 

[gkIrish]

Go ahead and listen to these talking head types that cover all college football teams and they're saying the same thing I am sure. Maybe the staff had other likes and didn't pursue these kids as hard. Now that some of these guys are going elsewhere he has to focus on the others. Thank goodness they put so much time in the Vanderdoes's of the world. Plus they reference Urban Meyer only hammering a certain amount of guys? So they are bashing Kelly for doing the same thing?

They aren't "bashing" Kelly and neither am I. They just point out some things he could be doing better. I don't think anyone could coherently argue Kelly has been a perfect coach or even a perfect recruiter.

 

[scUM Hater]

So now they are saying that if ND gets Reid they have done a great job recruiting. These guys are idiots......

 

[scUM Hater]

Good banter gkirish.

 

[scUM Hater]

And now they are saying they don't need St.Brown..........

 

[Classic Irish]

Just received my first negative rep for a post on this thread. Seriously?

 

[NCND]

For how this regular season ended, I'm elated to have a Top 10 (or higher) class.

 

[GoldenDomer]

And now they are saying they don't need St.Brown..........

Do we? We've got so many WR's and now a TE who can line up outside. Compared to our need at safety, we don't. Which is what they were saying.

 

[scUM Hater]

Do we? We've got so many WR's and now a TE who can line up outside. Compared to our need at safety, we don't. Which is what they were saying.

We need a number one receiver according to some folks here. Maybe he can be that?

 

[GoldenDomer]

We need a number one receiver according to some folks here. Maybe he can be that?

At this point, I would rather have Reid. Safety is a NEED. ESB would be a luxury.

 

[anarin]

At this point, I would rather have Reid. Safety is a NEED. ESB would be a luxury.

I don't see the argument. Both are takes.

 

[zelezo vlk]

The point that Mike and Coach D make on the podcast is that ND is so close to reaching the next level that an additional elite recruit or two could push them to that plane. They're voicing frustration because the staff hasn't ascended to that next tier mostly due to lack of effort.

 

[ColinKSU]

One thing about Mike Frank is that he's not what I would consider pessamistic. If he's down on something and comes out and says it on Power Hour than it's legit, IMO. Was a member of his site for a bunch of years and think he does a great job. I personally think Kelly is outta here after this year, we'll see.

I've been listening to Mike for years, and I usually do agree with him on a lot of things -- especially his thoughts on how important O and D line recruiting is.

That said, I do hate how all of ND's recruits have "a lot of potential", only for him to come back around a few years after the class signs and say things like "There were a few kids in X class that I just would have thrown back."

He sometimes really reeks of trying to sell subscriptions more than he is being honest. Of course all the kids in the current class are great -- he wants you to buy a sub to read more about them. No one's buying subs to hear about Bruce Heggie.

And ESB is totally a "luxury" take, but *of course* you take him. You don't turn down kids with his measurables.

 

[GoldenDomer]

I don't see the argument. Both are takes.

He pointed out that they said ESB isn't a need. I gave my reason for why I agreed he wasn't.

 

[IrishLax]

The giant, obvious counterpoint to everything Frank and Driskell are railing on is that the staff DID hustle incredibly hard in the '11 and '12 classes. The result was lots of high profile commitments from extremely highly rated players.

But then those guys that they got to sign up by leaning on them either:
1) Decommitted.
2) Weren't a fit.
3) Washed out.
4) Left early.

So it's a bit ridiculous to say "hey, look how solid these last three classes have been... but they could've been better if XYZ" when there is a moderately large sample size that shows getting kids with XYZ ends up backfiring more than it helps.

The biggest issue I agree with them on is what they had to say about the difference between Alford/Hiestand and how the rest of the staff functions. Alford is in on every RB... and he gets results, despite all the hurdles he has to overcome (i.e. the vast majority of talent being located in the south, Notre Dame's scheme, etc.). Hiestand is in on every OL... and he cleans up. The way the rest of the staff is organized to recruit their regions and positions is a bit of an inefficient mess considering how much ground ND tries to cover.

Denbrock -- since his promotion -- doesn't put in a tenth of the legwork he used to, but still gets the job done IMO. Everyone else is varying levels of "lazy" or "ineffective." I've completely lost patience with Elston, and how he approached the recruitment of Barajas is you know that story is inexcusable. He's also not a good coach, IMO. Elliot is wasted as an OLB coach... and even worse, he is a TERRIBLE fit as the west coast recruiting guy. They learned their lesson after Barnett decommitted and now have LaFleur in on every QB but damn that was poorly handled. BVG barely recruits. Kelly could always do more but that's not really his personality and you just have to live with that. Booker has had pretty poor results as a coach and "meh" results on the trail.

Almost forgot Cooks. I think he does a great job in Texas and is a good coach and recruits/players both seem to like him a lot. Sometimes I wonder if he's asked to carry too much of the load though and that's why you have some DB recruitment slip through the cracks. Is the answer more support staff or reshuffling responsibilities? Or canning guys like Elston that are dead weight?

 

[IrishLax]

I thought they beat the subject to death (what'd they spend 45 minutes alone on ND's "effort"?) and are using a couple of examples (that aren't as cut and dry as they make it seem) as an indictment on said effort by Kelly & Co.

Frank has become unbearable at times this season. Regurgitates the same 5 or 6 negative talking points endlessly on every single podcast.

Coach D even caught him in a contradiction of how his complaining doesn't make much sense. That is, Kelly needs to put in more work and call recruits but Kelly calling recruits doesn't have the same impact it does when Meyer and Saban pick up the phone.

The whole effort angle is so vague, and largely tied to hindsight bias on a few recruits among literally dozens of prospects.

And getting so angst filled about 'not getting over the hump' and beating Meyer and Saban on the recruiting trail feels like a waste of time to me. Literally no one is going to beat those two, especially while coaching at Notre Dame.

I thought the podcast was too emotive and hard to listen to while repeating the same tired things over and over for so long.

I agree with most of this, especially the part about them beating it to death, and how a lot of their perspective was inherently contradictory.

I will say though that the anecdotes I've heard about certain coaches are just really painful, and I think their points about how the assistants are organized/ineffective in some cases had some merit.

Dropping contact with Barajas after he committed to PSU was insane. Dropping contact with Kirkland was also strange to me, as was the fact that we weren't actively pursuing a large crop of safeties until it was too late... and even then, Edwards made public comments about Stanford being on him harder while you also hear from the ND side of things that we weren't really beating down the door of any of these guys. So there are a lot of individual anecdotes that make you scratch your head and at least consider if there is an approach that might work better than what's currently being employed.

 

[anarin]

He pointed out that they said ESB isn't a need. I gave my reason for why I agreed he wasn't.

But it's a pointless conversation, his recruitment doesn't affect any safety they are trying to land.

It's like deciding on beer and Doritos , and saying you don't need more beer because you have enough at home. Of course you need beer, you never want to run out. And obviously you don't need Doritos to have beer.

 

[Classic Irish]

The giant, obvious counterpoint to everything Frank and Driskell are railing on is that the staff DID hustle incredibly hard in the '11 and '12 classes. The result was lots of high profile commitments from extremely highly rated players.

But then those guys that they got to sign up by leaning on them either:
1) Decommitted.
2) Weren't a fit.
3) Washed out.
4) Left early.

So it's a bit ridiculous to say "hey, look how solid these last three classes have been... but they could've been better if XYZ" when there is a moderately large sample size that shows getting kids with XYZ ends up backfiring more than it helps.

The biggest issue I agree with them on is what they had to say about the difference between Alford/Hiestand and how the rest of the staff functions. Alford is in on every RB... and he gets results, despite all the hurdles he has to overcome (i.e. the vast majority of talent being located in the south, Notre Dame's scheme, etc.). Hiestand is in on every OL... and he cleans up. The way the rest of the staff is organized to recruit their regions and positions is a bit of an inefficient mess considering how much ground ND tries to cover.

Denbrock -- since his promotion -- doesn't put in a tenth of the legwork he used to, but still gets the job done IMO. Everyone else is varying levels of "lazy" or "ineffective." I've completely lost patience with Elston, and how he approached the recruitment of Barajas is you know that story is inexcusable. He's also not a good coach, IMO. Elliot is wasted as an OLB coach... and even worse, he is a TERRIBLE fit as the west coast recruiting guy. They learned their lesson after Barnett decommitted and now have LaFleur in on every QB but damn that was poorly handled. BVG barely recruits. Kelly could always do more but that's not really his personality and you just have to live with that. Booker has had pretty poor results as a coach and "meh" results on the trail. Am I forgetting anyone?

Good analysis. I keep trying to figure out how Jeff Quinn could be incorporated into the staff, but the numbers obviously don't work---nor am I sure what kind of recruiter he may be.

 

[phork]

Whoever the fuck didnt land Zeke Elliot should be fired.

I am content knowing that BK is recruiting for his system. MSU, and to an extent Oregon, have proven you don't need top 10 classes to win. Coach'em up boys.

I firmly believe though that if Kelly is not in the playoffs this year the seat starts warming. Which is OK because I also believe he'll try his shot at the NFL at some point too. Who we get next is very very frightening.

 

[IrishLax]

Good analysis. I keep trying to figure out how Jeff Quinn could be incorporated into the staff, but the numbers obviously don't work---nor am I sure what kind of recruiter he may be.

I really think the only way to get Quinn on the staff is a wholesale shakeup.

First step is assuming you fire Elston, and move Booker to the defensive side of the ball. All of Booker's experience is on that side prior to ND. Have Booker coach safeties and fire Elliot, or fire Booker, or can gamble with Booker coaching DL.

Bring in Quinn to coach TEs and be co-OC with Denbrock (Denbrock's superior, but you let Denbrock retain title and get back into recruiting more). Then you have OC, OL, TE, WR, RB, and QB all accounted for.

Then on defense you have to figure out who coaches the line. You either bring in an outside hire (my preference... hopefully recruiting ace), have BVG coach linebackers, Booker or Elliot coach safeties (and help with OLB for passing downs considering how we use OLBs), and move Cooks to coaching just corners. I think a big reason why our safeties continue to struggle to develop is that it's basically been just Cooks coaching 4/5 DB spots + Kyle McCarthy battling cancer and trying to help out with safeties.

The other combination involves Quinn being full time special teams and OC with Booker continuing to coach TEs and Elliot moving back to coaching safeties with an outside hire brought in for the DL.

The problem is Kelly is too loyal to fire anyone on this staff.

 

[Classic Irish]

I really think the only way to get Quinn on the staff is a wholesale shakeup.

First step is assuming you fire Elston, and move Booker to the defensive side of the ball. All of Booker's experience is on that side prior to ND. Have Booker coach safeties and fire Elliot, or fire Booker, or can gamble with Booker coaching DL.

Bring in Quinn to coach TEs and be co-OC with Denbrock (Denbrock's superior, but you let Denbrock retain title and get back into recruiting more). Then you have OC, OL, TE, WR, RB, and QB all accounted for.

Then on defense you have to figure out who coaches the line. You either bring in an outside hire (my preference... hopefully recruiting ace), have BVG coach linebackers, Booker or Elliot coach safeties (and help with OLB for passing downs considering how we use OLBs), and move Cooks to coaching just corners. I think a big reason why our safeties continue to struggle to develop is that it's basically been just Cooks coaching 4/5 DB spots + Kyle McCarthy battling cancer and trying to help out with safeties.

The other combination involves Quinn being full time special teams and OC with Booker continuing to coach TEs and Elliot moving back to coaching safeties with an outside hire brought in for the DL.

The problem is Kelly is too loyal to fire anyone on this staff.

Thanks for the reply. Reps! Any idea how Quinn is as a recruiter? I suspect that we don't have much to go on given where he's been.

 

[TheTurningPoint]

I dont think Jeff Quinn is the answer. I thought it might be at some points last year, but offense isnt the problem. The OL played well. The problems early, werent on them.

I know head coach is different than being a OC or position coach, but Quinn did nothing at Buffalo. Sure its hard to win there, but getting fired from Buffalo is also something else. I cant imagine expectations are too tough there, yet he failed.

 

[ThePiombino]

Whoever the fuck didnt land Zeke Elliot should be fired.

I am content knowing that BK is recruiting for his system. MSU, and to an extent Oregon, have proven you don't need top 10 classes to win. Coach'em up boys.

I firmly believe though that if Kelly is not in the playoffs this year the seat starts warming. Which is OK because I also believe he'll try his shot at the NFL at some point too. Who we get next is very very frightening.

The issue on the defensive side though. No one is worried about offensive recruiting.

I dont think Jeff Quinn is the answer. I thought it might be at some points last year, but offense isnt the problem. The OL played well. The problems early, werent on them.

I know head coach is different than being a OC or position coach, but Quinn did nothing at Buffalo. Sure its hard to win there, but getting fired from Buffalo is also something else. I cant imagine expectations are too tough there, yet he failed.

So because he failed as a HC at Buffalo he wouldn't be a good fit on the staff? Some people are just destined to be damn good at something less than HC. Weis. Kiffen. Quinn?

 

[Grahambo]

Ykili Ross was never coming to ND no matter how many looks he was giving ND. That info may or may not have been made public by the top sites but that was the info that was being passed around. I'm trying to think of the big names that ND has MISSED on and I'm honestly coming up with a blank. And by missed, I mean flat out dropped the ball on to the point where kid was shoe in and didn't come in. How many of these big name kids that do show interest just simply don't qualify and are told so quietly behind the scene?

A lot of the big time names that you saw ND linked to was never coming from the start. Sure, there's always interest, especially in the beginning but over time for various reasons, true colors are shown and it just wasn't meant to be but sites like 247 et al will keeping beating the drum trying to keep up the hype and gain subscriptions because they are a business first.

How am I so sure? Simply because I ask those who are quietly behind the scenes. They keep it real. Simply ask, 'Hey, is this legit?' And they'll say yeah it is or for the most part no its not and they've been more right then wrong.

How many of these kids are divas and BK just doesn't have the time to put up with that? Sure, you make some exceptions but you also don't want a team full of knuckleheads which a lot of these kids turn out to be.

Getting a kid to commit 4 years of his life when they're from FLA, TX, CA is hard enough as it is. Getting the right kid to commit is even harder. The talent pool gets slimmer once you start breaking it down by ND standards. Stanford only gets the talent they get because they're in CA already. Duke, Vandy, Northwestern all have a reputation for being an academically strong school yet they struggle to pull in top talent year after year. Ohio State and Michigan get who they get because kids don't go to play school or whatever that saying is.

BK's reputation is for DEVELOPING talent. Taking the lesser known names and building them into contributors, stars, and draft picks. Big picture: look at the stat that had BK connections in the Pro Bowl.

This is not to say that the staff couldn't do a better job because there are always areas where people can improve on. Nobody's perfect. Each one of us have areas we could improve on, even the ones we feel are strengths but let's not get our panties in a bunch because a podcast is trying to sell subscriptions just before NSD. I mean, is anybody else noticing the timing?

For crying out loud, Gary Anderson left Wisconsin because he said getting certain kids past academics was too tough. Yet some are ready to move on from BK who consistently pulls in Top 10 classes, was in the National title game in 2012, finally beat an SEC school, and played with the youngest defense I have ever seen. Its only been 5 years and look what he has accomplished compared to what ND looked like the prior 20. Our biggest accomplishment was what? Winning the Hawaii Bowl in '09 after having the worst season in the history of ND back in '07?

We've seen ND go hard after big time commits over the years only to see it backfire tremendously. Do I see areas they could improve on? Sure but we are going to recruit the ND way because if we go recruit the way that OSU does it, that Alabama does it, that UCLA does it, that USC does it then we are no better then the same teams we harp on for their dirty ways.

 

[beryirish]

I understand that the coaches may not be paid as much as their peers and I don't agree with that. But these coaches aren't coming close to trying to make ends meet at home. Get your ass out and recruit and earn your money. It's not all earned in south bend.

 

[Sherm Sticky]

Ykili Ross was never coming to ND no matter how many looks he was giving ND. That info may or may not have been made public by the top sites but that was the info that was being passed around. I'm trying to think of the big names that ND has MISSED on and I'm honestly coming up with a blank. And by missed, I mean flat out dropped the ball on to the point where kid was shoe in and didn't come in. How many of these big name kids that do show interest just simply don't qualify and are told so quietly behind the scene?



A lot of the big time names that you saw ND linked to was never coming from the start. Sure, there's always interest, especially in the beginning but over time for various reasons, true colors are shown and it just wasn't meant to be but sites like 247 et al will keeping beating the drum trying to keep up the hype and gain subscriptions because they are a business first.



How am I so sure? Simply because I ask those who are quietly behind the scenes. They keep it real. Simply ask, 'Hey, is this legit?' And they'll say yeah it is or for the most part no its not and they've been more right then wrong.



How many of these kids are divas and BK just doesn't have the time to put up with that? Sure, you make some exceptions but you also don't want a team full of knuckleheads which a lot of these kids turn out to be.



Getting a kid to commit 4 years of his life when they're from FLA, TX, CA is hard enough as it is. Getting the right kid to commit is even harder. The talent pool gets slimmer once you start breaking it down by ND standards. Stanford only gets the talent they get because they're in CA already. Duke, Vandy, Northwestern all have a reputation for being an academically strong school yet they struggle to pull in top talent year after year. Ohio State and Michigan get who they get because kids don't go to play school or whatever that saying is.



BK's reputation is for DEVELOPING talent. Taking the lesser known names and building them into contributors, stars, and draft picks. Big picture: look at the stat that had BK connections in the Pro Bowl.



This is not to say that the staff couldn't do a better job because there are always areas where people can improve on. Nobody's perfect. Each one of us have areas we could improve on, even the ones we feel are strengths but let's not get our panties in a bunch because a podcast is trying to sell subscriptions just before NSD. I mean, is anybody else noticing the timing?



For crying out loud, Gary Anderson left Wisconsin because he said getting certain kids past academics was too tough. Yet some are ready to move on from BK who consistently pulls in Top 10 classes, was in the National title game in 2012, finally beat an SEC school, and played with the youngest defense I have ever seen. Its only been 5 years and look what he has accomplished compared to what ND looked like the prior 20. Our biggest accomplishment was what? Winning the Hawaii Bowl in '09 after having the worst season in the history of ND back in '07?



We've seen ND go hard after big time commits over the years only to see it backfire tremendously. Do I see areas they could improve on? Sure but we are going to recruit the ND way because if we go recruit the way that OSU does it, that Alabama does it, that UCLA does it, that USC does it then we are no better then the same teams we harp on for their dirty ways.

My man reps


Sent via tapatalk

 

[BoredIrish]

Ykili Ross was never coming to ND no matter how many looks he was giving ND. That info may or may not have been made public by the top sites but that was the info that was being passed around. I'm trying to think of the big names that ND has MISSED on and I'm honestly coming up with a blank. And by missed, I mean flat out dropped the ball on to the point where kid was shoe in and didn't come in. How many of these big name kids that do show interest just simply don't qualify and are told so quietly behind the scene?

A lot of the big time names that you saw ND linked to was never coming from the start. Sure, there's always interest, especially in the beginning but over time for various reasons, true colors are shown and it just wasn't meant to be but sites like 247 et al will keeping beating the drum trying to keep up the hype and gain subscriptions because they are a business first.

How am I so sure? Simply because I ask those who are quietly behind the scenes. They keep it real. Simply ask, 'Hey, is this legit?' And they'll say yeah it is or for the most part no its not and they've been more right then wrong.

How many of these kids are divas and BK just doesn't have the time to put up with that? Sure, you make some exceptions but you also don't want a team full of knuckleheads which a lot of these kids turn out to be.

Getting a kid to commit 4 years of his life when they're from FLA, TX, CA is hard enough as it is. Getting the right kid to commit is even harder. The talent pool gets slimmer once you start breaking it down by ND standards. Stanford only gets the talent they get because they're in CA already. Duke, Vandy, Northwestern all have a reputation for being an academically strong school yet they struggle to pull in top talent year after year. Ohio State and Michigan get who they get because kids don't go to play school or whatever that saying is.

BK's reputation is for DEVELOPING talent. Taking the lesser known names and building them into contributors, stars, and draft picks. Big picture: look at the stat that had BK connections in the Pro Bowl.

This is not to say that the staff couldn't do a better job because there are always areas where people can improve on. Nobody's perfect. Each one of us have areas we could improve on, even the ones we feel are strengths but let's not get our panties in a bunch because a podcast is trying to sell subscriptions just before NSD. I mean, is anybody else noticing the timing?

For crying out loud, Gary Anderson left Wisconsin because he said getting certain kids past academics was too tough. Yet some are ready to move on from BK who consistently pulls in Top 10 classes, was in the National title game in 2012, finally beat an SEC school, and played with the youngest defense I have ever seen. Its only been 5 years and look what he has accomplished compared to what ND looked like the prior 20. Our biggest accomplishment was what? Winning the Hawaii Bowl in '09 after having the worst season in the history of ND back in '07?

We've seen ND go hard after big time commits over the years only to see it backfire tremendously. Do I see areas they could improve on? Sure but we are going to recruit the ND way because if we go recruit the way that OSU does it, that Alabama does it, that UCLA does it, that USC does it then we are no better then the same teams we harp on for their dirty ways.

Agreed... and just to add to this, alot of the criticism of Kelly is off-base as well.

He took a personal role in going after Hilliard and Jacques Patrick. In the end, ND didnt land either, but you can't say he didnt try. He did the same thing with Nyles Morgan and was able to close.

BK's strategy doesnt appear to be any different than Saban's or Meyer's. He gets involved in the handful of guys he feels are difference makers and leaves the rest to his staff.

Secondly, while I agree that BVG doesnt appear to be out there very much, he deserves to be cut some slack considering that this is his first year and it takes time to establish relationships. People were quick to jump all over Booker for not being the ace recruiter we were lead to believe that he would be, but this year was the first year you started to see his relationships start to pay dividends. I don't think ND lands Alize without Booker. The same can be said about LaFleur.

The way I see it, Alford, Hiestand and Cooks are very good recruiters. Lafleur and Booker are ascending recruiters. Denbrock and BVG are first year co-ordinators who need to get out there more. That leaves both Elliot and Elston... both of whom have had serious health issues recently, which is perhaps why BK is so loyal to them. Personally, I would have let Elston go with Diaco... but whatever.

 

[BoredIrish]

My one criticism of ND recruiting is with the administration. Look at what Saban did with Tosh Lupoi. When he became available, he stashed him in some make-work invented role for a year where he could collect a salary while his NCAA issues sorted themselves out. Now that he is in the clear, he is promoted to a coaching role and I have no doubt that he will be absolutely lethal as a recruiter.

BK was interested in Lupoi last year, but the ND haters in the world would have exploded if the Irish had added a coach under NCAA investigation to their staff. Furthermore, although I dont know this for a fact, I'm sure BK just couldn't compete in terms of salary with what Bama could offer Lupoi.

We talk alot about missing out on 5 star difference making players, but this is a prime example of ND missing out on a difference making coach. If you were to substitute Elston for Lupoi or Orgeron, I think the whole complexion of this team is different. I honestly believe that ND is 2 elite D-lineman away from being a legitimate contender.