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Home > Sports > College sports Jackson momentarily relieves Irish return concern
Freshman speedster makes mark with 4 solid kickoff returns
By Brian Hamilton, Tribune reporter
7:41 p.m. CDT, October 5, 2010
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SOUTH BEND, Ind. — With the opening kickoff sailing through a crisp night sky Saturday, Bennett Jackson didn't feel nerves as much as a sense that someone slammed the brakes on the entire world.
One 43-yard burst at Boston College then brought everything up to speed.
"When the ball is in the air, everything got a little slow motion," Jackson said Tuesday. "You're looking at the ball like, 'All right.' But once the ball was in front of me, it kind of just washed away."
So, too, did Notre Dame's worries about its kickoff return game, at least for the moment. An uninspiring unit got its spark from a 172-pound freshman burner who was the 110-meter high hurdles state champion in New Jersey last June.
In four kick returns against Boston College, Jackson produced the first- and third-longest runbacks of the season for the Irish. Notre Dame's field position after each was stellar, with an average starting position a fraction shy of its own 39-yard line.
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Despite that initial slow-mo feel, Jackson's strength was his lack of hesitation.
"A lot of thinking is not a good thing at kickoff," Irish coach Brian Kelly said. "You have 11 guys running downfield real fast with equipment on, and if you're thinking about that, you're probably going to be slow out of the gates. You have to hit it, and he has that ability to be a bit fearless."
Indeed, informed of his new duties late last week, Jackson just plowed straight ahead.
"I got excited about it, but once the ball got in my hands, I just ran," he said. "Read my keys, read my blocks and hit the hole."
You again: Kelly likened Pittsburgh's visit Saturday to a conference game, so familiar are the two coaching staffs. Kelly's Cincinnati team was 2-1 in three meetings with Dave Wannstedt's Panthers, including the 45-44 barnburner that decided the Big East title last year.
"They know what we're going to do offensively, and we kind of know what they're going to do defensively, so I think that's a wash," Kelly said. "I still think this comes down to who's better prepared and who executes better Saturday because we know each other so well."
Healthy outlook: Kelly continued to brush aside worry about three banged-up offensive linemen — center Braxston Cave (ankle), guard Chris Stewart (contusion) and tackle Taylor Dever (hamstring) — citing the depth behind them.
"If we had two or three guys missing at some other positions, I probably would be a lot more concerned," Kelly said.
bchamilton@tribune.com
Freshman speedster makes mark with 4 solid kickoff returns
By Brian Hamilton, Tribune reporter
7:41 p.m. CDT, October 5, 2010
E-mail Print Share Text Size ct-spt-1006-notre-dame-football--20101005
SOUTH BEND, Ind. — With the opening kickoff sailing through a crisp night sky Saturday, Bennett Jackson didn't feel nerves as much as a sense that someone slammed the brakes on the entire world.
One 43-yard burst at Boston College then brought everything up to speed.
"When the ball is in the air, everything got a little slow motion," Jackson said Tuesday. "You're looking at the ball like, 'All right.' But once the ball was in front of me, it kind of just washed away."
So, too, did Notre Dame's worries about its kickoff return game, at least for the moment. An uninspiring unit got its spark from a 172-pound freshman burner who was the 110-meter high hurdles state champion in New Jersey last June.
In four kick returns against Boston College, Jackson produced the first- and third-longest runbacks of the season for the Irish. Notre Dame's field position after each was stellar, with an average starting position a fraction shy of its own 39-yard line.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Register with Chicago Tribune and receive free newsletters and alerts >>
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Despite that initial slow-mo feel, Jackson's strength was his lack of hesitation.
"A lot of thinking is not a good thing at kickoff," Irish coach Brian Kelly said. "You have 11 guys running downfield real fast with equipment on, and if you're thinking about that, you're probably going to be slow out of the gates. You have to hit it, and he has that ability to be a bit fearless."
Indeed, informed of his new duties late last week, Jackson just plowed straight ahead.
"I got excited about it, but once the ball got in my hands, I just ran," he said. "Read my keys, read my blocks and hit the hole."
You again: Kelly likened Pittsburgh's visit Saturday to a conference game, so familiar are the two coaching staffs. Kelly's Cincinnati team was 2-1 in three meetings with Dave Wannstedt's Panthers, including the 45-44 barnburner that decided the Big East title last year.
"They know what we're going to do offensively, and we kind of know what they're going to do defensively, so I think that's a wash," Kelly said. "I still think this comes down to who's better prepared and who executes better Saturday because we know each other so well."
Healthy outlook: Kelly continued to brush aside worry about three banged-up offensive linemen — center Braxston Cave (ankle), guard Chris Stewart (contusion) and tackle Taylor Dever (hamstring) — citing the depth behind them.
"If we had two or three guys missing at some other positions, I probably would be a lot more concerned," Kelly said.
bchamilton@tribune.com
