Official Fall Practice Thread

[johnnd05]

This B&G article is great:

August 11, 2007
Depth-Chart Breakdown

by LOU SOMOGYI
Senior Editor

Other than a few changes, the two-deep units remained status quo during Saturday’s open practice in Notre Dame Stadium

What is not status quo is the “true depth” Notre Dame is beginning to build. Depth is not about bodies; it’s about people you’re comfortable having in the lineup.

In 2005 and 2006, Notre Dame could match up with most anyone in college football as far as players 1 through 25. The problem was the Irish were severely behind the USCs, Ohio States, LSUs, etc. with players 26 through 49, and beyond. That shows up during the course of a season, as well as on special teams.

In years past, Weis dreaded the thought of a Brady Quinn and many others getting injured. He felt he couldn’t play more than six people along the offensive line and maybe five on the defensive line. At cornerback, he really didn’t feel comfortable going beyond the starters.

“We’ve got a lot more players who can play in a game,” said Weis on what he has learned so far this preseason. “You ask me what I know, I know that. You ask me how welI (they play), I don’t know yet. I do know that I’m not going to blink an eye about taking someone out and putting someone else in…There are a lot more players we can put on the field.”

Quarterback

Appearances indicate Demetrius Jones would be No. 1 because he took the initial snaps, but Weis has a rotation in practice with the three candidates. On one play, as anticipated, the Irish did have a spread formation with Jones taking the snap from the shotgun. Evan Sharpley, from this untrained eye, still seems to consistently throw the best-looking passes.

Perception-wise, it seems the staff is proceeding with caution with Jimmy Clausen regarding his summer “procedure.” Even in basic 10-yard tosses with the other QBs, Clausen had more of a lobbing motion with his toss while the others seemed to fling it with greater authority.

When quizzed about Clausen’s potential arm strength, Weis smirked and said we’ll have to find out on Sept. 1 (the opener versus Georgia Tech). Obviously, Weis won’t be tipping any hands on the arms.

Running Backs/Fullbacks

This just might be the best stocked position on the team, rivaling tight end and maybe even the defensive backfield. Travis Thomas is the leader, but James Aldridge, Junior Jabbie and freshmen Armando Allen and Robert Hughes all evoke positive reactions when they’re in the lineup.

“We have a lot of running backs who can play,” Weis said. “We can win with any of the five.”

How much fullbacks Asaph Schwapp and Luke Schmidt will actually play in one-back or spread schemes is uncertain, but there should be no trepidation with them on the field either. Schwapp would make any college football “all-guns” team with the size of his arms.

Receivers

Weis reiterated how while the rest of the nation points to this area as a probable Irish concern, he’s continued to be impressed with the overall progress. David Grimes made a superb, timing grab of a Sharpley fade pass that picked up about 25 yards. He and George West are the likely starters, with Robby Parris and D.J. Hord next in line, and Duval Kamara likely in the rotation.

Hord made a couple of nice grabs, one of them on a nice comeback route for 12 yards from Sharpley. He was more conspicuous on the field on Saturday than at any time during the spring.

And as for the perception that Notre Dame has only “Smurfs” at receiver after playing with more rangy figures such as Jeff Samardzija, Maurice Stovall and Rhema McKnight in the first two years under Weis, check out the updated measurements: Parris came in at a sleek 6-foot-4, 209, while the 6-5, 222-pound Kamara physically resembles the senior version of Stovall.

Tight End

No comments or inquiries had to be made to Weis after practice regarding this position. John Carlson is as good as they come in Saturday’s game, while Will Yeatman, Konrad Reuland and freshman Mike Ragone provide quality depth. Weis even lumped Ragone in with classmates Allen and Golden Tate as example of the speed upgrade taking place in the program,

Maybe the No. 1 storyline from the practice that Weis shared was the rest of the team is catching up to tight end as far as quality depth.

Offensive Line

The left side remains the same with juniors Paul Duncan (tackle) and Mike Turkovich (guard). Duncan checked in at 6-7, 308 and Turkovich 6-6, 301. Center John Sullivan (6-4, 303) begins his fourth season as a starter.

The right side features sophomore sensation Sam Young (6-8, 310) at tackle. The one alteration, if you want to call it that, is sophomore Dan Wenger (6-4, 287) at guard ahead of classmate Matt Carufel (6-5, 295). Carufel seemed to be ahead at the end of spring, but the two might almost be classified as “co-starters.”

The No. 2 unit already had freshmen Matt Romine (6-5, 279) at left tackle behind Duncan, and Taylor Dever (6-5, 289) at right tackle behind Young.

The rest of the No. 2 unit had Eric Olsen (6-5, 303) at left guard and Thomas Bemenderfer (6-5, 285) at center, with Carufel at right guard.

Defensive Line

Fifth-year senior Trevor Laws (6-1, 296) is the obvious mainstay at left end, with Patrick Kuntz (6-3, 285) at nose tackle. The surprise was senior Justin Brown (6-3, 261) appears to have nudged ahead of fifth-year senior Dwight Stephenson Jr. (6-2, 272) at right end. Brown played quite a bit as a sophomore but quickly fell down the depth chart last season, including falling behind freshman John Ryan (who is now at outside linebacker).

Stephenson and Brown also could be probably classified as co-starters, as both also saw action at left end when Laws took a breather. Freshman Ian Williams (6-2, 300) spelled Kuntz in the middle when the second unit came in.

Stephenson probably would be considered the “fourth starter” along the three-man line, meaning he would be the top man at either left end or right end, in place of Laws or Brown. Sophomore Paddy Mullen (6-3, 290) also plays the left side, while classmate Kallen Wade (6-5, 257) is on the right side. If an injury occurred to either Kuntz or Williams at nose, Mullen might have the best frame to possibly receive an audition there, unless the coaches decide to move sophomore offensive guard Chris Stewart (6-3, 339) back there.

In 4-3 situations, OLB Morrice Richardson (6-2, 244) had his hand to the ground as an end with the reserve units.

Outside Linebackers

Ryan (6-5, 253) and Anthony Vernaglia (6-3, 234) lined up with the No. 1 squad, with Richardson, Kevin Washington (6-1, 241) and freshmen Kerry Neal (6-2, 245) and Brian Smith (6-3, 233) also seeing their fair share of rep.

Look for both Neal and Smith to earn monograms as freshmen, not only as OLBs but with work on special teams. Smith lined up with the No. 1 punt return team and No. 2 kick return unit. Neal was with the No. 2s on kickoff coverage.

Inside Linebacker

Maurice Crum (6-0, 230) is the centerpiece of the defense, with fifth-year senior Joe Brockington (6-2, 240) and sophomore Toryan Smith (6-1, 245) rotating at middle linebacker. Brockington can play either slot in the three-man rotation along the inside.

The wild card is junior Scott Smith (6-4, 235), who was lining up as the starting outside linebacker (ahead of Vernaglia) at the end of spring. Don’t be surprised if Smith returns there, or gets into the rotation along the inside. Both Weis and defensive coordinator Corwin Brown have been pleased with the flexibility Smith provides in the defensive arsenal. Special teams mainstay Steve Quinn (6-2, 231) also made some nice plays on the inside.

Cornerback

Perhaps no position better manifests the competition and upgrade in talent level the past three seasons than cornerback. Two years ago, sophomore Leo Ferrine was the nickel back and acquitted himself pretty well. Now, he’s lining up with the third unit.

Veterans Ambrose Wooden (5-11, 196) and Terrail Lambert (5-11, 191) are still the starters, backed up by sophomores Darrin Walls (6-0, 180) and Raeshon McNeil (6-0, 187) with the No. 2 unit. – although classmate Munir Prince (5-10, 184) was alternating some with McNeil.

Walls is the nickel back, and he came in for either Toryan Smith or Joe Brockington in that defensive scheme. We did not see a dime package, as that might still be in the implementation phase.

Safety

Another area filled with capable bodies led by fifth-year senior Tom Zbikowski (6-0, 207) and junior David Bruton (6-2, 207) as the starters. Their backups were juniors Kyle McCarthy (6-1, 207) and Ray Herring (5-10, 197), both of whom will be regulars on special teams.

Kicking Game

Sophomore walk-on Nate Whitaker, freshman Brandon Walker and sophomore Ryan Burkhart are vying for the starting role, with Whitaker maybe having the best showing on Saturday in an otherwise disappointing display.

Burkhart was 0 for 3 on field-goal attempts from 30 to 35 yards, and that’s not including a PAT that missed after hitting the right upright.

Whitaker also missed from 30 and 33 yards, but bounced back by converting from 35 and 46 yards. Walker made his 30- and 33-yard attempts, but was wide right from the 35 and wide left from the 45.

Never mind kicking the ball through the end zone with the kickoffs now coming from the 30. The majority of kickoffs bounced outside the 10, so count on more squib and angle kicks this year with the hope they take funny bounces to throw off the opponents’ timing on the return game.

Weis said Walker had been the best on kickoffs during the week, but Whitaker had the better performance on Saturday. It was vice-versa on field goals regarding Whitaker and Walker.

On a brighter note, Geoff Price put on a tremendous show with his punts, displaying why he is a bona fide All-America candidate.

The top kickoff return men were West and Allen, backed up by Walls, Barry Gallup and Golden Tate. Punt returns featured starter Zbikowski, with Grimes, West and Allen also doing some auditioning.

 

[IrishRamMan10]

all looks good... cept for the kicker situation... i was hopin Walker would come in and be a good one... hope someone emerges as the clear cut starter by the end of camp

 

[Junkhead]

4 300lb'ers starting on the OL? Nice.

 

[johnnd05]

Here's a rundown of Weis's press conference from today:

Saturday's Weis transcript
Posted: August 11, 2007 07:28 PM

Sunday's practice is closed, so I'm taking the day off. Until then, though, here are some — most, actually — of Charlie Weis' comments after Saturday's practice. The subject of the comment is in all caps before the quotes. We'll hear from Weis again on Monday, and I'll be back with you then.

——————

CLAUSEN NOT THROWING DEEP

“How many deep passes did we throw today? I couldn’t tell you how many deep passes we threw today. I’m running all the team plays and I only called one ‘go’ and I called one trick play, so I don’t remember any more than two plays that I designed to be a ‘go,’ and if you’re asking during one-on-one when he was running 9-on-7, yeah, he wasn’t down there during that because he was running 9-on-7. Can he throw the ball deep? I think we’ll have to wait until Sept. 1 to find that out.”

CORNERBACKS

“The first year here I wouldn’t play more than two or three guys at corner. You go into games trying to play nickel and dime and try to get into packages where you’re trying to match up and you really, in good faith, couldn’t do it, because you felt you were putting lesser players out there when you did it. That no longer is the case. If somebody want to go ahead and put four-wide against you now, you can go ahead and put four cover corners out there and feel pretty good about your chances, because we have even more than four. I’m not worrying about our depth at the corner position. You have other positions that you worry more about. That doesn’t happen to be one of them.”

DEFENSE

“We all know Mo Crum can play. He’s been playing forever. He had a hundred tackles last year. But you gotta like Toryan and Joe. Our defensive line is physical at the point. That is one of the skeptical positions everyone is talking about, but if you’re standing where I’m standing, right behind the offense, you’re not worrying as much when you’re looking at them 2-gapping and controlling the line of scrimmage.”

“I’ve been encouraged the last two practices. When you finally put the pads on, it’s no longer like patty-cake, like it was the first four days. Now it’s like, ‘OK, let’s go ahead and go.’ I’ve been pleased by the aggressiveness at the line of scrimmage.”

FRESHMEN

“Not to lump two guys, but let’s talk about Brian and Kerry Neal while we’re at it. When we brought those guys in there and put them at the outside linebackers, we saw guys that were 240-ish, strong as oxes, with a lot of athleticism, and in this defense, one of the things you need are those guys who can stand up at the point when they’re running right at you, rush the passer and still have the athletic ability to be able to get involved in coverage. Both of those guys have the athleticism to do it. The different between those two guys is that Kerry was always with his hand on the ground when he was in high school and Brian was inside and outside as a linebacker when he was in high school. Both of those guys are definitely on the depth chart.”

“There’ll be freshmen on the field in the first game, and it won’t be in mop-up time. That I can tell you. And it won’t be one. It’ll be multiples. As you know, I’m not afraid to play the best guys, and if the best guys are freshmen, they’re playing.”

FRESHMEN SINGING THE ALMA MATER

“It was marginal. It was terrible yesterday morning. They had to come in at 7:30 yesterday morning and it was awful. Just absolutely awful. But after watching that one game last year where half of the guys didn’t know the alma mater, OK, it’s been a pet peeve of mine ever since. Because even though I didn’t watch it, I heard about it, so they practiced it and then I made the captains and them come in early last night. I made the captains and the leadership committee get it straight last night and then they practiced in front of the team last night. The jury’s still out. I think they know the words, but you couldn’t hear them and it was awful. It was one of the games where I guess we were singing the alma mater and some of the guys were standing there either not singing or not paying attention, and I just felt that that’s not what Notre Dame is all about. I think a little thing like this, I think you need to practice even things like this. We practice celebrating scoring a touchdown. We actually practice that, because some guys just don’t get it. We practice chasing an interception on offense. Because those linemen say, ‘Oh well, it’s an interception.’ We actually practice those guys chasing after an interception to go make a tackle. The alma mater, it might not seem like something big to a lot of you guys, but it’s important to me. It’s important that the players know the words to the alma mater and the fight song and I think they all got it. They do all know the words.”

KICKING GAME

“This week in practice, Nate’s been probably our most consistent guy, but both the other two guys — obviously, Brandon, being new to us, who we’re figuring out, and Ryan — on different days have been right there, if not the best then tied for the best.”

“We’re not ready to cut the team as far as making a decision on who the guy is, but it was good that the fans and the media were there for these guys today, because it isn’t the same when you’re in practice. When you’re in practice, sometimes you can nail eight in a row because there’s not the same pressure when eyes are on you.”

LINEBACKERS

“In addition to playing Scott in there and Steve in there as well, what we’re looking to do is, what happens if Mo Crum’s down? You have to start building some position flexibility. Let’s say Toryan’s in and Joe’s out and Mo goes down. Well, if you can play both Joe and Toryan in there, if you think they’re like co-starters, and you build some position flexibility, then you have an older guy who’s always calling the defense. You have either Joe or Mo Crum who’s running the defense, and from a defensive coordinator’s standpoint, it’s always a refreshing thing when you have a veteran guy who’s running the show and not putting the responsibility on a younger, more inexperienced guy.”

POSITION FLEXIBILITY

“It’s the mentality of the coaching tree that I came out of, that Corwin came out of, that’s how we were trained, to create position flexibility. You do it with your offensive linemen, you do it with your tight ends, you do it with your wide receivers. Sometimes you don’t do it with the running backs unless you have one of those rare guys like Robert who’s big enough to play fullback but plays halfback. Then on the defensive line, let’s take a guy like Scott Smith. He’s become much more valuable because he’s played solid for us both inside and out. He doens’t need to be spectacular, just so that in a game you’re not afraid to put a guy on the field because you know when he goes in there he’ll be able to do his job and know what to do. Fortunately for me, Corwin and I are so much on the same page as far as our upbringing, that when we talk it’s like we’ve been talking for two decades.”

QUARTERBACKS

“Certain guys have thrown long one day, intermediate one day and short one day, but we had different quarterbacks doing different things on different days.”

“We’re right about at the time where all these guys have given us an opportunity to start evauluating whether or not there’s separation between them.”

“I think that we’ll be good enough to win. That’s what I’ve learned. You think you have a question, try being me. That’s the biggest question mark that the guy who’s directly responsible for the position has to worry about. But what I’ve learned is we’ll be good enough to compete to win.”

“I only coach one guy at a time. Ron has the group. I’m imagining that when 9-on-7 was going on, I had Clausen and he had everybody else. Now I wouldn’t imagine everybody else was throwing. Were they all throwing? They probably didn’t all throw a lot. I would imagine that Evan and Demetrius threw the most. But that’s just the way we do practice, so I can coach one guy. I coach the guy who’s playing, so most of my coaching with the quarterback takes place when they’re running the offense at the time where I am, so I can give them the coaching points on fronts and coverages and nuances, because it’s easier for me to do it. I’m a very hands-on guy when it comes to that.”

RUNNING BACKS

“We’ve got a lot of running backs that can play. I’ll figure it out. Right now it’s premature because there’s five halfbacks that you could put on the field and win with any of the five of them. Obviously, you can’t play five running backs. I think it’s a little too early to etch in stone that ‘Travis is going to get every snap or that Armando Allen’s fast,’ or everywhere in between. ‘That Robert Hughes is 237, let’s give him every snap,’ and I haven’t even mentioned James and Junior. I’d say the running back position is the one position right now where I’m not worrying too much. I’ll figure out what to do when we get closer to game time.”

SATURDAY'S PRACTICE

“It was important for us to just run our practice and not to go hide things,” Weis said.

TEAM SPEED

“The one thing that we’ve been trying to do in the recruiting process here in the last few years is try to get more speed in the program, and we will continue to try to get more speed into the program each year. Whether it’s watching Golden Tate run at wide receiver or watching Armando run at running back or watching Ragone running at tight end, the one constant — and I’ll use all three of those guys — is they all run very, very fast for the position they play. I think that having more guys that have the potential to score when they touch the ball rather than get a 10-yard gain, take it to the house, that’s important.”

WHAT HE KNOWS AT THIS POINT

“We’ve got a lot more players that can play. A lot more players that can play in a game. That’s what I know. You ask me what I know, that’s what I know. We have a lot more players that can play in a game. Now, if you ask me how well, I don’t know that yet. But I do know that I’m not going to blink an eye about taking somebody out and putting somebody else in, and there was a time here where that wasn’t the case. There was a time where you had to stay in because there was no one else to go. Who are you going to put in there? I feel a lot more confident know that there’s a lot more players we can put on the field.”

WIDE RECEIVERS

“Everyone’s saying this is a weakness, but I really like the wide receiver position. I really like ’em. Let’s start with David, and George is playing well, and everyone who’s in the program is better than they were last year.”

“I’m not surprised, let’s say I’m pleased.”

“We’ve put some some pressure on guys like D.J. and Richard and Barry, those guys who have been here before, because you’ve got these two young guys that you haven’t even seen practice yet. So if you’re trying to get people reps, you want to see the two young guys. You say, ‘We don’t have time to wait around here. Either you’re in the mix or the ship is sailing. I think we’ve seen that hold true from most of the receiver group that’s been around, because they’re feeling the pressure not just from the top down, they’re also feeling the pressure from the bottom up.”

 

[johnnd05]

From UHND:

August 11, 2007
Practice Notes: 8/11

Here’s some notes from today’s open practice based on all of the free videos from und.com.

* Demetrius Jones has some good zip on his passes and fired one of those quick hitters to George West with some speed. Jones then missed West pretty badly on a fake end around.
* Corwin Brown had the entire defense run a lap around the field after having 10 players on the field at one point.
* Steve Quinn looked pretty good out there. He made one really nice tackle on Armando Allen when it looked like Allen was going to be able to turn the corner. He also nearly picked off Bragg and stood up James Aldridge at the line.
* Robert Hughes is not just an inside runner – on one play he stiff armed Justin Brown and bounced outside for a really nice gain. Hughes followed his blocks very well and knew where he was going.
* Armando Allen is going to be a factor early and often this year – he very could be the biggest playmaker on offense for the Irish this year. He had plenty of nice runs and looked very good in the open field on a screen play. I don’t think he’ll unseat Travis Thomas as the starter, but he is going to have plenty of big plays for Notre Dame this year.
* Speaking of Thomas, he looked really good in the 9 on 7 drills which the offense really dominated. That is to be expected though as the defense was playing very basic packages.
* David Bruton looked really good playing against the run.
* Returning punts were Grimes, West, Zibby, and Allen. Zibby and Allen both busted one.
* Grimes made a GREAT catch over Wooden on pass Jones put up in the air for him to catch.
* Overall the running game seemed to be clicking really well which is good and bad news. Good that ND is running well, bad that the defense isn’t stopping them.
* Sharpley appeared to be the most accurate among the quarterbacks.
* Clausen had a ball slip out of his hand as he was throwing it and didn’t look like he had his full velocity out there.
* Weis had all of the freshman sing the alma mater together after practice before being joined by the entire team to sing the Fight Song.
* Morrice Richardson played pretty well against the run.
* First team offensive line – Sam Young, Dan Wenger, Sully, Michael Turkovich, and Paul Duncan. Not surprised Wenger is running with the first team, but am a little surprised Turk was in there over Carufel who I think will wind up starting.
* Taylor Dever doesn’t look like a freshman when he is standing around the other offensive linemen – he’s huge.
* First team defense looked to be Just Brown, Trevor Laws, and Pat Kuntz up front; Mo Crum, Joe Brockington, Anythony Vernagliz, and John Ryan as the linebackers; and then Zibby, Bruton, Wooden, and Lamert in the secondary.
* I’d be very surprised of Toryan Smith was not a starting linebacker this season.
* John Ryan had a really nice pick on one of the drills at the beginning of practice.
* I still stand by my prediction of Demetrius Jones starting against Tech. Weis has said all week that he won’t just start a QB that can manage a game, but wants someone who could take over a game and Jones fits the bill. Sharpley was the most accurate passer, but Jones just gives the offense another dimension.

 

[johnnd05]

And a LONG post from Irish Insights:

Open Practice Observations, 8/11/07

OK. Before you start reading, we are warning you -- this is long. So go, pick up a drink and then sit down. You'll be here for a bit. That said, we'd estimate between 1-2,000 fans showed up at Notre Dame Stadium this morning to watch the Irish practice.

* Quarterback and running back groupings: Demetrius Jones and Travis Thomas (with John Sullivan as center); Evan Sharpley and James Aldridge; Jimmy Clausen and Armando Allen; Darrin Bragg and Robert Hughes; Justin Gillett and Junior Jabbie. During this particular drill, Jones was in the middle and making all of the calls.
* Quarterback recruit Dayne Crist was in attendance. Crist is already bigger than any quarterback Notre Dame has on its roster.
* As has been the case all week, Sharpley and Jones stretched together; as did Bragg and Clausen.
* First-team offense: OL -- Sam Young, Dan Wenger, Sullivan, Mike Turkovich and Paul Duncan. WR: David Grimes and George West. TE: John Carlson. RB: Thomas. FB: Asaph Schwapp. QB: Jones for much of the day, although it was Clausen during 9-on-7 drills and Sharpley at other points.
* On all of the team drills, Jones, Sharpley and Clausen each received six repetitions in that order.
* Jones showed he could throw the ball -- but also be prone to a bad mistake. On one of his final throws during the run/play action segment, he outthrew everyone except for two defensive backs.
* All three quarterbacks showed awareness of the pocket. Sharpley stepped up and threw a nice screen pass to Allen when pressured. Jones took off running and Clausen moved away and then threw the ball away.
* During the 9-on-7 drill, Weis spent his time on the field working with Clausen, who was merely handing off. It is something that Weis said later he does because that is when he can coach one guy.
* While the rest of the team was working on special teams, Jones took instruction from quarterbacks coach Ron Powlus while Clausen and Sharpley talked to Crist.
* During the down-and-distance drill, Clausen was the only quarterback not to throw a deep pass -- including Bragg and Gillett. When asked about it afterwards, Weis said he didn't notice.
* Both Sharpley and Clausen had the ball go backwards on them once when they went to throw.
* Second-team offense: OL: Taylor Dever; Matt Carufel; Thomas Bemenderfer; Eric Olsen and Matt Romine. WR: D.J. Hord and Robby Parris. RB: Aldridge. FB: Luke Schmidt. TE: Konrad Reuland.
* From what we noticed, Wenger was out there at first-team right guard much of the day.
* Hord -- who we criticized in this space earlier this week for struggling to catch the ball -- had a good day shaking off defenders and catching almost everything in his vicinity. Charlie Weis said Hord has been catching the ball better toward the end of the week.
* Parris beat Tom Zbikowski on a cut inside.
* Grimes continues to be reliable catching the ball, grabbing one with cornerback Raeshon McNeil in his face. He also had the catch of the day, leaping over cornerback Ambrose Wooden to grab a ball on a fly route thrown by Jones.
* Wide receiver Golden Tate -- who is very thin -- can also really jump. He also cut in front of McNeil for a reception during passing drills.
* Wide receiver Duval Kamara seemed to have a little trouble cutting on the turf. He slipped multiple times.
* Tight end Will Yeatman ran with the first team occassionally. There were also some three tight end sets popping up.
* Robert Hughes is a bunch to handle. He has good cutting ability and has size to run over people. At first glance, he looks a little bit like former Florida State running back Greg Jones. He also showed elusiveness and the ability to get to the corner. Between Allen and Hughes, Notre Dame has two really good looking backs for the future.
* Tate showed some of his athletic ability off of a bad play. He fumbled a reverse and then picked it up and ran 20 yards back to the line of scrimmage.
* Freshman defensive tackle Ian Williams is very compact and very, very large. He worked a bunch, not surprisingly, with the second team defense.
* First-team defense: DB: Zbikowski, David Bruton, Terrail Lambert and Ambrose Wooden. LB: Anthony Vernaglia, Maurice Crum, Joe Brockington and John Ryan. DL: Justin Brown, Pat Kuntz and Trevor Laws.
* Second-team defense: DB: Darrin Walls, Kyle McCarthy, McNeil and Sergio Brown. LB: Kerry Neal, Scott Smith, Toryan Smith and Kevin Washington. DL: Dwight Stephenson, Ian Williams and Paddy Mullen.
* Leo Ferrine, Jashaad Gaines and Munir Prince were in the third team secondary. Morrice Richardson appeared to run most of practice with the third team linebackers.
* After one play in run/play action drill, Corwin Brown made the entire defense run a lap around the field because there were only 10 men on the field for defense. Weis said after practice it was to make eliminating those types of mistakes a point of emphasis.
* Linebacker Steve Quinn seemed to be in on a bunch of plays, including snuffing Allen at the line after anticipating the run play.
* Freshmen linebackers Kerry Neal and Brian Smith both worked their way in with the first group. Neal is an impressive looking player who seems to have instincts getting to the ball.
* Toryan Smith is pretty scary when you see him with pads on. He looks like a small defensive end -- certainly stout enough to play inside linebacker. One reporter compared him to an "SEC linebacker." Come to think of it, he does look like LSU's Ali Highsmith.
* Kick return unit: Front row -- McCarthy; Quinn; Thomas/Richard Jackson (both were out there); Nick Possley and Sergio Brown. Second row: Reuland and Yeatman. Third row: Scott Smith and Schwapp. Kick returners: Allen and West.
* Punt returners: Zbikowski, Grimes, Allen and West. While Notre Dame was working on punt returns, tight ends coach Bernie Parmalee kept Mike Ragone and Kamara behind the rush line, presumably to see what was going on.
* Punt coverage gunners look to be Lambert and Bruton.
* On punt returns, we saw Zbikowski out there as the returner; Wooden and Lambert as the outside blockers. Bruton; Brian Smith; Richardson; Quinn; McCarthy and Jabbie appeared to be on the line.
* When Zbikowski returned a punt for a touchdown, he briefly taunted Tate, who was giving chase.
* When Allen broke one -- and he really is fast -- linebackers coach Brian Polian pretended to give chase before stopping.
* Kickoff unit: Munir Prince; McCarthy; Kallen Wade; Scott Smith; Richardson; Toryan Smith; Quinn; Jabbie; Sergio Brown and McNeil. Both Nate Whitaker and Brandon Walker took kickoffs.
* Field goal kicking: Whitaker 3-5 (Made 25, 35 and 45. Missed 30 and 33); Ryan Burkhart: 0-4 (Missed 25, 30, 33, 35. Didn't attempt 45). Walker: 3-5 (Made 25, 30 and 33. Missed 35 and 45). Of all the things we saw today, this would be the most disconcerting to Notre Dame. Walker seemed the most comfortable from inside, but struggled once real distance was involved. Burkhart missed all four of his wide left.
* Wooden seems slimmer than in previous years, especially in his calves.
* A scout from the Miami Dolphins was in attendance.
* After practice, all of the freshmen went to one sideline to sing Notre Dame's alma mater. After they sang once, the rest of the team joined.

Got questions? Send them to mrothstein@jg.net or leave a comment below. We'll expound some more in our mailbag on the site tomorrow.

 

[IrishRamMan10]

keep em coming.... love to read this stuff

 

[johnnd05]

Can Weis shock world again?

ERIC HANSEN
Tribune Staff Writer

SOUTH BEND -- The best news to come out of Notre Dame's lone open practice of the fall Saturday was probably that there were no serious injuries to report, and that any potential Georgia Tech spies in the crowd -- thirsting for exotic formations and the like -- probably went home sweaty and bored.

Oh yeah, and that Irish head football coach Charlie Weis' biggest concern as the Irish head into week two of fall camp is not pass defense, or his young quarterbacks possibly looking more like Marcia Brady than Tom Brady or Brady Quinn, but rather the extent to which his freshman class can or can't carry a tune.

At the conclusion of the 2 1/2-hour session in full pads at Notre Dame Stadium, Weis commanded his 18 frosh to serenade the 2,000 or so curiosity-seekers with the school alma mater.


"It was marginal," Weis deadpanned of the vocal performance. "It was terrible yesterday."

Maybe that had something to do with the fact that the mandatory singing practice was held at 7:30 a.m., Friday.

In any event, with the Sept. 1 season opener against Georgia Tech roughly three weeks away, here's what we do know about this Irish football team.

1. This may not be a Top 25 team at the moment, but it deserves to be in the conversation.

Why? Because most of the areas of concern -- a new wide receiver corps, rebuilt offensive line, potential holes at nose tackle and in the secondary, and speed on special teams -- have not only been addressed, they've exceeded expectations so far.

At wide receiver, for instance, front-liners David Grimes and George West continue to rise, and freshmen Duval Kamara and Golden Tate are threatening to crash the playing rotation. Everyone in between is fighting vehemently not to end up as bench ornaments.

You read Weis' mood and his body language, and it's 2005 all over again -- when an unforgiving early schedule and a lack of proven performers were supposed to humble Weis and his "shock-the-world" ambitions. You get the feeling he's just itching to say, "I told you so" -- again.

2. But there are areas of concern.

Weis was asked point-blank Saturday what keeps him in the film room late, scratching his head and shuffling options. His response, quite simply, "What do you think, I'm just dumb?"

He did smile when he said it. Well, no one who got a perfect score on his SAT is dumb. And no one who wants to surprise Georgia Tech is going to sing -- pun intended -- when it comes to juicy details.

But even the most uneducated and uninterested observers Saturday could see the footballs flying to the left and right of the goalposts with alarming regularity.

Sophomore Ryan Burkhart missed all four of his field-goal attempts -- from 20, 30, 33 and 35 yards. Sophomore walk-on Nate Whitaker and freshman Brandon Walker were each 3-for-5. They attempted all the same distances as Burkhart as well as a 45-yarder.

"This week in practice Nate Whitaker has probably been our most consistent guy," Weis said. "Brandon and Ryan on different days have been right there -- the best if not tied for the best.

"It was good that the fans and the media were here today, because it isn't the same as when you're in practice. When you're in practice, sometimes you can nail eight in a row. There's really not the same pressure as when eyes are on you. So we can go from there."

3. There's no normalcy where Jimmy Clausen is concerned.

The national media and casual football fans tend to obsess about the freshman quarterback. The hard-core Notre Dame fans tend to yawn at the preponderance of conjecture. And that's largely the body of his work at this point -- conjecture.

In Saturday's practice, Clausen was the only one of the four scholarship quarterbacks not to throw farther than 15 yards. In fact, quarterbacks coach Ron Powlus -- the Jimmy Clausen of his era during his playing days -- was throwing with more zip during the drill than the 6-3, 207-pound Californian.

This is a kid who enrolled early so he could be seriously competing now but was rumored to have an elbow injury going into spring practice. Weis proclaimed Clausen to not be injured hours after Clausen's father Jim detailed a persistent elbow condition to the Chicago Sun-Times.

Then Clausen undergoes "a procedure" on his right (throwing) elbow in May -- the details leaked by someone outside of the ND family, the surgery performed by someone outside of the ND family. Clausen then returns for fall practice, presumably ready to compete with sophomore Demetrius Jones and junior Evan Sharpley.

Weis offered Saturday, before being asked, that the quarterbacks work on different things on different days. "Certain guys are throwing long one day, intermediate one day, short one day," he said.

But when pressed about Clausen, Weis answered the question with multiple questions.

"How many deep passes did we throw (in total) today?" Weis said. "Can he throw the ball deep? I think we'll have to wait 'til Sept. 1 to find out."

What Weis already knows and is comfortable talking about is that while his three quarterback candidates haven't made him forget Quinn, he is encouraged by what he sees.

"I think we'll be good enough (at that position) to win," he said. "That's what I've learned."

4. Dayne Crist is doing his best to make the 2008 quarterback situation into an open competition.

The 6-foot-5, 221-pound high school senior from Canoga Park, Calif., was not in an ND uniform Saturday, but he might as well have been. The future Irish QB, whom CSTV recruiting analyst Tom Lemming calls the best passing QB nationally in his class, wasn't just watching practice in person Saturday, he was out on the field at times in street clothes, soaking up the instruction and coaching along with the sunshine.

5. The depth chart should get more defined by Aug. 20.

Actually, the quarterback situation, getting from three to two, may actually take place as soon as Monday, though expect whispers rather than a declaration.

Complicating some of the other positions are the strong play of the freshmen -- Armando Allen and Robert Hughes at running back, the aforementioned freshman wideouts, tight end Mike Ragone, outside linebackers Kerry Neal and Brian Smith, and Walker at kicker to name a few.

"I think one things we've been trying to do in the recruiting process here in the last few years is trying to get more speed in the program," Weis said. "And we'll continue to try to get more speed in the program.

"Watching Golden Tate run at wide receiver, Armando run at running back. Mike Ragone run at tight end, the one constant of all three of those guys have is they all run very, very fast for the position they play. Having more guys having the potential to score when they touch the ball, rather than getting a 10-yard gain, that's important.

"There are going to be freshmen on the field in the first game, and it won't be in mop-up time."

Smith and Neal, two relatively unheralded defensive recruits, are included in that picture.

"When we brought those two guys in there and put them at outside linebacker, we saw guys who were 240-ish, strong as oxes, with lots of athleticism," Weis said. "Those are guys who can stand up at the point when the (opponent is) running right at you, rush the passer and still have the athletic ability to be able to get involved in coverage. Both of those guys are definitely in the depth chart."

6. New defensive coordinator Corwin Brown can bark as loud as Weis.

"Corwin and I are so much on the same page, because of our (coaching) upbringing, when we talk, it's like we've been talking for two decades," said Weis, who also revealed earlier this week that he tried to hire Brown two years earlier.

They're that much in sync in terms of defensive philosophy -- and apparently discipline as well.

When the defense lined up during one drill Saturday with only 10 men on the field, the entire defense -- innocent bystanders included -- had to run a punishment lap. Brown serenaded them with some stern criticism.

"I prefer to play with 11," Weis said. "It was a point of emphasis. Instead of me hammering them, I let Corwin do it."

7. Expect plenty of the unexpected on Sept. 1.

There were some intriguing glimpses, though, provided during Saturday's practice: The rule change that pushes kickoffs from the 35-yard line back to the 30 appears to be having its intended effect -- more returns. Not one of the Irish kickers boomed the ball into the end zone Saturday. ... Weis singled out fullback Asaph Schwapp and linebackers Toryan Smith and Joe Brockington as the players who jumped out the most when the team went from practicing in shorts to full pads. ... Allen is one of several new faces in the return game. One of the old faces, Tom Zbikowski, returned a punt for a touchdown.

8. Weis really does take singing seriously. At least his players' singing.

"One game last year, some of the guys weren't singing or weren't paying attention," Weis said of the postgame tradition of singing the alma mater to the student section. "That's not what Notre Dame is all about. It may not seem like something big to a lot of you guys, but it's important to me."

Now is tonal quality important? Is Weis in a good position to judge that, coach that? Well judge for yourself. Click here to listen to Weis singing "Take Me Out To The Ball Game" at Chicago's Wrigley Field earlier this summer.

"I was sitting in the press box with (musical groups) Chicago and America," Weis said. "And they pick me. I figured, if they picked me, I'd take one for the team."

 

[johnnd05]

August 11, 2007
Somebody’s Watching Me

by RYAN O'LEARY
Assistant Editor

Charlie Weis isn’t revealing much about the first week of camp, and what little he did reveal after opening practice to the public on Saturday morning was essentially a repetition of what he said before the first workouts on Monday.

Yes, he still thinks this Notre Dame team is deeper than his first two.

“We’ve got…a lot more players that can play in a game. That’s what I know,” Weis said. “You ask me how well, I don’t know that yet. But I do know that I’m not going to blink an eye about taking somebody out and putting somebody else in, and there was a time here…when that wasn’t the case.”

Part of that depth comes from improvement among the upperclassmen, as we’ve seen during the spring and the past week from the likes of Scott Smith and Dwight Stephenson. But a good deal of it also comes from the talent in Weis’ first two full recruiting classes – which, despite their inexperience, will definitely bear some fruit this fall.

“As you know, I’m not afraid to play the best guys, and if the best guys are freshmen, they’re playing,” said Weis. “There will be freshmen on the field in the first game, and it won’t be in mop-up time, that I can tell you. And it won’t be one. It’ll be multiples.”

Whether one of those will be Jimmy Clausen remains to be seen. The most ballyhooed of the newcomers may or may not be the starter come Opening Day, depending on which signs you read on Saturday.

When the offense scrimmaged together, Demetrius Jones came out with the first unit. When the team lined up to stretch, Evan Sharpley was in the front row with the rest of the presumed starters. And when the No. 1 offense broke off later to work with Weis in 9-on-7s, it was Clausen working with that group while Jones and Sharpley threw with quarterbacks coach Ron Powlus.

According to Weis, none of that should mean anything – “We’ve had different quarterbacks doing different things on different days,” he said – and the fact that Clausen was the guy during 9-on-7 drills today doesn’t necessarily say that he’s the guy, period. That’s when Weis gets more hands-on in terms of instruction, and he prefers to work with one at a time.

One thing fans didn’t get to see from Clausen on Saturday was a deep ball – the freshman didn’t make a single toss of more than 10 yards all day.

The coach wouldn’t say whether the leash on Clausen’s arm was coincidence, or if it was there out of necessity.

“Can he throw the ball deep?” Weis asked himself. “I think we’ll have to wait until Sept. 1 to find that out.”

Such a tease…

Just Kickin’ It

Weis didn’t seem too uncomfortable with the kicking game through the first week of camp, but the results on Saturday were, to be kind, unimpressive. With the ball now being kicked off from the 30-yard line, no one even approached the end zone – and the field-goal tries at the end of practice, even from short range, didn’t go well.

“Nate (Whitaker) hass been probably our most consistent guy, but both the other two guys (Brandon Walker and Ryan Burkhart), on different days, have been right there, if not the best, tied for the best.”

On Saturday, it was Whitaker kicking off the best and Walker the most impressive in a weak placekicking field. During the week, Weis says, it had been the opposite, with Walker stepping forward on kickoffs while Whitaker stood out on field goals and PATs.

While the coach clearly isn’t usually too keen on having practices viewed by outsiders, he did say that he was glad to get some outside eyes on the kickers today – even if it was just the press and the roughly 1,000 fans that showed up.

“It was good that the fans and the media were there for those guys today,” Weis noted, “because it isn’t the same as when you’re in practice. When you’re in practice, sometimes you can nail eight in a row because there’s really not the same pressure.”

As far as the kickoff returns went, Armando Allen and Golden Tate were the standouts on Saturday. Others getting a chance to run balls back were Darrin Walls, Barry Gallup, George West and D.J. Hord. Punt returns were handled by Tom Zbikowski, West and David Grimes.

Potpourri

Some more thoughts from Weis after Saturday morning’s practice (there will be a closed afternoon session as well):

- On what he’s learned about the quarterbacks through the first week of camp: “I think that we’ll be good enough to win. That’s what I’ve learned.”

- On the wide receivers as a whole: “I’ve been saying all along. Everyone’s been saying this is a weakness. I really like the wide receiver position…Everyone who’s been in the program is better than they were, not only last year, but from the spring. We’ve got a lot of competition, and these two freshmen coming into the mix now…Let’s just say I’ve been pleased.”

- On whether any of the tailbacks have caught his eye: “We’ve got a lot of running backs that can play, and I’ll figure it out.”

- On why the defensive players had to run a lap around the field at one point during a scrimmage: “We had 10 men on the field. I’d prefer we had 11.”

- On what he’s seen from the defensive line during contact drills: “Standing where I’m standing, right behind the offense, you’re not worrying as much when you’re looking at them two-gapping and controlling the line of scrimmage…I’ve been pleased with the aggressiveness.”

- On his communication level with Corwin Brown: “When we talk, it’s like we’ve been talking for two decades.”

- On the freshmen performing the alma mater for fans at the end of practice: “You couldn’t hear it (from the press box), but it was awful.”

 

[johnnd05]

From UHND:

Notes from Weis’s Presser: 8/11

Weis was in a pretty good mood when he addressed the media Saturday after practice which should be seen as a pretty good sign for Notre Dame fans.

* This kickers have taken terms in practice having the best day. “Nate was disappoint in his feidlgs because after the first kick he missed the next two and then drills one right now the middle. So he was disappointed there whereas on the kicksoffs, he kicked off the best today. Brandon, whose been kicking off the best, was the best kicking field goals today. Ryan was kind of behind both of those guys today.”
* Speaking of the kickers, I left out of my last blog that Whitaker was 3 for 5 (missed 30 and 33 yarders) , Walker was 3 for 5 (missed 35 and 45 yarders) , and Burkhart was 0-4 (and did not get a final attempt). Looks like it could be another year of question marks at kicker for Notre Dame.
* On the quarterbacks first week of practice – “We’ve had different quarterbacks doing different things on different days.” “They’ve been ok. They haven’t been great, they haven’t been terrible, they’ve been ok.”
* “We have through Monday before we completed that initial process. We still have Saturday night installation, Sunday installation, and Monday morning installation. For that matter we also have installation on Monday afternoon. It’s going to have to be another three days before we’ve gotten enough in where now we can start tuning it up and deciding what we’re gonna try to run.”
* On what he has learned about his team after a week of practice: “I think that we’ll be good enough to win, that’s what I’ve learned.”
* Weis again made mention that he is very pleased with the wide receivers so far: “I’ve been saying all along, everyone’s saying this is a weakness. I really like the wide receiver position. I really like them.”
* DJ Hord caught the ball very well on Saturday and Weis was asked if he has been doing that all week: “More towards the end of the week than the beginning of the week. We’ve put some pressure on guys like DJ, and Richard, and Barry and those guys who have been here because you have these two young guys that you haven’t even seen practice yet. So if you’re trying to get people reps and you want to see the two young guys, you say ‘Hey, we don’t have time to wait around here. Either you’re in the mix or the ship has sailed.’ ”
* On some of the older guys at receiver feeling the pressure from the freshmen: “They’re feeling the pressure not just from the top down, but from the bottom up.”
* On the quality of the running backs: “We’ve got a lot of running backs that can play.”
* “There’s five halfbacks you can put on the field and you could win with any of the five of them. Now, obviously you can’t play all five running backs; but I think it’s a little too early to etch in stone that Travis is going to get every snap, or hey that Armando Allen is fast let’s give him every snap, or everywhere in between. That Robert Hughes is 237, let’s give him every snap. I haven’t even mentioned James and Junior. I’d say the running back position is the one position where right now im not worrying about too much.”
* On whether or not freshman will be playing this year: “There will be freshman on the field in the first game and it won’t be in mop up time, that I can tell ya. And it won’t be one, it’ll be multiples.”
* On why the defense ran a lap in the middle of the practice: “We had ten men on the field, I’d prefer we have eleven.”
* Weis feels as though he has enough depth at the corner position to be able to match up against any personnel package that gets thrown at them: “The first year here I wouldn’t play more than two or three guys at corner. You’d go into games wanting to play nickel and dime and trying to get into packages where you’re trying to matchup and you really in good faith couldn’t do it because you felt like you were putting lesser players out there when you did it.”
* When asked about who has stood out once the pads have come on there were only two names Charlie mentioned individually: “Toryan(Smith) and Joe (Brockington) at inside linebacker.”
* Weis wants to create position flexibility at the inside linebacker position in case Maurice Crum were to get hurt. Weis prefers having a veteran guy running the show in terms of calling the defensive plays at the position so they want Smith and Brockington to learn both inside positions. My take here is that Smtih is going to start and Weis wants Brockington to be able to backup both Smith and Crum so that if Crum went down Smith wouldn’t have to worry about calling he defenses.
* On what he knows about his team that he didn’t know before this week: “We’ve got a lot more players that can play. A lot more players that can play in a game.”
* “Corwin and I are so much on the same page, as far as our upbringing that when we talk, it’s like we’ve been talking for two decades”
* On the development of Kerry Neal and Brian Smith: “When we brought those guys in there and put them at the outside linebackers, we saw guys that were 240ish, strong as oxes, with a lot of athleticism. In this defense, one of the things you need are those guys that can stand up at the point when they are running right at you, rush the passer, and stll have the athletic ability to get into coverage. Both of those have the athleticism to do that.”
* On the difference between Neal and Brian Smith: “Kerry was always with his hand on the ground and Brian was inside and outside as a linebacker when he was in high. Both of those guys are definitely on the depth chart.”
* When asked about Jimmy Clausen’s ability to throw the ball deep, something he did not do in Saturday’s practice: “Can he throw the ball deep? I think we’ll have to wait until September 1 to find that out.” Clausen was the only quarterback to not throw the ball downfield Saturday.
* Weis discussed how he and Ron Powlus have been coaching the quarterbacks mentioning that he takes whoever is running the offense at the time one on one while Powlus has the rest of the group.
* On why he had the freshman singing the alma mater after practice: “It was one of those games where at the end of the game we were singing the alma mater and some of the guys were standing there either not singing or not paying attention. I just felt like that’s not what Notre Dame is about.”

 

[johnnd05]

And once again on the presser, this time from BGS:

Early Renditions | by Jay

If you go back and watch just one of the UND.com videos from yesterday's open practice, make it Charlie's presser. Don't get me wrong, the drills are fun to watch, and it's neat to see some of the youngsters in action for the first time. But to truly get a sense of where things are, you need to sit down and listen to the big man.

Coach was lively and jovial after practice yesterday, almost ebullient. There was a visible glint in his eye, and a shit-eatin' grin on his face. I daresay he's excited for the season, even though it's pretty much a rebuilding-- oh, wait, I shouldn't say that. Along the way he cast a few pearls of insight. Highlights, paraphrased:

Kickers. "Not close to making a decision on who's going to handle kickoffs nor field goals. Some guys are better than others on some days, but nobody has nailed down the job yet."

Quarterbacks. "QBs are progressing 'okay'. We're still installing the base offense right now, which will go through Monday's practices. After that we'll start tuning it and deciding what we're going to run, and with whom. Whoever it is, we'll be good enough to win. That's what I've learned. We'll be good enough to compete to win."

Receivers. "I really like the WR position. Everyone in the program is already a lot better, even from the springtime. The two freshman provide competition. Trying to find reps for everyone is difficult. We don't have time to wait around. You're either in the mix, or your ship has sailed. The receivers are feeling the pressure not just from the top down, but also from the bottom up."

Running backs. "We've got a lot of running backs that can play. You can win with any of the five of them. I'll figure out what to do as we get closer to gametime."

Armando Allen. "In recruiting we're trying to get more speed in the program. Whether it's Tate or Armando or Ragone, the one constant is that they're all very fast for the position they play. The more guys that have the potential to score when they touch the ball, as opposed to just a 10-yard gain, the better."

Freshman playing? "There will be freshman on the field in the first game, and it won't be in mop-up time. And it won't be just one. We're talking multiple. As you know I'm not afraid to play the best guy, and if he's a freshman, he's playing."

Why the entire defense have to do a lap right in the middle of the scrimmage. "Because we had 10 men on the field. I prefer we have 11."

Cornerback development? "The first year here I wouldn't play more than 2 or 3 guys at corner. You couldn't in good faith play nickel or dime because you were putting lesser players out there. Now if someone wants to play 4-wide against us, we can put 4 cover corners out there and feel good about our chances. Truthfully, we have even more than 4."

Standout players? "Toryan & Brockington, among others. The defensive line is physical at the point -- people are skeptical about the DL, but if you're standing where I'm standing you're not worrying as much, when you're looking at them 2-gapping and controlling the line of scrimmage. I'm pleased at the aggressiveness."

Depth? "We got a lot more players that can play. That's what I know. A lot more players that can play in a game. You ask me how well, I don't know that yet. But I do know I'm not going to blink an eye about taking someone out and putting someone else in. Because there was a time here when that wasn't the case. There was a time when the guy had to stay in because there was no one else to go. I feel a lot more confident now that there are a lot more players we can put on the field."

Position Flexibility? "It's the mentality of the coaching tree that I came out of that Corwin came out of, where you want to create flexibility. You do it with your OL, you do it with your receivers, your tight ends, other positions. Take a guy like Scott Smith. He's more valuable now because he can play inside and out. Now he doesn't need to be spectacular, it's just you're not afraid of putting him out there, because he knows what to do for both spots."

Working with Corwin? "Corwin and I are so much on the same page as far as our upbringing that when we talk, it's like we've been together for two decades."

Brian Smith going to see the field? "Absolutely. Let's talk about Brian & Kerry Neal. Both are 240-ish, strong as oxes, and lots of athleticism. In this defense you need those guys who can rush the passer and also get into coverage. Both of those guys are definitely on the depth chart."

Clausen not throwing long? "How many deep passes did we throw today? We didn't have many plays designed to be a 'Go'. Can Jimmy throw the ball deep? We'll have to wait until Sep 1 to find that out..." (and he smiled like the Cheshire Cat).

Freshman singing the alma mater? "It was marginal. It was terrible yesterday. After watching that game last year where the guys didn't know the alma mater, it's been a pet peeve of mine. I made the guys come in and practice. I made sure the captains and the leadership committee went over it, and they practiced. I think they know the words. But it was awful.

"But you practice stuff like that. We practice celebrating after scoring a touchdown, because some guys just don't get it. We practice chasing an interception on offense to go make a tackle. The alma mater might not seem like a big thing to you guys, but it means a lot to me. It's important that the guys know the words to the alma mater and the fight song. And I think they all got it."

 

[IrishRamMan10]

ya i watched this press coference last night.. it was good.... Charlie owned the guy who asked " what are the teams weaknesses". lol

 

[Sureal]

This stuff is great Johnnd05!!!

Keep them coming...

 

[johnnd05]

From SI.com:

Notre Dame Postcard

Irish still have eyes on three quarterbacks ... for now

Posted: Sunday August 12, 2007 3:42PM; Updated: Monday August 13, 2007 1:04AM

By Brian Hamilton, Special to SI.com

SOUTH BEND -- Roughly midway through a public Saturday morning workout at Notre Dame Stadium, the Fighting Irish offense approached a line of scrimmage near the north end zone, readying for another minimal-contact play against a scout-team defense.

Of eye-dilating importance to the hundreds of fans in attendance and to the legions of Notre Dame faithful elsewhere, prized freshman quarterback Jimmy Clausen barked the signals and took every snap. In reality, this was sound and moderated fury signifying nothing; apparently, of the three quarterbacks contending for the Irish's starting job, it was merely Clausen's turn to run the team during this practice period.

Then, in an almost comical coincidence, a Notre Dame assistant -- it was difficult to tell which one, as reporters were being shuffled off the field and to the press box for the second half of practice -- for some reason bellowed to the players: "Don't look at the quarterback!"

In the context of Notre Dame football these days, the command might as well have been "Stop breathing oxygen!" or "Consider this a tennis school!" Other positions offer plenty of questions, but no one's focus deviates too long before returning to the quarterback quandary, where Clausen, junior Evan Sharpley and sophomore Demetrius Jones are vying for the Irish gig.

The intensely interested parties include Irish coach Charlie Weis, who on Saturday (and evidently every day before it) devoted almost all of his practice attention to the position. It's no insignificant sign: Weis stated on the first day of preseason workouts that the identity of the quarterback shapes what the Irish will do on offense, and not vice-versa.

And after the first week of drills ended Saturday, Weis sounded a mildly optimistic note on the position. "I think we'll be good enough to win -- that's what I've learned," Weis said. "That's the biggest question mark that the guy who's directly responsible for the position has to worry about. But what I've learned is we'll be good enough to compete to win."

By early this week, Weis could determine if any one of the contenders has separated himself from the others, even though he said he doesn't plan on revealing the starter before the Sept. 1 opener against Georgia Tech.

A cut-down may be necessary to have any idea how to move forward, considering the candidates are equally unproven but not equivalently skilled. There is Clausen, the classic pocket passer; there is Jones, a swift run-and-pass threat; and in the middle of the spectrum sits Sharpley, who threw two passes as Brady Quinn's backup in 2006.

During Saturday's open workout, nothing but personal space separated the trio. In two potentially telling practice periods of full contact, each quarterback received the exact same amount of offensive reps. Each made nice throws and head-scratching errors. It reinforced what Jones pointed out earlier in the week: Would any questions be asked if Weis was truly certain about the position?

"If it wasn't that close, I'm quite sure he would have named a starter," Jones said. "That's the process. It's probably going to be a tough decision. And then when it comes out, even if it's not who you want it to be, we could never regret anything or say that we all didn't get a fair chance. Because as far as reps and treatment, we're all getting the same thing."

But judging by Weis' timetable, probably not for long.

Three Observations

1. Whether Weis was willing to concede the point or not -- and Saturday, he wasn't -- Clausen didn't appear to throw very hard and for sure didn't throw very far the entire workout. It may be significant due to offseason hubbub surrounding a reported elbow procedure the vaunted freshman underwent, something that has gone unacknowledged by Notre Dame to date.

And it may mean absolutely, positively nothing, since Weis had his quarterbacks on that rotation -- in other words, it was Jones' and Sharpley's day to throw 1-on-1 routes to receivers, Clausen's to run 9-on-7 offense. When it was pointed out that Clausen didn't throw a deep ball all practice (Jones and Sharpley threw at least one each), Weis replied cryptically, "Can he throw the ball deep? I think we'll have to wait until Sept. 1 to find out." Add that ingredient to the bubbling mystery.

2. Weis is going out of his way to emphasize to everyone -- players, fans, media -- his trust in first-year defensive coordinator Corwin Brown. After a personnel switch on one practice rep Saturday, the Irish defense wound up with just 10 players on the field. Action stopped before the snap, and Weis backed off to let Brown do the chastising. Brown then ran a penalty lap with the entire defense before animatedly discussing the gaffe with them again.

It's a necessary psychological tack for Weis, considering the Irish are switching from a 4-3 to a 3-4 defense and the coaches need the players to buy in with full confidence. And after finishing a mediocre 65th nationally in total defense in '06, they also need to buy into the 37-year-old Brown's assertive mindset. "We're definitely flying around a lot more, we're definitely more aggressive," said outside linebacker John Ryan, who converted from a defensive end in the 4-3. "It's a lot more simple, compact."

3. Losses to Southern California and LSU last year weren't a philosophical tipping point, but certainly validated a recruiting creed on display through some of the young Irish players this fall: Notre Dame needs to load up on speed, speed and more speed.

In freshmen like tailback Armando Allen, receiver Golden Tate and tight end Mike Ragone, the emphasis is evident. "They all run very, very fast for the position they play," Weis said. "Having more guys that have the potential to score when they touch the ball ... that's important."

X-Factor

Taking the quarterbacks out of the equation for a nanosecond, there will be a playmaking onus on David Grimes and the rest of the wide receiver position. Weis has insisted all week that he is pleased with his wideouts while everyone else wrings their hands over the loss of Jeff Samardzija and Rhema McKnight (combined 145 receptions, 1,924 yards and 27 touchdowns in 2006).

The Irish's top two returning pass catchers at the wideout spot are the 5-foot-10-inch Grimes (26 catches in '06) and 5-foot-8-inch George West (two catches in '06), meaning there will be at minimum a drastic physical difference on the edges this year. That is unless young receivers like Tate (6-foot) and fellow freshman Duval Kamara (6-foot-4) push for a spot, which Weis seems to think they're doing.

Keep An Eye On

Ryan, who converted to outside linebacker for the 3-4, and nose tackle Pat Kuntz. Both players are slotted in spots unique to an odd-man front for the first time and both have fairly critical responsibilities. Ryan must fold in pass coverage responsibilities while remaining stout at the point of attack against the run, and Kuntz must learn to deal with constant double-teams while occupying blockers.

"It's pretty important, because a lot of times, when a linebacker isn't making a play, it's usually because the nose tackle didn't do his job right," Kuntz said.

Weis said Saturday that he has been impressed with the physicality of the defensive line, and after giving up 136.8 yards rushing per game last season, that's a start.

Factoid That May Only Interest Me

After one early season game in 2006, Weis was somewhat appalled to learn that many Irish players didn't know the words to the Notre Dame alma mater. So he has instituted singing rehearsals, and the Irish freshmen serenaded the crowd after Saturday's workout.

"After watching that one game last year where half the guys didn't know the alma mater, it's been a pet peeve of mine ever since," Weis said Saturday. "I made the captains and (the freshman) come in early last night. They practiced in front of the team last night.

"The jury's still out. I think they know the words. You couldn't hear them (after the practice), but it was awful, just absolutely awful."

Camp Confidential

Senior Travis Thomas was re-converted to tailback after spending 2006 at linebacker, the better to lend some experience to the backfield. But Weis said Saturday that he has five tailbacks he feels he can win with, leading one to wonder how ingrained Thomas is as the starter, or how much of a timeshare the position will be. ... Irish fans have bemoaned the secondary's proclivity to giving up big plays in recent years, but renewed depth in that department may help solve the issue. Where he felt handcuffed to make changes in recent years due to a lack of options, Weis said he won't hesitate to yank a player who isn't manning his post sufficiently. The hope is the added pressure of competition will hone the secondary's focus. ... Irish kickers were just 6-of-14 on field goal attempts at the end of practice Saturday. Predictably, Weis said he is not ready to name a starter there. ... Safety Tom Zbikowski was a third-team All-American last season but played most of last year as a shell of himself after getting speared in the Purdue game and, according to Zbikowski, losing feeling in half of his body at that point. The injury damaged his NFL stock and more or less forced him to return for a fifth season, which could be motivation for a standout season. "I didn't come back to have a rebuilding year," Zbikowski said.

Brian Hamilton covers Notre Dame for the Chicago Tribune

 

[johnnd05]

From eTruth, on today's practice:

Monday's 20 minutes
Posted: August 13, 2007 11:10 AM

Notre Dame practiced early this morning at Cartier Field, beating the heat and the media rush, which has died down a bit since the hectic opening week. Here are a few things I took note of during the media's 20-minute practice-viewing window:

• The team was in full pads again, and in very good spirits. My guess is that'll change by this afternoon's second practice. Two-a-days are tough.

• I watched the defense for the first few minutes. Justin Brown was again working with the first team at right end — I think he's got that job all but won — and the rest of the top group was as it has been for the entire first week. Outside linebacker Morrice Richardson was back with the No. 2 defense, along with defensive end Paddy Mullen, outside linebacker Brian Smith and safeties Sergio Brown and Kyle McCarthy, among others. McCarthy has been running with the 2s all camp, but Brown's inclusion at the expense of Ray Herring is a change. It might have been just for that one drill, of course.

• The wide recivers ran their "gauntlet" drill again. Receivers coach Rob Ianello: "You have to be like a commando! You're going to be special ops!"

• The highlight of Monday's 20 minutes was a variation on the gauntlet drill run by the quarterbacks. The QBs rotated, each taking turns dropping back to pass and moving around the "pocket," guided on which way to run by hand signals from quarterbacks coach Ron Powlus. While the quarterback with the ball looked at Powlus and kept his feet moving, two other quarterbacks where whacking him with pads, trying to knock him down or jar the ball loose. Charlie Weis was almost roaring with laughter at one point, and the quarterbacks themselves seemed to be enjoying it, too — at least the ones who were doing the hitting. Evan Sharpley really nailed walk-on Justin Gillett at one point — the slap he gave him seemed to echo — but Gillett also got in a good shot at one point, dropping Demetrius Jones to one knee. Darrin Bragg almost coughed up the ball on one hit, too. This was a lot of fun to watch.

• Guests at practice today included a scout from the Denver Broncos, Ron Powlus' dad and the family of tight end John Carlson.

• Offensive coordinator Mike Haywood was working on the biggest wad of chewing gum I've ever seen. It was the size of a golf ball.

OK, Charlie Weis will be in to meet the media in about a half-hour or so, and we'll post some of his comments on the blog later this afternoon.

 

[johnnd05]

And a bit more from eTruth, on Charlie's press conference (see the QBs thread for the rest):

It wasn't all about the quarterbacks during this mini-press conference. A few other nuggets from the head man:

• Notre Dame had its best practice of the year on Sunday after Weis allowed the players to sleep in Sunday morning. "They passed my first test," he said.

• Last week was an installation week for the defense. This week is a "tweaking week," where the Irish will try to get better at what they're doing. Next week, the Irish begin to prepare for Georgia Tech using the show teams.

Weis pointed out that the Georgia Tech and Navy games are the only ones for which the Irish will have more than a week to prepare. Normally in training camp, Weis said, he'd have the team spending some time working on defending the option, but since the bye week is pre-Navy this season, they'll wait until then to work against the option.

• Barring injury, there aren't very many starting jobs up for grabs at this point.

"But the difference between this year and the past is in the past, you'd only play that many guys," Weis said. "This year there's a lot of those second guys who are going to play a significant role in the game, whereas in the past that wasn't the case here."

Weis said he could see six cornerbacks playing aginst Georgia Tech, for example. This kind of gets back to the depth situation that I wrote about for Sunday. You can see how having more good players is making Weis' job a lot easier.

"It's a nice situation to be in," Weis said.

If I had to guess which spots are still not determined, I'd say quarterback (obviously), kicker (obviously), right guard (with Dan Wenger having the edge on Matt Carufel), right outside linebacker (Anthony Vernaglia leads Scott Smith) and maybe right inside linebacker (Joe Brockington is ahead of Toryan Smith, though both will rotate in). Kick return might also be undetermined. But that's all I see at this point.

• Speed becomes more critical in kickoff coverage this season because kickoffs have been moved back to the 30-yard line and Notre Dame doesn't seem to have a guy that can put it in the end zone on a regular basis.

"You want to make sure you have guys down there that can get there in a hurry," Weis said.

• Sharpley is one of the holders, along with Geoff Price, as I told you on Saturday. Weis won't hesitate to keep Sharpley as a holder if he wins the starting quarterback job.

"I said this before, and I'm not being a wise guy, but Joe Montana held," Weis said. "So if he can hold, I think Evan Sharpley can hold."

Good point, that. And on that note, I'm going to pack it in for the day. I'll have some comments from kickers Nate Whitaker and Ryan Burkhart in my story in tomorrow's paper and on the Web site, and I'll be back with a couple more updates from camp during the day Tuesday. See you then.

 

[johnnd05]

BGS has loads of great photos from the open practice, here.

 

[johnnd05]

From B&G. I love the last line about Kamara.

August 13, 2007

Practice Observations - 8/13

by TODD D. BURLAGE
Assistant Editor

I tried to study the linebackers today during practice to see if anything had changed from the depth chart since the open practice Saturday. Things pretty much looked the same with Joe Brockington, Maurice Crum, John Ryan and Anthony Vernaglia working as the first unit. The units were working on downfield angle drills and of course, sled work.

Brockington always stands out to me during these workouts. He just seems to be a little stronger on the contact drills and a little more nimble on the footwork drills compared to the other guys.

The biggest surprise on the tentative depth chart at linebacker to me remains the fact that freshman Brian Smith continues to work ahead of freshman Kerry Neal on the second team. The second unit today was three Smiths – Brian, Toryan and Scott – and Morrice Richardson. It will be interesting to watch how the coaching staff shuffles these linebackers this season, based on situations and player strengths.

There were a couple of NFL scouts at the early practice today (this is a two-a-day day). During the open 20 minutes, the scouts spent most of their time watching the wide receivers. A Notre Dame spokesman said early in the season, the scouts usually show up just to watch the entire operation and familiarize themselves with some of the new players. When they show up later in the year, it is usually more about watching specific players.

If they were watching the wide outs and they weren’t familiar with Duval Kamara, they will be now. In my opinion, it is going to impossible to keep this kid off the field this year.

 

[johnnd05]

August 13, 2007
Monday Notebook

by TODD D. BURLAGE
Assistant Editor

Charlie Weis addresses the media in between Monday's practices (by John Haynsworth)
Charlie Weis decided after two-a-days Saturday that he would use Sunday to “throw a bone” to his players with a late wakeup call, but also use the goodwill as a chance to measure some mental progress.

Weis let his players sleep in Sunday before they reported to duty. The gesture seemed benign enough, but Weis said there was more to it than just rewarding the team for a good start to camp. As Weis explained, sometimes a little slack can to lead to a little setback, not in this case.

“We had probably the best practice we’ve had all year on Sunday,” Weis said. “Usually, that indicates that the team is starting to become more mature. They’re more serious about it, because the general tendency with these players when you take them out of their normal ritual or their daily grind, they are usually a little bit flat, so they passed my first test.”

Weis said Week 1 was spent mainly on installation. This week will be a “tweak week,” with less installation and more fine-tuning. By this time next week, scout teams will be assembled and Georgia Tech preparations will be in full gear.

For the coaching staff, Georgia Tech prep began months ago with scouting reports and film study. Weis said his staff also monitors Georgia Tech media reports carefully for injury news and any other helpful tidbits about rising and fading players.

“Unless you want to be unethical and try to sneak somebody into a practice, which I have too many other things to worry about than that, you just have to go by what you’re hearing,” Weis said. “But more importantly, what you saw when they played last year.”

One thing none of us will find out during preparations is who the starting quarterback will be for Notre Dame. Weis was adamant Monday about his desire to use mystery as a weapon.

“I’m trying to win the opener, I’m trying to beat Georgia Tech and it’s the only game where I have this card to play and I’m going to hold it,” Weis said. “My answer won’t change, it will be a game-time decision.”

Depth Charge

If there has been one ongoing theme during camp so far, it has been the increased depth at many positions on the Irish roster. Weis said during his first couple of seasons that injuries to certain players on the team would have been devastating with no viable backups.

This year, he expects the terrific depth-chart competitions to continue through camp and those position battles to spill over to the field on Saturdays.

“This year, there’s a lot of those second guys that are going to play a significant role in the game where in the past that wasn’t the case here,” Weis said. “I can see us playing six corners in the first game. Two will start, but I can see six getting into the game. That’s a lot of depth and it’s a nice situation to be in.”

Weis said the depth is also starting to show up along the offensive line, a much needed numbers and quality boost for a unit handicapped in recent years by poor recruiting results and defections.

“For the first time, we’ve been able to line up a whole second line, and change for that matter,” Weis said. “We’ll call two and then we’ll call two plus, because there are some guys that aren’t even running with the second line that we think are good enough to play in the game.”

 

[johnnd05]

Tuesday's 20 minutes

Posted: August 14, 2007 04:32 PM

It's a very nice day in northern Indiana, which means the Notre Dame football team is ... practicing indoors. (Hey, it is cooler inside today, I'll give them that.) But it also means Brian Polian doesn't have to wear his cool Notre Dame floppy hat, so I think it's kind of a wash, personally.

Here are a few things I noticed today:

• The mood of the team continues to be very light, and as we're into the second week of training camp, I think that's a good sign. There was a lot of shouting, laughing and general high spirits in the Loftus Center today. Charlie Weis was joking around with linebackers Anthony Vernaglia and Scott Smith.

• If they ever decided to add a 25th hour to the day, I'm pretty sure Bill Lewis would spend it coaching somebody. Today during he was walking around giving the defensive backs pointers while they stretched. He doesn't waste a minute.

• Not only is center John Sullivan probably Notre Dame's best offensive lineman, he's also the line's hardest worker, from what I've seen. And you'd better believe that attitude trickles down to the other players, too. Speaking of the O-line, left tackle Paul Duncan got tripped up while pushing a blocking sled around today. I only mention it because I haven't seen him make too many mistakes so far.

• The wide receivers did what I believe is called a "monkey drill," where they hop over one other as they roll on the ground. There's three players to a drill in this one. The first line was David Grimes, George West and Robby Parris. The second was D.J. Hord, Barry Gallup Jr. and Golden Tate. Line No. 3 was Duval Kamara and walk-ons Brandon Erickson and Nick Possley.

The receivers eventually switched to what I'm calling the "square drill," where they sprint around a square marked by cones, catching four balls — one for each side of the square — along the way. Receivers coach Rob Ianello was jabbering at Hord, trying to break his concentration, but couldn't do it. Hord seems to be catching just about everything these days. He celebrated after making it around the square without a dropped pass.

Kamara showed remarkable speed going around the square today and didn't drop a ball, either. At 6-foot-5 and a pretty well-built 222 pounds, there's just no way this kid doesn't play this year. No way.

• It must have been Midwestern day today, because I saw scouts from the Super Bowl champion Indianapolis Colts, Green Bay Packers and Detroit Lions. Athletic director Kevin White showed up just as the media was getting its daily heave-ho.

• Also, if you haven't seen it yet, Tom Zbikowski was named to ESPN.com's preseason All-America team, so congratulations to him.

Media practice viewing is at 9:30 tomorrow morning, so I'll have Wednesday's 20 minutes up before noon. And check back later in the day for some comments from defensive coordinator Corwin Brown.

 

[johnnd05]

Practice Observations, 8/14/07

Despite it being the nicest day yet in South Bend, Notre Dame headed inside to the Loftus Center for preseason practice. We're told it was due to soggy field conditions thanks to rain passing through the area earlier.

* Three scouts were in attendance -- from the Green Bay Packers, Indianapolis Colts and Detroit Lions.
* Not surprisingly, Brian Polian took time out during stretching to chat with the Colts' scout. Brian's dad is Colts' general manager Bill Polian.
* Wide receivers coach Rob Ianello was talking to the quarterbacks about hard work and dedication.
* Coming out of the post-stretch huddle, Demetrius Jones led the pack and yelled in excitement -- part of a day where the players seemed more ready than usual.
* During a drop-back drill, Charlie Weis stopped the quarterbacks to instruct them on what looked like how to hold the ball coming back into their stance. Jones asked multiple questions -- we couldn't hear what -- of the head coach.
* Center John Sullivan appears to be in good condition and more agile in years past getting through the bag drills.
* Wide receiver David Grimes -- who made an impressive catch Saturday -- looks the healthiest he has been since he's been at Notre Dame. He also appears to be much bigger in both the legs and upper body than last season, which is important since he'll be the Irish's No. 1 receiver.
* Throwing passes to the receivers today was Tim McDonnell while receivers coach Rob Ianello stood off to the side and watched. McDonnell was a college receiver at Holy Cross. McDonnell also throws the football rather well.
* D.J. Hord continued grabbing everything in sight, including a nice catch made when McDonnell purposely overthrew him. Ianello joked McDonnell was trying to challenge him, but the junior reached his long arms out and made the catch in stride. He really seems to be making a case to be on the field.
* Athletic director Kevin White showed up at the end of the media portion of practice.
* Also in attendance were Michael and Karen Richardville, the parents of walk-on wide receiver and Fort Wayne native Jake Richardville. They said Jake, a senior, is scheduled to take his MCAT (medical school entrance exam tests) in less than two weeks.
* Sophomore Barry Gallup Jr. also made nice catches during the cone drill.

-By Michael Rothstein of The Journal Gazette

 

[Junkhead]

From eTruth, on today's practice:


• Offensive coordinator Mike Haywood was working on the biggest wad of chewing gum I've ever seen. It was the size of a golf ball.

...........

seriously, keep the updates coming!

 

[johnnd05]

Notre Dame preview

Irish's season rests on 3-4
Weis counting on shift to new scheme to give defense lift

By Brian Hamilton
Tribune staff reporter

August 15, 2007

SOUTH BEND, Ind. -- As a defensive end a season ago, John Ryan's duties were more or less as simple as his name. Hand on ground. Know the defensive line call, watch the tight end and tackle. Proceed.

Ryan is now a hybrid outside linebacker in Notre Dame's new 3-4 defensive scheme. He's upright. He must heed the linebacker and safety calls. He must be stout against the run but at times drop into pass coverage.

The job has gone from monosyllabic to multitasking. Still, Ryan doesn't view the 3-4 as a whitewash of all the Irish did before.

"The goal of every defense is to attack the ball, get the ballcarrier down," Ryan said. "It's just a different way to look at things. There's not really that much different. It's just personnel groupings and how you line up."

Funny how a defense that hasn't changed much is supposed to change everything. The 3-4 must invigorate a unit that was average at best in 2006, ranking 65th of 119 Division I-A teams in total defense and surrendering 136.8 rushing yards per game.

Irish coach Charlie Weis has said the 3-4 allows for more position flexibility and a heightened pass rush -- not to mention familiarity, as Weis and new defensive coordinator Corwin Brown speak the same 3-4 defense dialect.

Weis has gone out of his way to emphasize the trust he has in the 37-year-old Brown, a necessary psychological tactic because the players must buy into the 3-4 with full confidence. By extension, they need to buy into Brown, and a persistent theme in August has been Brown's energy as fuel for positive change.

At an open practice, the defense changed personnel groups between reps and wound up with just 10 men on the field. Brown sent the entire defensive roster on a lap around the field, jogging alongside, then laced into his charges again when the run was done.

"I know of one way how you're supposed to play football," Brown said. "If we don't see that, somebody's coming out. Our personality is, we're going to fly around. That's what we have to do."

They have to stop people too. That's where the not-so-different 3-4 must usher in some change.

Notre Dame will:

Contend for a January bowl if ... The Irish run the ball effectively and stop teams from doing the same.

Maybe whoever plays quarterback will be a revelation. It's a slightly more promising bet to bank on a backfield that has veteran leadership (Travis Thomas) and some explosive youth (James Aldridge, Armando Allen).

Defensively, four games of surrendering 200-plus rushing yards won't cut it.

Will drive Weis nuts if ... There is no palatable answer at quarterback. Forget inexperience. Weis already said whoever his quarterback is will be good enough to win games, suggesting he'll be quickly frustrated if it turns out otherwise.

The Irish's indispensable players are ... tight end John Carlson, center Joe Sullivan and defensive end Trevor Laws. All are fifth-year seniors, and all help anchor offensive and defensive lines that must be sturdy.

In a word, the schedule can be described as ... Gulp. The Irish open with Georgia Tech, a team on the edge of the national polls, and then travel to nationally ranked Penn State and national title contender Michigan. Four of the first six games are on the road and eight of the first nine opponents went to bowls last season.

Last season's defining moment was ... The 41-14 loss to LSU in the Sugar Bowl. That and a 44-24 loss to USC seemed to expose the Irish's dearth of speed, which in turn suggested more space separated the teams than just a few poll positions.

This season will be considered a success if ... The Irish can scrape together seven or more wins with a brutal schedule testing the mental fortitude of newcomers, young and old.

 

[johnnd05]

Wednesday's 20 minutes

Posted: August 15, 2007 10:44 AM

Many of the first-teamers weren't at practice today, but don't worry, they're not suspended. This morning's practice at Cartier Field was strictly for the second- and third-teamers, so they could get some meaningful reps and some more personalized instruction from the coaches. The first-teamers were at the Gug watching film. (And, to answer your next question, all the quarterbacks were at the media portion of practice, so there weren't any hints to be found there.)

The first practice injury I've seen this year occurred today when freshman halfback Robert Hughes was hit in, well, a very uncomfortable place while running through the gauntlet. He was on the ground for a couple minutes, poor guy, while James Aldridge laughed at him. Offensive coordinator Mike Haywood said, "The only thing I can do for you is give you a bag of ice. That's the only thing I can do to help you." Hughes eventually got up and went back through the gauntlet again after receiving some helpful advice from Haywood: "Get your pad level down and bend that front knee and you won't get hit in the jewels!" Gee, thanks, coach.

Staying with the running backs for a second, I like the way Luke Schmidt blasts through the gauntlet. He's got a lot of power in his legs.

The father of sophomore cornerback Darrin Walls was out at practice today, too, in full Notre Dame regalia.

I've got to cut this short because they moved up the interview times a half-hour today, but I'll be back this afternoon, hopefully with some comments from defensive coordinator Corwin Brown.

 

[Ultimate Penn St. Hater]

This is great. Thank you. Go Irish!

 

[johnnd05]

August 15, 2007

Practice Observations, 8/15/07

Hot and muggy out -- yet Notre Dame practiced outside on Cartier Field. The morning practice had less people around, though.

* Most of Notre Dame's first-team players were not at practice. No clues on the quarterbacks, though, as all five were in attendance.
* Both right guard candidates -- Dan Wenger and Matt Carufel -- were at practice.
* Linebacker Scott Smith was out there. We did not see John Ryan or Anthony Vernaglia. Same goes for Joe Brockington, Maurice Crum and Toryan Smith.
* Darrin Walls Sr. was in attendance.
* When the coaches broke huddle from stretching, receivers coach Rob Ianello yelled at tight ends coach Bernie Parmalee "So you're a pro athlete" when Parmalee dashed in front of all the other coaches. Ianello rode him pretty good about it.
* Second team defense (at least from what was out there): DBs: Darrin Walls, Sergio Brown, Kyle McCarthy, Raeshon McNeil. LB: Scott Smith, Morrice Richardson, Steve Quinn and Kerry Neal. DL: Kallen Wade, Paddy Mullen and Ian Williams.
* Third team DBs: Leo Ferrine, Jashaad Gaines, Harrison Smith and Munir Prince.
* Travis Thomas and Asaph Schwapp were missing from the running backs. David Grimes and George West from the receivers.
* Offensive line coach John Latina complemented Chris Stewart on his ability to get off the blocks. Stewart is improving as camp has progressed.
* Line of the day, courtesy of Mike Haywood to freshman Robert Hughes: "Bring that front knee. You won't get hit in the jewels." We'll say that Haywood is by far the most entertaining of the coaches during practice.

Don't forget, too, to e-mail us at mrothstein@jg.net with people you want us to look at or if you have questions for our mailbags, which run Sundays here at Insights. All questions welcome on whatever topics you might like to discuss.

-By Michael Rothstein of The Journal Gazette

 

[OCIrish]

Great finds John. Keep em coming.


Go Irish!!!

 

[johnnd05]

Defense setting in ... or not

Posted: August 15, 2007 02:33 PM

Depending on who you talk to, the Notre Dame defense is coming into focus in terms of the 2-deeps. Defensive coordinator Corwin Brown says coming up with a depth chart is a "never-ending process," but he's getting a feel for who's going to play on Sept. 1.

"What you do is you keep working and working and working and you keep putting guys in situations where they have to make adjustments and where they have to make plays, and when you show that you can do that, you gain our trust," Brown said during today's media session. "When you don't do that, then we know that we still have to work on that area with that player."

Defensive backs coach Bill Lewis, though, said he's "not even close" to determining a depth chart in the secondary.

"We're a long way from deciding who's first, second or third," Lewis said.

He does see a lot more depth in the defensive backfield than he has in the past and said competition "brings out the best in any player." The depth also means that fewer mistakes will be tolerated.

Lewis disclosed that junior strong safety Ray Herring was injured during the first week of practice, which would explain why Sergio Brown was working with the second-teamers, as I pointed out on Monday. Lewis didn't say what the injury was, specifically, but said it's a "minor thing." But it did set Herring back.

"He's just now getting to where he's working up to speed," Lewis said.

The coaches may not be sure who's where on the depth chart yet, but I can take a stab at it. Here goes:

LE — Trevor Laws, Paddy Mullen, Andrew Nuss
NT — Pat Kuntz, Ian Williams, ?
RE — Justin Brown, Dwight Stephenson Jr., Kallen Wade

Brown can play both end positions, but I'm not sure about Stephenson's flexibility. Laws, Brown and Stephenson are the three best ends, probably in that order.

LOLB — John Ryan, Morrice Richardson, Kevin Washington
LILB — Maurice Crum Jr., Steve Quinn, Aaron Nagel
RILB — Joe Brockington, Toryan Smith, Steve Paskorz
ROLB — Anthony Vernaglia, Scott Smith, Kerry Neal

There's some shuffling that could go on here as well. Crum, Brockington and Toryan Smith are the three guys who will rotate in on the interior. Scott Smith can play inside or outside and is probably the fourth-best inside linebacker as well as Vernaglia's backup.

LCB — Terrail Lambert, Darrin Walls, Leo Ferrine
FS — David Bruton, Kyle McCarthy, Jashaad Gaines
SS — Tom Zbikowski, Ray Herring, Sergio Brown
RCB — Ambrose Wooden, Raeshon McNeil, Munir Prince

As I said, Herring is banged-up right now, but he was Zibby's backup last season and is probably the second-best player at that spot when he's healthy. Walls and McNeil could push the older guys this season.

I'll be back tomorrow with some words from Charlie Weis and Thursday's 20 minutes. See you then

 

[johnnd05]

From UHND:

Practice Notes: 8/15

* Today’s practice was for the current second and third team players with the projected starters getting the morning session off for film study.
* The second team defense Ian Williams (NT), Kallen Wade and Paddy Mullen (DE), Morrice Richardson and Kerry Neal (OLB), Scott Smith and Steve Quinn (ILB), Darrin Walls and Raeshon McNeil (CB), and Sergio Brown and Kyle McCarthy (S).
* Richardson was running with the 3rd team during Saturday’s open practice, but was with the second team today. Richardson is one player I’ve written about frequently this off-season as someone I could see emerging as a playmaker this year on defense and I would not be surprised if he was starting on September 1.
* Third team defense looked to be made up of Neil Kennedy (NT), Andrew Nuss and Emeka Nwankwo (DE), Brian Smith and Kevan Washington (OLB), Aaron Nagel and Steve Paskorz (ILB), Leo Ferrine and Munir Prince (CB), and Jashaad Gaines and Harrison Smith (S).
* During drills Rob Ianello was making fun of Demetris Jones’ stiff arm saying “Is that it, is that your stiff arm?”to which Jones replied, “for a senior citizen that’s my stiff arm.”
* The outside linebackers were hitting the sled and working using their arms to get off of blocks. FWIW, Richardson seemed to throw the sled with the most ease.
* Defensive backs were working on their back pedals with Bill Lewis.
* All five of the of the quarterbacks were at practice despite all of the other projected starters sitting out.
* Quarterbacks were working on their ball handling doing the drill where they drop back and get hit with bags by the other QBs. Justin GIllet fell down hitting Jones with the bag at one point which got a laugh out of Weis.

 

[johnnd05]

And from UHND again:

Notes from Corwin Brown’s Presser: 8/15

* On solidifying a depth chart - “Not so much solidifying the depth chart, but just knowing the number of guys and we’re figuring out that maybe we have more guys than we thought in the beginning. We’re happy with some guys at different places and we’ve got good depth and really good competition. That’s been very encouraging.”
* On how the players fit the scheme - “I think for the most part, the guys have adjusted really well. We’re really excited about they’ve done and what they’ve been doing and I think they’re anxious so we’ll see.”
* On developing a depth chart - “That’s a never ending process because you just keep working and working and working and you put guys in situations where they have to make adjustments and they have to make plays. When you show that you can do that, you gain our trust. When you don’t do that, then we know that we still have to work on that area with that player.”
* On the progress of the installation of the defense - “We’re pretty comfortable with where we are. We always have things that we can fall back on or things that we can go to, things that we can call upon on that there may be a variation here, a variation there, but for the most part the guys can go out and they can function right now without doing any game planning at all.”
* On if this defense is more “simple” for the players - “In any system, cover two is cover two. Three is three and four is four. You can have as many variations and adjustments as you want. We choose to keep that limited so it allows our guys to line up and play. nd puts it on them to say “ok, you’re in a situation, really regardless of what the coverage is, if im deep and theres a receiver deep, or if I’m a lineman and I got an offensive lineman on me and a running back is coming, there are things that need to be done. And that’s what you have to do. If you’re a linebacker and you have a fullback leaning on you, you’ve got to take on the block and shed it. So, regardless of what the coverage is, we try to get the guys to play fundamental technique. This is where your help is, play to your help, play to your coverage strength. IF there’s a weakness in the coverage, we’ll just try to eliminate the gain.”
* On if more variations of coverages will be installed as the players get more comfortable with the defense- “I think that’s fair to say because we did some things in spring and we’ve elaborated and now in the fall we’ve done more. When they guys get comfortable or get bored or there’s more to be done, then we’ll do that.”
* On what Zibby’s leadership allows him to do as a coach - “He’s like a security blanket, so to speak, because he’s going to play a certain way. He’s demanding of the guys that play around him and with him and he leads by example. So, those are little things I don’t need to worry about – worry about DB’s running to the ball, guys playing tough, guys playing physical, making calls. I can put my energy and my focus in other places.”
* On what Toryan Smith has done to distinguish himself - “He’s demonstrated that he can handle calls and that he likes to play and he’s physical and he’ll make plays in coverage.” “He is a physical guy. I’m going to go back and rate these guys, but he plays physical. He plays the game like I envision it being played.”
* Brown said he keeps a mental log about how many times a player does what they are supposed to in terms of rating the players.
* Brown mentioned the linebackers have been progressing. “Every day they are getting better.”
* On the progression of Darrin Walls and Raeshon McNeil - “We’ll see where they are pretty soon here. Right now I think it’s early to have a real big opinion of them so we’ll see, but I am comfortable.”