nice little read on him
Slaughter ready to return to the field
September, 22, 2010 Sep 229:16PM CTEmail Print Comments By Wes MorganSOUTH BEND, Ind. -- In late August, Jamoris Slaughter, brimming with bravado, couldn't stand still following a sweltering practice session as he pondered the season opener against Purdue.
After an ankle sprain immobilized the Irish safety for the second half versus the Boilermakers and every snap since, Slaughter was back in action Wednesday with equal zeal as he geared up for a late September return to the lineup.
"Yesterday I came back out to practice and everybody was like, 'Oh, we got Slaughter back,' the 6-foot, 195-pound junior said. "So I just see the reaction of my teammates when I'm back and I just know what I have to do and be on top of things. I have to make sure I'm healthy by Saturday and be ready to roll. I'm feeling pretty good."
The time off the field provided another angle from which Slaughter helped dissect the secondary's performance in losses to Michigan and Michigan State.
"It's real frustrating not being able to play," he said. "So, you know, I've been trying to look at the positive side of it -- just getting treatment every day and trying to get back healthy so I can contribute to the team. But I've been coaching these last two weeks, just trying to help out our defense, pointing things out and trying to be that second coach on the sideline when I see stuff."
In his absence, sophomore Zeke Motta, primarily a special teams contributor last season, has been a serviceable replacement. However, the Irish have given up around 246 passing yards per game through their 1-2 start. Injuries, including reserve safety Dan McCarthy's "soft tissue" issue, have handcuffed defensive-coordinator Bob Diaco.
"We'd like to do some other things," Kelly said.
"So having a little bit more depth at that position allows you to do a lot more and keep the offense guessing, especially in third-and-medium."
McCarthy's expected to be in the mix Saturday when Notre Dame hosts No. 16 Stanford (3:30 p.m. on NBC) and dangerous quarterback Andrew Luck. Kelly joked over the last two weeks about turning to alternative medicine to help speed up the healing process. He said it wasn't incense or acupuncture that did the trick for McCarthy.
"I think it was magnets," Kelly said. "He used magnets now, too. It's beautiful."
Cornering the right personnel
Kelly said that Gary Gray, Darrin Walls and Robert Blanton will continue as a three-man rotation at cornerback. Walls mostly covered imaginary ground on a stationary bike Wednesday with a pulled groin.
"Yeah, we're going to be careful with him; he's got a little bit of a groin," Kelly said. "So we're just going to keep him moving. He's fine; he'll be ready to go tomorrow. It's Wednesday and we just played three physical opponents. There's going to be the normal bumps and bruises along the way."
Building better backup quarterbacks
Continuing to expedite the progression at QB behind starter Dayne Crist, Kelly said he likes what he sees from Nate Montana and Tommy Rees since their mistake-ridden debuts against Michigan.
"I think we're developing a carryover from what we started last week with them in terms of their offensive knowledge and [we'll] kind of continue that mode with them," Kelly explained. "I feel a whole lot better about what they can do play-calling wise. I think that was really more the issue than anything else is being in game two with your [Nos. 2 and 3 quarterbacks] and trying to figure out what they do well. I don't know. One was in high school and the other didn't play."
