This is just a reminder of who we have become in one area.
When Kelly joined the team for the 2010 season, the roster had so few OLinemen that we needed four (or more?) walk-ons to make a full OLine room. Because recruiting that year was so late as to be almost impossible in some areas, we could only get three (I believe) actual functional looking prospects to add in. One immediately killed himself before getting to campus (wish that was some kind of joke, but he fell off a building during a HS party. He was the gem of the class ratings wise too.) That left two frosh; one who never panned out, and one, Christian Lombard who did. A VERY THIN OLine room --- in the key top eight guys, for instance, was a young underdeveloped Mike Golic, Jr. He worked very hard and became an OK player by his senior year, but ....
Coach HH doesn't get here for a couple more years and the OLine room is still thin. Fortunately ZMart and his younger brother, plus Ronnie Stanley, and Chris Watt are around, so we (on the basis of firepower elsewhere) do pretty well. Thus begins the decade of OLine coaching and play that we have become so spoiled by, and, somewhat outrageously demand to be too perfect.
Well, recruiting and coaching have delivered, regardless of absurd crybabying by some fans. Notre Dame has begun to be called OLine U by many people in the sport. This is despite ignorant comments (by non-ND fans and commentators) that we have put "only 11" Olinemen into the League. And that is why I'm writing.
Notre Dame is unlike some OLine powerhouses in an old-fashioned way: Our OLinemen almost always stay the full four to five years of eligibility, and also, once you make the True starting five, you stay a starter. Because of that pattern, we have many less potential draftees over a decade's time than certain hit-it-and-leave powerhouses. Let's look at what has actually happened for ND OLine starters. From the beginning of Coach Harry's first settling in as OL Coach (say ten years), every ND OLine starter (I mean genuine best five starter) has either made an NFL roster or had a career injury ... except one as will be mentioned. Steve Elmer, Christian Lombard, Matt Hegarty, and (due to accumulation of less disastrous injuries) Colin McGovern were injury situations without which, in my opinion, would have made rosters had they wanted to pursue that. Hegarty came close anyway. I don't list Golic, because he was never the chosen starter and played (admirably) as next man up. The exception to the rule is Cain Madden, who came close with the NYG. I imagine that he would have succeeded if he had four years with Harry than just one. Everybody else from our chosen best fives makes the pros. Lots of them are three year starters here, keeping many good potential OLinemen on the bench.
The bottomlines are these:
If you can get on the field at Notre Dame, particularly under the coaching of Harry Hiestand, you can make an NFL roster.
But you better be good enough to make that best five sooner or later.
Notre Dame OLinemen are top-intelligent and become both top technicians, scheme understanders, and degree holders.
Our current OLine room is stacked three deep. That probably means 12-15 NFL potential guys. This new coach better be damm good to keep this thing going. Because ... Notre Dame IS OLine U.