After watching the bits of Sam I Am on our site, I say: We Good. Prognostication for the defense? Really good secondary --- "even" the safeties. Linebackers will be fine. DLine is where we will be taken to great levels or not. If those guys are as good as we have been for the last several seasons, all the rest will sparkle. I leave it to IE experts to let me know how the DLine will fare --- especially since in the past we have been able to rotate in AT LEAST two full lines who play at high levels. Our two lines (O&D) have been so enjoyably physical and unafraid of anyone, that it has been great to be an ND fan these years.
Offense? Sam I Am takes all our "almost there" receivers and gets them in the endzone. We don't have to have Fuller or Floyd (but if they still have eligibility come on back. Sam will just score in two plays rather than six or eight.) RBs are top level nationally --- in cumulation, and Estime maybe AA on his own. Sam I Am will MAKE the TEs replace Mayer --- They just have to block. So that leaves "my" guys. I still couldn't tell from the small replay (Thank You though for that!!!) what's going to go on there. Alt of course is great. Correll looked pretty good. I assume that Fisher did too, since the breakdowns seemed on the other side mainly. I tried to watch Schrauth --- hard to do since re-run back and forth was almost impossible. Most of the plays he seemed pretty good. Had him beside Alt unless I misread the numbers. An Alt/ Schrauth/ Correll "side" should be a good one. The vets should coach up the rookie. The other guard? You guys need to tell me. Who looked better at Right Guard? We have played powerful straight ahead mashers there for several years (Think Kraemer and Lugg types) and that has worked. Do we have a good replacement? If we do, the OLine should be a strength. Sam I Am makes it easier on them anyway, as he is so quick to see the read and deliver. Also, when speed rushes go fast wide, they don't seem to deflect his attention at all. When some interior pocket constriction occurs, he seems to rapidly notice it and step one step away and deliver. Gentlemen, even with Ian, I do not believe that we have seen this quite this smooth and quick.
So my three wishes:
A. Everybody stay reasonably healthy all season long, especially Sam I Am;
B. The Big Eaters of the DLine grow at least two deep everywhere and stay hungry all four quarters, as they have;
C. My Good Ol' Bigguns on the OLine put two Nasty, Intelligent, Not Quite Gentlemen into the guard positions, and
do our Quentin Nelson impersonations giving opponents very hard days.
.... and, for once, I don't see any reason why those things can't happen.
Dammit. Even at 82, I'm a little excited about this bunch. ... hope the system can take it
