Tommy Rees - Offensive Coordinator

[stlnd01]

There’s a reason it leaked out ND was looking at Kedon Slovis. That’s an acknowledgment they need better depth at QB. We don’t know what BK’s mandate was on QB’s either so we can’t assign blame to Rees. For example, was BK’s preference in having depth so he preferred 2-3 QB’s who were 4* or high 3* and miss out on the one 5* QB they went all in on?

Here’s to hoping Rees can secure Dante Moore.

The general vibe I got in recent years under Kelly - pre-dating Rees - was they aimed to rotate high-end recruits and steady three/low-four-star RKGs. Under the theory that if you had two elite recruits back to back one of them would inevitably transfer, while if you spaced them out a year at least you'd always have a reliable backup in the fold and time to groom the younger stud.

So Wimbush, then Book. Phil, then Clark. Things got off-cycle with Pyne not quite living up to his early recruiting billing, but then then they landed Buchner and got Coan on a one-year rental. Then Angeli. Under that philosophy this is the year for the big fish. No pressure.

Of course most of our high-end recruits didn't exactly hit. And other top programs do not seem to do it this way. They just stockpile as many talented QBs as possible and let the chips fall where they may. That may, ultimately, be a smarter approach. I guess we'll see.

 

[Pops Freshenmeyer]

With the rate QBs transfer out, we really ought to be bringing in a Vizzina and an Angeli in every class.

I see this type of sentiment on here a lot.

I think it's good in theory but: is there any school who is able to pull this off?

 

[Whiskeyjack]

I see this type of sentiment on here a lot.

I think it's good in theory but: is there any school who is able to pull this off?

'Bama, OSU and Georgia could. Even if we're not there yet, I still think it's a good place to set our sights. Getting a 2nd serviceable option every other year reduces downside risk from sudden transfers significantly, and we're better at holding onto scholarship players than most due to ND's degree value.

 

[T-Boone]

If Rees gets TB playing to his potential then it doesn't matter if he gets a top line 2023 QB.
Getting TB to be elite is the main thing.

 

[ulukinatme]

Not to make this a "pile on IrishRazor82" session, but this from early in this debate stood out...

Absolutely nobody in Wiscy's fanbase was laughing at ND. Most of their fans that had anything to say at all about 'Mertz vs Coan' were saying things along the lines of, "welp, our coaching staff would have ruined either QB." And plenty of Wiscy fans that I saw WERE saying that Wiscy kept the wrong guy.

PFF might have Coan rated too highly, or at least might be giving him too much credit for beating up on bad defenses... but don't try to be disingenuous with certain parts of your argument to try and reinforce your point, because Mertz wasn't even very good against the bad defenses he played.

Absolutely. I was scoping out the Wisconsin board and Twitter during and after the game. Most fans weren't confidant that Mertz was the better QB at all, but the general consensus was that the coaching staff stuck with Mertz for continuity. Similar situation as Kizer/Zaire where Zaire had been the better of the two starting in 2015, but then Zaire got injured and he never returned to form. Wisky never bothered to open up the QB competition though like we did. Rather than take a chance to see if Coan bounced back, they went conservative and stuck with Mertz.

 

[IrishRazor82]

Not to make this a "pile on IrishRazor82" session, but this from early in this debate stood out...

Absolutely nobody in Wiscy's fanbase was laughing at ND. Most of their fans that had anything to say at all about 'Mertz vs Coan' were saying things along the lines of, "welp, our coaching staff would have ruined either QB." And plenty of Wiscy fans that I saw WERE saying that Wiscy kept the wrong guy.

PFF might have Coan rated too highly, or at least might be giving him too much credit for beating up on bad defenses... but don't try to be disingenuous with certain parts of your argument to try and reinforce your point, because Mertz wasn't even very good against the bad defenses he played.

I'm not saying Wisconsin was laughing because Mertz was actually better than Coan. They thought it was hilarious that ND couldn't do better than Coan. And I live in WI and watched many games with various Badger fans, including a former "Bucky the Badger". Saw a Badger tattoo on that guy my eyes cannot unsee.

The consistent comments were "wait, what? He's actually starting? LOL". I'll never look at PFF the same.

 

[irishog77]

I'm not saying Wisconsin was laughing because Mertz was actually better than Coan. They thought it was hilarious that ND couldn't do better than Coan. And I live in WI and watched many games with various Badger fans, including a former "Bucky the Badger".

The consistent comments were "wait, what? He's actually starting? LOL". I'll never look at PFF the same.

I don't have a dog in this fight, but not really sure the musings of the former mascot on the QB mean too much.

 

[Valpodoc85]

I think it is reasonable to say ND has not been a top ten recruiting team recently (that doesn't mean they haven't recruited top ten classes). I'm of the opinion Kelly placed his resources in other endeavors and sold it as Looking for traits/character. I think this attitude was pervasive throughout the staff. MF seems to have reallocated the asset's necessary for recruiting success. Whether other aspects of the game will suffer is to be seen.

 

[NDFAN420]

If Rees gets TB playing to his potential then it doesn't matter if he gets a top line 2023 QB.
Getting TB to be elite is the main thing.

This is the rub, the entire enigma wrapped in a riddle, the single most important part of the start of the MF regime.

"If you Buchner, they will come"

 

[Whiskeyjack]

This is the rub, the entire enigma wrapped in a riddle, the single most important part of the start of the MF regime.

"If you Buchner, they will come"

No joke. If TB12 balls out, I think Freeman will immediately start reeling in the sort of QBs and WRs we need to compete with the big boys. Also means we probably lose Rees sooner than later, but such is life.

Imagine if Clausen, Floyd and Tate had enjoyed the OL quality and defensive stability we've come to expect over the last 5 years.

 

[GoldenAura]

No joke. If TB12 balls out, I think Freeman will immediately start reeling in the sort of QBs and WRs we need to compete with the big boys. Also means we probably lose Rees sooner than later, but such is life.

Seems like most people here would call that a win-win.

 

[Free Manera]

I think it is reasonable to say ND has not been a top ten recruiting team recently (that doesn't mean they haven't recruited top ten classes). I'm of the opinion Kelly placed his resources in other endeavors and sold it as Looking for traits/character. I think this attitude was pervasive throughout the staff. MF seems to have reallocated the asset's necessary for recruiting success. Whether other aspects of the game will suffer is to be seen.

They haven’t if we’re talking average. The average Kelly class would be about #13. He had an outlier year in ‘13 where they ended up #5. But otherwise it was always 10-18 range. Which puts you in the no chance to win a championship category according to the data. Need top ten classes every single year to have a shot.

 

[ulukinatme]

No joke. If TB12 balls out, I think Freeman will immediately start reeling in the sort of QBs and WRs we need to compete with the big boys. Also means we probably lose Rees sooner than later, but such is life.

Imagine if Clausen, Floyd and Tate had enjoyed the OL quality and defensive stability we've come to expect over the last 5 years.

Brah, Reesus is going to OC this team until Freeman retires at 50 due to health issues like Leahy and Ara. This is after 8 National Championships, btw. Tommy then takes over as HC for the next 15 years.

 

[ulukinatme]

I'm not saying Wisconsin was laughing because Mertz was actually better than Coan. They thought it was hilarious that ND couldn't do better than Coan. And I live in WI and watched many games with various Badger fans, including a former "Bucky the Badger". Saw a Badger tattoo on that guy my eyes cannot unsee.

The consistent comments were "wait, what? He's actually starting? LOL". I'll never look at PFF the same.

I'm gonna retract my earlier statement. Wisky fans seemed to think both QBs were pretty close in ability, but the coaching staff stuck with Mertz for continuity. That's what I was seeing back in September anyway. However, these are Wisky fans we're talking about, so they're all idiots based on that premise. Coan never accounted for 5 damn turnovers in a single game like Mertz did against the Irish. Hell, Jack only had 6 INTs on the whole year. Mertz threw more INTs than TDs this year while Coan went 25 TDs/6 INTs...and our WRs weren't exactly stellar this year. It's not like the B1G West is a gauntlet either, so any difference in competition is moot. Coan proved he was pretty good in the end. If they didn't have buyer's remorse they probably should have. I'd say he certainly belonged, he was worthy.

 

[benneboy]

They haven’t if we’re talking average. The average Kelly class would be about #13. He had an outlier year in ‘13 where they ended up #5. But otherwise it was always 10-18 range. Which puts you in the no chance to win a championship category according to the data. Need top ten classes every single year to have a shot.

Not disagreeing with you entirely, but Clemson won 2 national championships living in this range. You need to hit on most everyone, have some surprises, and most likely need an all world QB, but it's not 'no chance'. It's just a lot more difficult.

 

[NDFAN420]

Not disagreeing with you entirely, but Clemson won 2 national championships living in this range. You need to hit on most everyone, have some surprises, and most likely need an all world QB, but it's not 'no chance'. It's just a lot more difficult.

It's great point, Ive made it myself before Twice, the difference between ND and Clemson was the QB. However, a neighbor of mine is a Clemson fan, kids are at Clemson etc. I said something to him a while back that made me rethink it:

You're right and Free Manera is right as well. The chances of getting the best player in college football back-to-back to be your QB under the same circumstances (1st rd WRs galore) is almost zero. But it does happen.

 

[ulukinatme]

This is the rub, the entire enigma wrapped in a riddle, the single most important part of the start of the MF regime.

"If you Buchner, they will come"

I read that last part as "buck-her," and with that talk about rubbing and coming...now I'm in a weird place.

 

[Ndaccountant]

No joke. If TB12 balls out, I think Freeman will immediately start reeling in the sort of QBs and WRs we need to compete with the big boys. Also means we probably lose Rees sooner than later, but such is life.

Imagine if Clausen, Floyd and Tate had enjoyed the OL quality and defensive stability we've come to expect over the last 5 years.

I believe there is some alternate universe where Mike Wadsworth, after being turned down by Gary Barnett post Lou's resignation, turns his eye north of Chicago and brings back Barry Alvarez. Barry has an incredible run through 2005, producing better results than what he had in Madison. He retires in 2005 and it becomes obvious that ND needs a change in offensive philosophy to keep up with the times. They take a gamble and hire the true architect of one of the greatest offensive teams of the past three seasons and hire Chris Peterson. He has a long a successful career in South Bend, calls it quits in 2017 after multiple BCS/NY6 appearances and victories. Just to piss of Jim Harbaugh, ND hires John Harbaugh, who is fresh off a string of 3 ho hum years in Baltimore, but he owns his brother in 2018 and 2019 before Jim is finally fired after 2020. IE has a thread calling for OC Kellen Moore to be fired as he offered JJ McCartney instead of Tyler Buchner.

 

[ulukinatme]

I believe there is some alternate universe where Mike Wadsworth, after being turned down by Gary Barnett post Lou's resignation, turns his eye north of Chicago and brings back Barry Alvarez. Barry has an incredible run through 2005, producing better results than what he had in Madison. He retires in 2005 and it becomes obvious that ND needs a change in offensive philosophy to keep up with the times. They take a gamble and hire the true architect of one of the greatest offensive teams of the past three seasons and hire Chris Peterson. He has a long a successful career in South Bend, calls it quits in 2017 after multiple BCS/NY6 appearances and victories. Just to piss of Jim Harbaugh, ND hires John Harbaugh, who is fresh off a string of 3 ho hum years in Baltimore, but he owns his brother in 2018 and 2019 before Jim is finally fired after 2020. IE has a thread calling for OC Kellen Moore to be fired as he offered JJ McCartney instead of Tyler Buchner.

I strongly believe Petersen was ever going to come East. Other than one odd year in Pittsburgh in '92 he spent literally his entire life on the West Coast, and in reality it was almost exclusively in the North-West territory. He even turned down USC for Washington, which wasn't that far removed from Ty Willingham at the time. That should tell you everything. Definitely would have taken Alvarez over Boob Davie though.

 

[Ndaccountant]

I strongly believe Petersen was ever going to come East. Other than one odd year in Pittsburgh in '92 he spent literally his entire life on the West Coast, and in reality it was almost exclusively in the North-West territory. He even turned down USC for Washington, which wasn't that far removed from Ty Willingham at the time. That should tell you everything. Definitely would have taken Alvarez over Boob Davie though.

The timing of this universe is such that the move would have coincided with Dan Hawkins leaving. The world didn't know Chris Peterson at that point, except for ND's AD at that point time, Lou Holtz.

 

[GATTACA!]

Here’s to hoping Rees can secure Dante Moore.

Narrator: He couldn't.

 

[T-Boone]

Narrator: He couldn't.

Morgan Freeman voice?

 

[Grahambo]

Narrator: He couldn't.

Hearing it in Morgan Freeman’s voice softens the blow.

 

[NDRock]

Morgan Freeman voice?

I hear Junior Soprano’s voice talking about Richie Aprile “He couldn’t fucking sell it. He’s not respected”.

 

[Irish#1]

I read that last part as "buck-her," and with that talk about rubbing and coming...now I'm in a weird place.

You need to go to bed earlier. lol

 

[IrishRazor82]

What happened to that 5 star QB from Cali who loved his ND visit? Tall, lanky, black guy with glasses? Did we give up on him?

 

[Irish#1]

It's tough because QB is the one churn and burn position for every team. Something like 70% of four and five star QBs transfer. If you look at just the 95+ rating dudes over the cycles where ND took Pyne and Clark, there are only three players that truly panned out for the school that recruited them:
-Bryce Young
-CJ Stroud
-Sam Howell

Every other player was either a transfer, bust, or hasn't played. 13 total elite recruits with less than a 25% hit rate. That's why you need to be grabbing a top guy every cycle OR working hard to land a proven transfer. ND isn't really doing either, and hasn't for a decade+ at this point.

The success rate of QB's in college or the NFL is extremely small which is why you see transfers and busts like you mentioned. Getting a five star guy improves your chances to succeed, but not by much. Ratings are based primarily on physical attributes, but it's what's between the ears that determines success. As well as Book did, he still had issues pulling the trigger at times. Burrows was a 4 star .0093 QB coming out of HS, but the dude is a 6 star between the ears. That's why you need to get a top guy almost every cycle. You improve your odds the more you have.

The good news is that from the limited action we saw, TB has it between the ears IMO.

 

[irishog77]

What happened to that 5 star QB from Cali who loved his ND visit? Tall, lanky, black guy with glasses? Did we give up on him?

Steve Urkel?

 

[IrishRazor82]

Steve Urkel?

At this point we may be down to Urkel. But no, he had long hair too. Cannot think of his name for the life of me but his interest was huge, at least coming out of his visit.

Edit: https://247sports.com/Player/Nicholaus-Iamaleava-46101236/

 

[GowerND11]

Steve Urkel?

He's from Chicago...