Today was an important day for Notre Dame football and it had nothing to do with practice or team workouts. The Kelly Cares Foundation welcomed their second class of Football 101, a women’s event that benefits breast cancer awareness and prevention.
The event also provided the media a chance to get a roster update from Brian Kelly before his charitable endeavors officially started. While an update on Manti Te’o and Sean Cwynar were the highlights, the headlines still revolve around wide receiver Michael Floyd, whose status -- surprise! -- hasn’t changed.
Per multiple reports, here’s what Kelly had to say about No. 3:“I’m very optimistic right now,” Kelly said about Floyd’s status with the team. “When I talk to Mike I get a good read. You know when you look somebody in the eye and you feel like you’re getting the right vibes? That’s how I feel about him, but he’s still got a ways to go and his status won’t change until we get to the school year. We’re hoping that Mike continues to do the right things so he can play and be ready for South Florida. If he doesn’t make good decisions he’s not going to play anyway. It’s not a matter of South Florida as much as he’s going to get it right and play the entire year or he’s not going to play at all.
“He makes one mistake in terms of how he handles himself, he doesn’t play here ever,” Kelly said. “There’s no suspension, there’s no sit for a game. He’s just got to live his life the right way. If he does that and all the signs point toward that direction, then I expect him to play every game. That’s why I’ve been optimistic.”
Again, the only real updates that conceivably could come this summer are the ones that nobody wants to hear. Because it’s either all quiet on the Irish front or something bad happens, and then the Irish will be without Floyd for his senior season.
So in this case, no news is good news for Irish fans.
***
As for Te’o, the heart of the defense, and Cwynar, who has the chance to be a vital presence in the middle of the defensive line, they are in two very different places right now.
Te’o is 100 percent cleared to participate in summer workouts, while Cwynar is working his way back slowly from foot surgery, an ailment that has him getting a good tan at Longo Beach.
“We’re running him in the sand,” Kelly said of Cwynar. “We’re keeping pressure off that foot. We got a good reading off that foot in terms of the bone and its density, it’s about 75 percent density. We want to get it to 100 without putting any stress on it. He’s doing everything else. He’s really the only one who has slight restrictions.”
Te’o’s injuries weren’t anywhere near as serious as Cwynar’s, and his limited work during spring was mostly preventative, while the coaching staff got a closer look at the battle between Carlo Calabrese, Kendall Moore, and Dan Fox for the job opposite Te’o.