Let’s get to it.
NotreDan: How does the defensive scheme have to change with all of the injuries we have suffered? Can scheme even compensate? Have you heard anything from inside channels about this?
I think a different head coach and coordinator might be more prone to tweak scheme. But that hasn’t been Brian Kelly’s MO, and I certainly don’t believe that’s what Bob Diaco will do, either.
Knowing Diaco a little bit, I expect him to drill down on the fundamentals. He’ll spend more time talking about “mastering your musts,” the three things each position group absolutely must master. (Tim Prister at Irish Illustrated wrote about this a few weeks ago.) You don’t take inexperienced players and add more to their plate, you focus on the basics.
On the surface, it makes complete sense to try and tweak things to play to what you have. But in reality, you’ve got 20 hours a week with these guys. That’s not enough to implement wholesale changes.
aisforara: Why is it that ND’s offense seems incapable (with the exception of Temple and Air Force games) of extending a one-score lead to a two-score lead? Is it complacency? A flaw in tactics or strategy? Lack of fire? Lack of leadership? Here’s what I do know: It’s incredibly frustrating.
Let’s throw out the lack of fire and leadership. I’d also consider schedule. It’s no coincidence that the easy games, Notre Dame has won easily. But I think struggles in the red zone have been part of the problem as well as the evolution of the running back position. Throw in the challenges had by the defense early in the year and it’s pretty tough to pull away from anybody.
@scottiefry: BK is 70th highest paid cfb coach? This article can’t be right.
I don’t think it is, either. Notre Dame is a private institution. They have no obligation to share information like a head coach’s salary. That info was likely taken off the school’s 990 tax form, a document that only tells a fraction of the story for compensation.
If I had to guess what Kelly was making, I think it’d be in the $3.5 million range.
yllibnosredna: Although it’s always a dubious subject to discuss (particularly recently at Notre Dame), I have a question in regards to ND’s most recent recruiting cycles. Despite the fact that ND’s coaching staff has done a tremendous job landing some big-time talent hitting the West coast and the southeast and Texas hard, it seems like ND is whiffing on some big fish in their own back yard. Perhaps not in Indiana (with Jaylon Smith, Sheldon Day, and Gunner Kiel all signing with ND), but in nearby Midwestern states, particularly Illinois–specifically the Chicago area. Names like Laquon Treadwell, Ty Isaac, and Ethan Pocic come to mind. In this year’s recruiting cycle, Nyles Morgan seems like a long shot, and neither Clifton Garrett nor Jamarco Jones (who attends a Catholic school) really even seemed to consider Notre Dame as a legitimate option. In addition, consensus top 5 recruit Jabrill Peppers, who also attends a Catholic school in a relatively nearby state, never had ND on his radar. I guess I am curious as to why lately ND has been able to grab a guy like Greg Bryant from a secular school in Florida yet is struggling to get a blue chip from a Catholic school in Chicago or the Northeast. Your thoughts?
Let’s work on brevity next time, shall we? But this is a good question and one that probably can’t be answered in a standard mailbag. There is no easy answer to a question like this, and believe me — Chuck Martin thought that he’d do really well in the Chicago area… and still does.
Trying to bunch the Chicagoland area in one basket is pretty foolish, and a guy like Ty Isaac would’ve probably gone to ND if he didn’t feel like he was walking away from his commitment to USC. Some other Chicago guys, the Irish have come up No. 2. But I agree, they aren’t the pipeline that once was dominated by Holtz.
I had heard from someone inside the football department once that it only takes one bad experience by a player from a region or school to make it tough for anyone else to sign. Demetrius Jones’ high profile departure after one game playing for Charlie Weis didn’t help the Irish in the Chicago Public League. Tee Shepard and Deontay Greenberry not making it work at Notre Dame hasn’t helped in Fresno. But I don’t think there’s anything overly systemic about it, and one player can often open the flood gates.
jmfinsd: We all love Irish Chocolate and Tuitt, but apparently we’re biased. Neither is listed as one of the 12 finalists for the Lombardi award given to the nation’s top lineman (offensive or defensive) or linebacker. How can 2 guys be expected to be top 10 or 20 draft picks, but not be on this list? And while this does nothing to support an argument for Nix to come back do you think this is an indication of the perception of Tuitt that he needs to come back next year to rectify?
I think you’re reaching for something here, but not quite getting it. There are plenty of first round draft picks that aren’t Lombardi Award nominees. It happens every year, just not to Notre Dame fans. If you’re thinking that Nix, who has a final season of eligibility but will be getting his degree in the spring, would want to come back to win a Lombardi Award, you’ve got another thing coming.
As for Tuitt, I still think he’s coming back to school. But again, Notre Dame’s defensive system, and the attention both guys get, don’t make these guys exactly awards bait.
elkona: Keith, you seemed a touch acerbic on the live blog last week. Are the maniacs finally getting to you? Can the bye week not come soon enough?
I tend to get cranky on the live blog… just because. When I actually challenge some people’s antics, it’s because they’ve usually been saying something about five times as ridiculous that I didn’t publish. It’s also escalates quite a bit, especially as the game stays closer and closer.
For grown men and women sitting on their couches watching football and surfing the internet, I always have a hard time with people talking about how “embarrassing” a football team’s performance is, or how “inexcusable” it is that Notre Dame doesn’t dominate every play on every snap of every game.
I’m not going to lie, the bye week will be plenty of fun. But I tend to enjoy the fact based fight against some knuckleheads who can’t even make garage logic work.
rocket1988: Keith, When you go back to Notre Dame what are your favorite establishments to enjoy an adult beverage? Has it changed since you were a student?
Rocket, I’m not picky, but I usually end up at the Linebacker for a drink with friends, especially with its proximity to campus. But I’d love to take a trip down memory lane to Finnegans or reopen The Boat Club for a special engagement, but this whole “work trip” thing and writing makes it tough.
@jfoneill22: Keith, will you be suiting up on the defensive line this weekend?
Jeez, John. I haven’t gained that much weight this month eating craft service, have I?
tburke9601: Who gets the majority of the handoffs this week? And where has Davaris Daniels been the last couple of games? He has been very quiet lately.
I think Folston leads the team in carries, though I don’t think it’s a majority. As for Daniels, he’s been stuck in neutral the past few weeks and I can’t help but think that effort on 50-50 balls like the one that was intercepted before halftime is a reason why.
DaVaris has all the talent needed to take charge and dominate a game. He just hasn’t necessarily decided that he’s going to do it every Saturday, and there seems to be a lack of communication with Tommy Rees, something TJ Jones and Rees have in spades.
MichiganDomer1984: On a scale of 1 – 10 (10 is high), how obnoxiously unrealistic are ND fans in your opinion? Compared to other high brand programs? I am a double graduate and I actually hate a part of our fan base. Am I crazy?
I don’t think you are crazy. Not one bit. I tend to dislike that group, too. That being said, ND isn’t the only group like that. Far from it.
Maybe a good, solid 8.0 for obnoxiously unrealistic. But it is crazy that most Notre Dame fans forgot the Irish ran the table last regular season and have only lost two games with a backup quarterback.
ndgoldandblue: Keith, do you think the running game will have the same kind of success as last week against Navy? Why or why not?
No, I don’t. I think Aaron Donald is why.
Nudeman: QUESTION: For you, as a student and as a writer, what is the lowest point you can remember?
Nude, I’m shocked — SHOCKED! — that you’d focus on the absolute low point.
As an alum and fan, the 2005 Bush Push game was one of the lowest points of fandom. The high and perfection of the game and electricity in the stadium, and then the chaos and sadness of the loss was remarkable.
I’ve lost that kind of fan engagement since doing this for a job, but I think the lowest and saddest moments for me were covering stories like the Declan Sullivan tragedy and Matt James’ passing away on Spring Break.
Those two stories were remarkably difficult and I struggled with them because I connected with the life experiences both young men had and went through, but also because I couldn’t stand watching people so quickly define what the story was.
Neither of those tragedies were black and white, yet some reporting was just looking to assign blame and outrage and then move on. I had a very hard time with that.
Nudeman: BTW, the question on everyone’s mind: Dickasman has been conspicuously absent, of late.
Banned?
Nobody is banned. We are having some problems with comments going into Spam and the WordPress VIPs are helping with that. But there are some words that now get caught in the filter that didn’t before, so everybody will need to clean up the language.
