Category: Notre Dame Football

Newest Notre Dame Commit Coogan One of the Springs Best in Midwest

New Notre Dame offensive lineman Pat Coogan is among the best commits to Midwestern programs this spring.

This spring hasn’t been normal, what has, but that still hasn’t stopped recruiting in college football. Plenty of recruits are committing and today Josh Helmholdt of Rivals looked at the best commits in the Midwest this spring, with the Irish’s newest commit Pat Coogan making the list.

Coogan checked in at 8th on Helmholdt’s list, but that didn’t mean high praise wasn’t headed his way. “We may look back at Coogan as being the unsung hero of this Notre Dame 2021 class, despite the class already featuring four Rivals100 prospects. There is an argument to be made that Coogan’s value within a class exceed his individual rating because of his versatility.” Coogan at 6’4” and 287 pounds is seen an offensive lineman that could play any of the 3 positions, depending on how his body fills out once he hits campus.

It seems like a common theme to rank Coogan lower than he should be. Take a look at his offer list which includes LSU, Ohio State, and Oklahoma, three of the four College Football Playoff teams from last year. A recruit who has those kinds of offers is usually ranked much higher than Coogan is currently, ranked as the 36th best tackle in the country by Rivals.

I feel as if Coogan will outplay his ranking, whatever it ends up being prior to his arrival on campus next year. Brian Kelly went next door to Illinois and got a very good prospect in Pat Coogan.

Notre Dame Football Cancels all 2020 Summer Camps

These camps might get looked at as not being very big deals but they’re important in terms of selling the program.  Sure, you’ll have dozens and dozens of players that attend that the football program will never have any desire to offer a scholarship to but for the ones they are interested in you can bet your bottom dollar the selling of the program is going on then.

It had been a while since the sports world got news of more cancellations.  Well, Notre Dame football announced the cancellations of no games, but instead all of their summer camps for 2020.

The athletic department made the announcement via the Notre Dame Football Twitter account on Monday morning.

These camps might get looked at as not being very big deals but they’re important in terms of selling the program.  Sure, you’ll have dozens and dozens of players that attend that the football program will never have any desire to offer a scholarship to but for the ones they are interested in you can bet your bottom dollar the selling of the program is going on then.

The camps canceled include:

Lineman Challenge
Overnight Camp
Specialist Camp
7×7 Passing Camp
QB Academy
Irish Invasion
Notre Dame Sunday Night Football

And for the non-high school football players:
Adult Fantasy Camp
Youth Camp
Football 101

For those looking for a positive sign in terms of things getting going and starting on time, this certainly wasn’t the signal you wanted to see on Monday morning.  Let’s hope it’s a just pothole on the road to football and doesn’t lead to a crater that we’re unable to drive through.

ESPN Power Index Down on 2020 Notre Dame

Now I think you’ve got to walk before you can run and simply put, Notre Dame hasn’t walked on the national stage, at least not in big games.  That said, I still have expectations for this team to make a run at a potential CFP berth.

Talk to a Notre Dame football fan and they’ve got expectations to make another run at a College Football Playoff appearance, if not an outside chance at a national championship.  Now I think you’ve got to walk before you can run and simply put, Notre Dame hasn’t walked on the national stage, at least not in big games.  That said, I still have expectations for this team to make a run at a potential CFP berth.

One outlet that appears not to?  The ESPN Football Power Index.  The FPI puts together their formula and spits out a teams chances at winning all 12 of their regular season contests.  Let’s just say it really doesn’t like Notre Dame’s chances in a quarter of their contests this fall.

Opponent and ESPN FPI’s chances of a Notre Dame win:

vs. Navy 82.3%
vs. Arkansas 90.3%
vs. Western Michigan 94.4%
vs. Wake Forest 85.4%
vs. Wisconsin 26.5%
vs. Stanford 76.6%
at Pittsburgh 75.3%
vs. Duke 89%
vs. Clemson 13.3%
at Georgia Tech 75%
vs. Louisville 65.4%
at USC 30.4%

Let’s quickly discuss the projected losses:

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Notre Dame’s Kmet Describes NFL Draft Week from Home

What do you do at mom and dad’s house?  Where and how will he watch the draft?  And is he especially hoping to play for his hometown Chicago Bears?  find out for yourself.

Welcome to NFL Draft week 2020.  It will be like any draft we’ve seen in recent years with no sold out venue and no bro-hugs between the latest draft picks and the NFL commissioner.  Instead it’ll all be done online, an exhibit in what much of the working world will be headed towards after “stay home” orders are lifted.

Notre Dame has 12 players hoping to have their name called between Thursday and Saturday with the likelihood of probably six of them being very good.  One of those is tight end Cole Kmet and he’ll probably be the first former Fighting Irish player to hear his name called, whether it be late Thursday night or sometime during rounds two or three on Friday.

Kmet did a video call with Mike Berman of NBC 5 Chicago over the weekend and detailed what the days ahead of this nontraditional draft.  What do you do at mom and dad’s house right now?  Where and how will he watch the draft?  And is he especially hoping to play for his hometown Chicago Bears?  find out for yourself.

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Kmet is projected everywhere from late in the first round to not having his name called until the third per some experts.  Where do you think Kmet ends up and is there somewhere you’re especially hoping to see him go?

I’d love to see him go to his hometown Bears but I’d be lying if I said I had any faith in that organization to give him the best chance to succeed in the pros.

Notre Dame Players Meet with Another Former NFL MVP

Running game coordinator Lance Taylor who we’ve discussed for his connections at length already this week, arranged another meeting Friday, this time with his stable of running backs.  

Notre Dame players have recently had the benefit of meeting with a couple of former NFL stars.  New tight ends coach John McNulty arranged a meeting with Hall of Famer Kurt Warner a week or so ago and earlier this week he had a video conference arranged for his tight ends with former Irish great, Anthony Fasano.

Running game coordinator Lance Taylor who we’ve discussed for his connections at length already this week, arranged another meeting Friday, this time with his stable of running backs.

A couple thoughts here from Shaun Alexander talking to a room of Notre Dame running backs.

I wasn’t able to legally drink when Alexander won his MVP in 2005 and am now 34. I wonder if the players on this call are aware of how great he was considering they were all probably about six or seven years old in Alexander’s prime.

How great would it be to be able to have a giant poster of yourself on the Madden cover to put up in your home office?  Power move.

If you’ve forgotten, go check out Alexander’s career numbers.  He averaged more than a touchdown a game over a five year span.

Also noteworthy is the former Notre Dame running back who is looking to get drafted next week that regrets not jumping on the call today.

It’s cool to see Notre Dame taking advantage of this strange time and making the best of a bad situation.  Now we’re curious what former NFL star will be next to meet with a one of the 2020 squad’s positional groups.

Notre Dame Releases “The Shirt” for 2020

Usually a former star player or the current head coach helps unveil “The Shirt” on the Friday night before the spring game as part of something that has almost become a ceremony.  With the spring game cancelled on the world taking countless precautions in the fight against Coronavirus, this years unveiling was held just like the vast majority of our work meetings anymore:  online.

One of Notre Dame’s unique football traditions happens each spring.  Each Friday before the annual Blue-Gold Spring Game, the release of “The Shirt” is made as the tens of thousands that flock to campus to treat their football fever.  Each year thousands upon thousands of “The Shirt” are sold in all ages and sizes as proceeds benefit Notre Dame students in a few different ways.

Usually a former star player or the current head coach helps unveil “The Shirt” on the Friday night before the spring game as part of something that has almost become a ceremony.  With the spring game cancelled on the world taking countless precautions in the fight against Coronavirus, this years unveiling was held just like the vast majority of our work meetings anymore:  online.

See the shirt below and if you want you can purchase it here.

Version 31 of “The Shirt” is now available for all to purchase.  Here’s to hoping the 2020 football season will get here soon and we’ll all be packed in the Joyce Lot on a Saturday morning enjoying brats, libations and some college football while watching thousands of folks in “The Shirt 31” walk by.

Notre Dame Offers Elite ’22 Defensive Tackle

Schrauth checks in at a massive 6-5, 265 pounds and has the biggest powerhouses in the mid-west in pursuit of his talent.  Iowa, Michigan, Ohio State, Penn State, Western Michigan and Wisconsin have already extended offers and you’d assume with a list like that, more blue-bloods won’t be too far behind.

As the watch continues as to where the nation’s best high school football talents in the 2021 recruiting class will commit the push is already well-underway for the 2022 classes as well.  Today Notre Dame made an offer to a big-time ’22 prospect from the mid-west.

Billy Schrauth of St. Mary’s Springs in Fon Du Lac, Wisconsin is rated as the sixth best defensive tackle prospect in the nation from the early rankings 247Sports has given.  Their composite rankings grade him as a four-star talent early on.

Schrauth checks in at a massive 6-5, 265 pounds and has the biggest powerhouses in the mid-west in pursuit of his talent.  Iowa, Michigan, Ohio State, Penn State, Western Michigan and Wisconsin have already extended offers and you’d assume with a list like that, more blue-bloods won’t be too far behind.

Enjoy his sophomore year highlight tape below.  He’s being recruited nationally as a defensive tackle and you can see why but some of the most fun on his tape is him mauling young men as an offensive guard.

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Notre Dame LB Owusu-Koramoah Named on ESPN Top 10 List

The hype train is boarding for Irish linebacker Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah and today more praise from the ESPN staff.

There is considerable hype surrounding Notre Dame linebacker Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah for this upcoming season and rightfully so. After waiting two years to hit the field, Owusu-Koramoah was an absolute monster registering 8.5 sacks and 79 total tackles. We are tracking said hype and more came his way today as ESPN named Owusu-Koramoah one of the top 10 returning off-ball linebackers in the country.

The rising junior was 6th on the list, as ESPN used a combination of Pro Football Focus’ grades and win above average metric to comprise the rankings. Anthony Treash, who complied the list, noted that Owusu-Koramoah saw his play down the stretch improve, as PFF graded him out extremely well towards the end of the year.

Just a 3-Star prospect out of high school, Owusu-Koramoah didn’t have the elite offer list one would see out of a player with his impact. Brian Kelly and Clark Lea did a fantastic job identifying his talent and getting him on campus to coach up the linebacker. It’s evident the recruiting gurus and other coaching staffs evaluation was way off.

Owusu-Koramoah absolutely dominated Iowa State in the Camping World Bowl game, finishing with 3 sacks, 9 tackles, a forced fumble and recovery. Players always talk about using the bowl game to springboard into next year, and if Owusu-Koramoah does, the 2020 Irish opponents should be shaking in their cleats.

Notre Dame Commit OT Fisher Compared to Potential First Rounder

Irish in-state commit Blake Fisher is compared to a projected first round NFL tackle.

NFL Hall of Fame defensive end Lawrence Taylor changed the game immediately upon his arrival in New York, not just on the defensive side but the offensive side as well. On a fateful Monday night, Taylor sacked Notre Dame legend Joe Theismann, shattering his leg and in essence making the left tackle one of the most coveted positions in all of football.

Protectors of the quarterbacks “blind side” quickly became a need for many NFL teams, as making sure the most important position in all of sports stayed upright and healthy was and is a top priority.  Taylor’s dominance of offensive lineman changed the ideal physique of the offensive tackles, with teams trying to find larger, more agile men to protect their QB.

The value of protecting the team’s most valuable asset has shown in the NFL Draft, since 2000, the only other position selected first overall aside from quarterbacks and defensive ends were offensive tackles. Having a good quarterback, getting to the quarterback, and protecting the quarterback are the highest priorities in the league.

Notre Dame has a commitment from one of the best offensive tackle prospects in the nation, Blake Fisher (57th overall nationally), and today Rivals compared him to Louisville’s OT Mekhi Becton, who the Irish faced off against last year in the season opener. Mike Farrell, their National Recruiting Director, said “Becton was a massive lineman with surprisingly good feet and athleticism. Fisher is the same way and one of the biggest linemen in the last few years. Fisher is more polished at the same stage and it will be interesting if he can maintain and increase his athleticism as Becton did in college.”

Comparing Fisher to most likely a first-round NFL tackle is high praise, fueling the hype prior to his arrival on campus next year. If Fisher lives up to Farrell’s projection, he would join a long line of Irish offensive lineman as first round

Notre Dame Continues Showing Their Christian McCaffrey Love

Does it come off a bit weird hyping up a guy that not only didn’t play at Notre Dame but also a guy who starred at an annual rival?  No doubt, and I’m sure Tommy Rees himself even thinks that a bit.

Earlier this week Christian McCaffrey signed a record deal to remain a Carolina Panther and is set to make more money than any running back in NFL history as a result.  We went over at the time how some of the congratulatory tweets being sent McCaffrey’s way weren’t all meant for just McCaffrey to see.

Well, a few days later and more of the same, this time coming from the new Notre Dame offensive coordinator, Tommy Rees.

Listen, I don’t blame them at all.  If I had that card in my hand I’d being playing it as much as I could in order to try and land top talent.  Notre Dame has had some good running backs lately, but how many are truly great?  It’s been since Ryan Grant, Julius Jones and Jerome Bettis and that’s many moons ago that Notre Dame put anything into the league at running back that you’d consider anywhere near special (obviously Bettis is in a league of his own in that group of three).

I think Pete Sampson of The Athletic put it well in his tweet on Thursday in regards to Notre Dame’s new-found love for an old rival:

Does it come off a bit weird hyping up a guy that not only didn’t play at Notre Dame but also a guy who starred at an annual rival?  No doubt, and I’m sure Tommy Rees himself even thinks that a bit.

But in the world of recruiting when you’re trying to win the commitments of star prospects it’s clearly worth that awkward feeling that comes with it.  It may be uncomfortable but they’d be foolish not to be hyping up their rising star of a coach having a mega-star connection twice over.