Tag: Harry Hiestand

Notre Dame receives another commitment from offensive lineman!

Notre Dame will stay at No. 1 in the 2023 recruiting rankings for at least a little longer after this one!

Remember when Notre Dame landed five-star quarterback [autotag]C.J. Carr[/autotag] from Michigan less than 24 hours ago?  Well that’s officially old news as Carr is no longer the most recent commitment to the Fighting Irish football program.

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Offensive lineman [autotag]Elijah Paige[/autotag] in the 2023 recruiting class is the latest commitment, making his decision known early Friday afternoon.

Paige comes with a three-star grade according to the 247Sports composite but a four star grade from the official 247Sports rankings.  He’s a mountain of a young man as he’s listed at 6-7, 304 pounds out of Pinnacle High School in Phoenix and chose the Irish over more than 30 other offers.

Paige is the 15th commitment in the 2023 recruiting class for Notre Dame and the fourth offensive lineman.  USC, UCLA, and Washington were among the other programs Paige visited before making his pledge to [autotag]Harry Hiestand[/autotag], [autotag]Marcus Freeman[/autotag], and the rest of the Notre Dame football program.

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Notre Dame offers massive 2024 Missouri offensive lineman

The Irish have offered the huge tackle

Even though [autotag]Notre Dame[/autotag] offensive line coach [autotag]Harry Hiestand[/autotag] announced his retirement on Sunday, it is not going to stop head coach [autotag]Marcus Freeman[/autotag] from recruiting the position.

The Irish head coach is leading the charge with Missouri’s [autotag]Andrew Sprague[/autotag], who tweeted Monday morning that he has received an offer from Notre Dame. The tackle is absolutely massive, standing 6 feet, eight inches and weighing 290 pounds.

Sprague is the 11th-ranked offensive tackle in the nation and the 202nd overall player on the 247Sports composite. His offer list includes Michigan, LSU, Oklahoma, Texas A&M and Wisconsin. Sprague has no crystal ball projections.

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Five developments that all eyes will be on for Notre Dame’s spring practices

What do you need to see?

[autotag]Notre Dame football[/autotag] is back this week, Wednesday is the first day of spring practice. It seems like forever since we last saw the Irish on the football field, but it was just less than 3 months ago.

Plenty has changed since then, out is offensive coordinator [autotag]Tommy Rees[/autotag], [autotag]Gerad Parker[/autotag] was elevated. Offensive line coach [autotag]Harry Hiestand[/autotag] retired and head coach [autotag]Marcus Freeman[/autotag] replaced him with [autotag]Joe Rudolph[/autotag] from Virginia Tech.

It has been a very interesting offseason to say the least, but football is back on the menu. Find out below five developments that all Notre Dame fans will be watching during spring practice.

Notre Dame offensive lineman makes big proclamation heading into 2023 season

The Irish have the potential to live up to this statement

If there is someone that talks the talk and walks the walk on [autotag]Notre Dame[/autotag]’s offensive line, it’s tackle [autotag]Joe Alt[/autotag]. In his two years in South Bend, Alt has been named a freshman All-American and then an All-American.

The expectation for him and his position group this coming season is sky high and Alt has made it even bigger. In a quote shared by Pro Football Focus, the soon-to-be preseason All-American believes the Irish offensive line will be the best in the nation.

There were not many losses from this past seasons group, [autotag]Jarrett Patterson[/autotag] is the only starter that needs to be replaced. Also gone is offensive line coach [autotag]Harry Hiestand[/autotag] and in comes [autotag]Joe Rudolph[/autotag]. The group is expected not to miss a beat and be one of the best, if not, the best in the country this coming fall.

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NFL News: Former Notre Dame star reportedly agrees to monster deal with Broncos

Massive payday for the former Notre Dame standout!

While at Notre Dame, [autotag]Harry Hiestand[/autotag] helped develop a ridiculous number of players into high NFL draft picks despite not being on the Fighting Irish coaching staff for all that long. One of those former players that he helped develop into a first-round draft pick is reportedly about to get a huge pay day.

According to Ian Rapoport, [autotag]Mike McGlinchey[/autotag] has agreed to a monster deal with the Denver Broncos. Rapoport reported the deal is for five years and worth $87.5 million. In addition, over $50 million is guaranteed.

Personally, I’m a fan of McGlinchey’s and think he’s solid, but I am surprised he got that kind of money.  Good for him and good for his agent.

McGlinchey starred at Notre Dame before being selected by the San Francisco 49ers with the ninth pick in the 2018 NFL draft. He played there for five seasons, helping them to an appearance in Super Bowl 54.

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Notre Dame football officially names Joe Rudolph offensive line coach

Rudolph officially named to Notre Dame staff

Notre Dame made it official on Tuesday morning when they officially announced Joe Rudolph as their new offensive line coach.  Rudolph takes over for Harry Hiestand who retired in early February after returning to coach Notre Dame’s offensive line last year.

Notre Dame put out the official press release on the hiring of Rudolph Tuesday.  You can read it in full below.

SOUTH BEND, IN – Joe Rudolph, most recently the offensive line coach and run game coordinator at Virginia Tech, has been named the Joe Moore Offensive Line Coach at the University of Notre Dame. The 18-year coaching veteran and Pennsylvania native developed some of the most dominant offensive lines in college football during his time at Wisconsin from 2015-21 and boasts eight years of offensive coordinator experience. The hiring will be effective at the conclusion of the University’s standard employment process.

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Report: Notre Dame is expected to hire an elite offensive line coach from ACC program

Reports look like the Irish have found their new offensive line coach

Although it wasn’t a shock when [autotag]Notre Dame[/autotag] offensive line coach [autotag]Harry Hiestand[/autotag] announced his retirement, the timing was. It has been over two weeks since the announcement was made and it looks like the Irish have found their replacement.

According to a report by 247Sports Tom Loy, Notre Dame is expected hire Virginia Tech offensive line coach and run game coordinator [autotag]Joe Rudolph[/autotag] to fill the need. This is not confirmed by the university, as Loy states that Rudolph should be named “barring some change or surprise.”

Although Rudolph was only a Hokie for a season, he was previously at Wisconsin under the same title. The Badgers have a similar outlook on their offensive line as the Irish do, so it looks like a great fit.

Stay tuned to Fighting Irish Wire as we await the official announcement of Notre Dame’s next offensive line coach.

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Former SEC head coach Notre Dame’s top Offensive Line coach target?

Is Notre Dame keying in on a former SEC head coach to be the next OL coach?

Could a former SEC head coach soon be Notre Dame’s offensive line coach?  Although no fire has been spotted, smoke has at least started to appear in those regards.

According to FootballScoop, which has been all over Notre Dame’s off-season, Matt Luke has emerged as a top target to replace [autotag]Harry Hiestand[/autotag], who announced his retirement literally seconds before the Super Bowl kicked off.

Luke was an assistant on Georgia’s national championship team of 2021 and was head coach at Ole Miss from 2017-2019.  What has he done that has Marcus Freeman and Notre Dame so intrigued?  Here are some quick facts about Matt Luke, who qualify as an excellent hire.

Notre Dame takes it first step in trying to flip 2024 Ohio State commitment

The Irish would love to keep him home

Even though Indiana isn’t a football-rich high school state, it doesn’t mean [autotag]Notre Dame[/autotag] shouldn’t go after the state’s top talent.

Until Tuesday, one of the state’s top 2024 prospects was without an Irish offer. That changed when New Palestine offensive lineman [autotag]Ian Moore[/autotag] was reportedly offered a scholarship.

Moore has not tweeted about the offer, but the reports it was made are from reputable names in recruiting circles.

Moore stands 6 feet, 5 inches and 295 pounds. He is a top-60 prospect nationally and the second-best player in the state of Indiana according to the 247Sports composite.

As we all know, the Irish have not yet named a successor to [autotag]Harry Hiestand[/autotag], who retired. That isn’t stopping them from trying to flip Moore, an Ohio State commit.

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Why this offseason might dictate the future of Notre Dame’s football program

This offseason will dictate which direction the program goes

This offseason just got that much more complicated for [autotag]Notre Dame[/autotag] football. First, offensive coordinator [autotag]Tommy Rees[/autotag] left to take the same job at Alabama. Yesterday, it was offensive line coach [autotag]Harry Hiestand[/autotag] once again riding into the sunset, retiring from the profession.

Irish head coach [autotag]Marcus Freeman[/autotag] has a lot more on his plate than expected, replacing two of his offensive coaches while keeping the program heading in the right direction.

There is no doubt in my mind that this is the first huge crossroad in the Freeman era. Below are a few reasons why that is the case and some suggestions how the Irish should go about replacing the open positions.