Tag: joe alt

Thoughts on Notre Dame’s depth chart ahead of Ohio State

Plenty of take aways from the seasons first depth chart

As in each year of college football, a new group of stars emerge from one season to another. This season will be no different and for Notre Dame, there are more then a few players who could make a significant leap in the eyes of college football fans everywhere. Here are a few observations on Marcus Freeman’s first regular season depth chart.

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Notre Dame football: Harry Hiestand discusses offensive line

How much of a strength will this unit be in 2022?

At most places the hiring of an offensive line coach would be considered news but the excitement of it wouldn’t come close to the hiring of other position coaches.  But then again most places aren’t Notre Dame, specifically when it comes to offensive line lineage and few position coaches are as good at their craft as [autotag]Harry Hiestand[/autotag] is at his.

So after four years of [autotag]Jeff Quinn[/autotag] as offensive line coach, Notre Dame welcomes back Hiestand who helped develop the likes of [autotag]Zack Martin[/autotag], [autotag]Quenton Nelson[/autotag], [autotag]Ronnie Stanley[/autotag], and [autotag]Mike McGlinchey[/autotag] among others, is back and expectations are high for a unit that had plenty of issues a season ago.

So how does Hiestand see his offensive line this year?  Here is what the Notre Dame offensive line coach had to say.

Pro Football Focus ranks Notre Dame’s offensive tackles among the best

That’s an impressive pair

The Irish have long been in the conversation for “[autotag]O-Line U[/autotag]” and every year their argument gets stronger and stronger. Not only do the Irish have one of the best centers in the country in [autotag]Jarrett Patterson[/autotag], the presumed starting offensive tackles are among the best in the country as well.

Pro Football Focus ranked the Top 25 OT’s in the country and both [autotag]Blake Fisher[/autotag] and [autotag]Joe Alt[/autotag] were on their list. Fisher checked in first, at 10th, even though he is coming off an injury last year that took away most of his season. Alt was ranked just a few behind Fisher at 14th, making the pair one of three teams, Ohio State and Miami (FL), to have both their tackles ranked inside the Top 15 by PFF.

Anthony Treash goes a bit more in depth on their selection of Fisher, as he was named one of their “biggest projections” mainly due to his knee injury. Treash believes that Fisher “has the chance to establish himself as the next great blocker up front for the team as a starter at right tackle this fall.”

If you want to get nit-picky, Alt probably should be ranked above Fisher due to his exploits last year but having both starting tackles on this list is still very impressive. These two will be around through at least the end of next season, as both of them are second-year players.

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Current Notre Dame commit tries to entice recruit who commits this week

“The Great Wall of South Bend” could be close to completion

The offensive line has long been a strength for the Irish, often the moniker of [autotag]“O-Line U”[/autotag] is dropped when talking about the tradition. That tradition has a very good chance of succeeding, in the present and beyond.

Center [autotag]Jarrett Patterson[/autotag] was named a 1st team preseason All-American by Walter Camp. Rising sophomores [autotag]Joe Alt[/autotag] and [autotag]Blake Fisher[/autotag] look like stalwarts on the line for at least the next two seasons before their inevitable move to the NFL.

The 2023 recruiting class is trying to hold up their end of the bargain with [autotag]Sullivan Absher[/autotag], [autotag]Elijah Paige[/autotag], [autotag]Sam Pendleton[/autotag] and [autotag]Joe Otting[/autotag] currently committed to the Irish. Pendleton is looking for yet another lineman to join the class, Illinois tackle [autotag]Charles Jagusah[/autotag].

If Jagusah is to commit, which he intends to do this Thursday, it would make a very impressive five commits along the line and most likely would complete the position for the 2023 cycle. As Pendleton put it, “The Great Wall of South Bend” would be complete with Jagusah.

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Watch: Notre Dame offensive skill player outlook for 2022

What position unit do you feel best about and worst about entering 2022? @alwaysirishinc & @nickshepkowski discuss Notre Dame’s offense at length. Check it out!

Notre Dame has the best tight end in college football entering 2022 with [autotag]Michael Mayer[/autotag].  The offense has several things to like certain things but in terms of overall units what are actual known commodities?

Quarterback brings excitement as the [autotag]Tyler Buchner[/autotag] era is upon us but we’ve seen so little actual game action that what is to come is certainly an unknown.

The overall talent in the running back room continues to improve but replacing [autotag]Kyren Williams[/autotag] is easier said than done and an injury to [autotag]Logan Diggs[/autotag] in the spring game certainly isn’t a positive.  Is this the year [autotag]Chris Tyree[/autotag] breaks out?

The offensive line has some building blocks in [autotag]Joe Alt[/autotag] and [autotag]Blake Fisher[/autotag] it would appear but how much of a leap will the unit take versus a group that struggled mightily a season ago?

Wide receivers have very high potential but again, the lack of known commodities mixed with injuries to veterans doesn’t leave a good taste as we enter June.

I had an extended conversation with the Always Irish podcast last week and discussed over 90 minutes of Notre Dame football that will be shared over the coming days and next couple weeks.

The first section is all about the offensive outlook for 2022 and building into the recruiting outlook at each position as well.  Take a watch below, be sure to follow John of Always Irish on Twitter, and I’ll share more of our conversations as they’re released.

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247Sports: Notre Dame in the mix for nations top 2023 offensive tackle

If Freeman and Hiestand pull this one off…. WOW

For many years the Irish held the mantle of [autotag]O-Line U[/autotag] and although recently there has been a slight lull in production, they could very well be taking back the title. On the current roster, three offensive linemen, tackles [autotag]Blake Fisher[/autotag] and [autotag]Joe Alt[/autotag] along with center [autotag]Jarrett Patterson[/autotag] will be drafted high when they declare to the NFL.

Of the 2022 recruiting class, [autotag]Billy Schrauth[/autotag], [autotag]Joey Tanona[/autotag], [autotag]Ty Chan[/autotag] and [autotag]Aamil Wagner[/autotag] were some of the most highly thought of signees, each of them will start their careers on the o-line as well. The 2023 class already has commitments from [autotag]Sullivan Absher[/autotag] and [autotag]Sam Pendleton[/autotag], but [autotag]Marcus Freeman[/autotag] is still looking for the headliner of the offensive line.

Enter Massachusetts’ [autotag]Samson Okunlola[/autotag], a six-foot-six-inch and 295-pound future star. He’s viewed as a five-star prospect and 247Sports Brian Dohn believes that the Irish are one of the few teams that realistically have a shot at landing Okunlola’s eventual signature.

It won’t be easy for returning offensive line coach [autotag]Harry Hiestand[/autotag], as Penn State, Georgia, LSU, Ohio State, Michigan State, Michigan, Texas A&M, Oregon, Florida, and Pittsburgh were also mentioned as potential destinations for Okunlola as well.

Dohn, however gives the Irish a fighting chance, due to “the academics, the idea of what the degree means on a national level after graduation and playing at a prestigious school are all things that could resonate” with the mammoth tackle. What isn’t in the Irish’s favor however was that Okunlola has very to visit South Bend and didn’t stop by during his spring visit to the Midwest.

As Dohn mentions that Okunlola will take visits later in the year and most likely very few will be during the season due to his high school playing all their games on Saturday’s. Either way, Freeman and Hiestand are in for quite a battle for the tackles eventual signature, but one where they currently are seen as having a legit shot at.

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ESPN thinks the Notre Dame offense will be among the best from ‘22-‘24

The Irish have high level talent on the offensive side of the ball

It’s always fun to try and predict the future, especially when Notre Dame has just hired Marcus Freeman and there seems to be a massive change in the program. The former defensive coordinator should see his previous side of the ball continue to excel, but offensively there is still a big question mark.

When Brian Kelly left for LSU, he tried to bring Tommy Rees along with him, but the offensive coordinator chose to stay with his alma mater and Freeman. Although Notre Dame once again lost a senior quarterback for the second consecutive season, first Ian Book and now Jack Coan, ESPN is still high (insider) on the Irish’s future on that side of the ball.

Adam Rittenberg guessed at which offenses would be inside the top-25 from this season through 2024 and placed the Irish fifteenth overall. It was just one spot lower than last years ranking but he says “the overall outlook remains strong” despite the loss of Coan, running back Kyren Williams and wide receiver Kevin Austin Jr. Rittenberg names Michael Mayer “arguably the nation’s best tight end” while keying in on the development of “more options at receiver.”

As for the offensive line, Rittenberg notes that the “best offenses have been elite up front, and the 2022 line projects very well under coach Harry Hiestand.” Naming the potential of the starting five immense, with Blake Fisher, Joe Alt and Rocco Spindler each having multiple years remaining in Blue and Gold.

I have long believed that the next step for the Irish program is to get to be an elite offensive team. The defense has always been there and if the offense can catch up, Marcus Freeman has a sleeping giant on his hands.

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Notre Dame spring football 2022: Offensive Primer

What are you most interested in with the offense this spring?

Notre Dame opens up their spring football practices this Thursday, which just so happens to be St. Patrick’s Day.  While plenty of college kids will be getting wristband deals on green beer all day long the Irish will be hard at work getting set for Marcus Freeman’s first full slate as head coach.

The offense returns nearly the entire line but how exactly they’ll be arranged remains to be seen while changes are coming in terms of the starting quarterback, running back, and leading receiver.

To help you get ready for Notre Dame football in 2022 here is your “five things to watch offensive primer” for spring football.

Notre Dame announces the date of this years Blue-Gold game

Mark your calendars

The spring football season is right around the corner and the Irish have already narrowed down a date for their spring contest. The annual Blue-Gold game will be held on Saturday, April 23 at an unknown time.

This will be the first spring under new head coach Marcus Freeman and that’s not the only change the Irish will deal with. Gone are massive contributors from last years team like running back Kyren Williams, quarterback Jack Coan, defensive tackle Kurt Hinish and safety Kyle Hamilton. In are a new set of potential stars in safety Brandon Joseph, a Northwestern transfer, and a host of incoming freshman who will try and make their mark immediately like offensive tackle Joe Alt did this past season.

The glorified scrimmage will give fans an idea of what Notre Dame football team might look like this fall, but if I had to guess, Freeman won’t be showing too much on the second-to-last Saturday in April.

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Notre Dame true freshman named top player at his position by ESPN

More high praise for this freshman

The freshman season from Irish tackle Joe Alt was certainly one that many of us were pleasantly surprised from. The former tight end from Minnesota arrived in South Bend without nearly as much fan-fare as some of his classmates but outperformed every single one of them.

To say he was a diamond in the rough would be an understatement, after numerous Freshman All-American honors, Alt should be on the rise to national stardom next fall. More gas to that fire was added today as ESPN looked at their highest graded veterans, true freshman and surprises (insider) at each position.

Alt was named the top true freshman tackle in the country, mentioning that he “performed better than most seniors in” true pass sets.

It was an extremely impressive first year for Alt and we hopefully will get to see three more. At least two more years, as there’s a big time possibility now with all of these accolades, Alt could turn pro after his junior season.

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