Impressive spring for ND defense
Month of practice also sheds light on other key issues for next season
By Eric Hansen
April 24, 2007
SOUTH BEND, Ind. - In between playfully threatening to sue Notre Dame for his surprise postgame Gatorade bath and not-so-playfully projecting the 2007 Irish into his preseason top 15, former Irish coaching legend and current ESPN analyst Lou Holtz was almost all schtick on April 21 as the Irish closed out spring practice with the annual Blue-Gold game.
Except when he talked about the Notre Dame defense. Then he got serious.
“I think defensively you have to be impressed,” Holtz said after serving as honorary coach of the winning Gold team in a 10-6 intrasquad wrap-up to spring football practice. “The secondary moved well. Very well‑coached. I did not expect to see a defense that was as physical and played as hard as they did today in a spring game.”
And the version Holtz, fellow former coaching great Ara Parseghian, departing quarterback Brady Quinn and a record crowd of almost 52,000 saw was without the variations and the bells and whistles that will be added in the fall.
For as compelling as the four-man quarterback race was this spring, fixing a defense that ranked no higher than 60th nationally in any major statistical category was more essential to the big picture of Notre Dame’s push back into elite status.
Holtz believes. Parseghian believes. Current Irish head coach Charlie Weis, careful to be guarded, filibusters. New defensive coordinator Corwin Brown, speaks in circles too when pushed for specifics, but his smile gives him away.
That’s because for the first time in Weis’ four recruiting cycles as ND’s coach, the Irish are attracting elite prospects to the defensive front seven. Linebacker Darius Fleming’s announcement the day of the spring game may be the most telling development that happened that day.
The 6-foot-3, 230-pound Chicago St. Rita High School junior is a perfect fit for Brown’s new defensive scheme. He’s the top high school player in Illinois. And he’s the kind of player who will pull other blue-chippers in with him.
The only thing seemingly missing from his résumé is the ability to figure out who Quinn’s successor at quarterback will be. Here are some educated stabs at the lingering questions that will spill into the offseason:
The two players who will make the cut as the top QB contenders going into fall practice will be freshman Jimmy Clausen and sophomore Demetrius Jones.
Weis will make the official announcement sometime in late May. Clausen came in with the right attitude, humble and willing to learn. He was poised, didn’t make any mistakes, and showed advanced footwork and accuracy. He’s not a student of the game. He’s a scholar, but he is still a freshman.
Jones, meanwhile, makes more plays that make you cringe than Clausen, junior Evan Sharpley and classmate Zach Frazer, but he may have the highest ceiling. And he does show more than just glimpses of that.
The Irish running backs and offensive line will surprise. There’s a lot of young talent in both areas and none of it needs to incubate. Keep an eye on freshman running back Armando Allen and sophomore offensive guards Matt Carufel, Dan Wenger and Eric Olsen.
The kicking game is shaky. Special teams overall will be more special than ordinary in 2007, but place-kicking remains a trouble spot. Perhaps incoming freshman Brandon Walker can stabilize the situation in the fall.
Catch a rising star. Among the previously unsung players who made a move this spring were safety David Bruton, wide receivers Robby Parris and George West, left offensive tackle Paul Duncan and outside linebackers Anthony Vernaglia and John Ryan.
Waiting in the wings. Three players who could move into prime time with strong summers are outside linebacker Morrice Richardson, nose tackle Chris Stewart and cornerback Darrin Walls – all sophomores. They are three of the most talented players on the Irish team, but also incomplete and/or inconsistent at this point.
Expect freshmen to play. Besides Walker, Clausen and Allen, other newbies expected to get a long look in the fall include wide receivers Golden Tate and Duval Kamara, running back Robert Hughes, nose tackle Ian Williams, outside linebacker Kerry Neal, safety Harrison Smith and cornerback Gary Gray.
Plenty to percolate. Weis will still have some position battles beyond quarterback and kicker carry into August – the offensive guard positions, nose tackle, the defensive end opposite Trevor Laws, both outside linebackers, cornerback opposite Terrail Lambert and kickoff returns.
Charlie’s challenges. Weis is already on the road recruiting and will remain there until late May. The Irish are off to their strongest recruiting start since the vintage Holtz years.
He’ll do extensive charity work in the summer for Hannah & Friends, inspired by his special-needs daughter.
The medical malpractice lawsuit his is pursuing, that ended in a mistrial in February, is back in the docket for July 16.
And if one of the two quarterbacks who don’t make the final twosome decide to bolt, Weis has already secured the No. 1 quarterback in the 2008 recruiting class, Californian Dayne Crist.
