JotCast | Notre Dame Football Live Chat Dec. 23, 2021

Notre Dame Football Live Chat Dec. 23, 2021

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John St Pete Fl

1:28

Hi Eric, thanks for all your great coverage this past year, hope you and your family enjoy the holiday season! Of the 2023 QB recruits , who do you as the best fit for Notre Dame and who of the 5 QBs they have offered do you think they have the best chance of landing?

Eric Hansen

1:27

Bert, Merry Christmas to you, too. In my experience, it's much more likely than not that ANY Notre Dame freshman will have to fit off transferitis. Just did a story on Braden Lenzy's journey. I did one in August on Kyren Williams and how hard it was for him to stay put as an early enrollee. If Logan Diggs and the wide receivers were at a point where the portal talk was serious, then we'd report on it. If they're just going through the normal freshman adjustment, it's nit news. There will be roster attrition after the bowl game. There always is.

Bert from Windermere

1:19

Hi Eric, any truth to rhe rumors thar Diggs and the two freshman wide receivers have been homesick and considering transfering. Wish you and your family a very blessed Christmas

Eric Hansen

1:19

It's not just wishful thinking. ND's elite O-line coach from 2012-17 would be in play if Jeff Quinn (2018-present), as expected, is not retained.

Jeremy from Goshen, IN

1:16

Is there any truth to the rumor of Harry Hiestand rejoining the Irish Coaching staff? Or is that just wishful thinking of fans? I know he wasn't a very aggressive recruiter before, but still brought in high-quality talent and then worked hard to develop them.

Eric Hansen

1:15

Surely you can't be serious? I am serious and quite calling me "Shirley." ... Jim, your misread is that there's any way this will ever go away. Now it may eventually get some needed modification and definition, but the NCAA lost lawsuits that opened the doors for NIL. So the best strategy is to learn to live with it. So as a coach, as a program, you need to have a strategy on how to handle the dynamics you referenced. So far, I really haven't read/heard about even anecdotal evidence of problems with team dynamics. It could certainly evolve into that in the future, and again if it does, the programs need to have a strategy for that.

Jim from Berlin, Ct.

1:05

Eric, what is your take on the growing number of players either in college or still in high school already signing up to earn money from their NIL? I'll be frank, (even though I'm Jim!): I think it's a terrible idea that the NCAA allowed it to happen in the first place. I think it will only lead to jealousy and discontent among the majority of players who don't benefit from the program, and it will, in some cases, destroy the chemistry of teams, regardless of the sport. Am I totally misreading the issue?

Eric Hansen

1:05

Hi Kim, and Merry Christmas to you and your family. I don't think Slovis is needed, but I think ND needs to keep the portal possibility open. A QB could transfer or get hurt in the spring. Ron Powlus III hasn't played or practiced this season. So you can't go into the fall of 2022 with just two healthy scholarship QBs.

KIM WICHITA KS

1:02

Eric, first thing may your whole family have a VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!! Do you think Kedon Slovis or anyone is needed and how would that affect the quarterback room? Also thanks for all that you do you are GREAT!!!!

Eric Hansen

1:02

Mark Patrick asked Kelly about whether he had an interest in the USC job and other jobs on Patrick's national radio/streaming show, and Kelly uncomfortably danced around it, claiming his agent handled those kinds of things and really didn't keep Kelly abreast of the details until/unless it really mattered. I think Lincoln Riley was USC's first choice, but I think Kelly would have been open to talking to other schools about their openings beyond just LSU.

Guest

12:54

Mark in Grand Rapids Mi>>> best wishes to you and family for a Merry Christmas!! Looking back on Kirk Herbstreets comments about Brian Kelly and the USC job. Do you think Lincoln Riley beat Kelly out for the USC job?

Eric Hansen

12:54

Hi Chuck. Thanks for the kind words. So the players you're asking about essentially are Jarrett Patterson, the Ademilola twins, Isaiah Foskey, Bo Bauer and the four senior wideouts (Kevin Austin Jr., Avery Davis, Braden Lenzy, Joe Wilkins Jr.). There are others (Lugg, Griffith, Bracy, C'Bo, etc,), but the aforementioned have the toughest decisions and also would impact the 2022 roster the most. I'm not sure they've even decided (publicly none of them admit they have so far). Marcus Freeman has to win some of these re-recruitments. Given the fact they're all playing the bowl (if healthy) means they're all in play for 2022. I think the toughest to convince will be Austin, Patterson and Foskey. I'd say Austin will be the toughest sell and Patterson has the least to gain from a draft stock standpoint for coming back.

CHUCK from CLEVELAND

12:45

Merry Christmas, Eric from the land of the Cleveland Guardians. In honor of this sacred Holiday, I will refrain from my usual multi-part question and restrict myself to one. I am more concerned about both OSU's --- now and 9/3/22. Our Offense must be better for the first OSU and our Defense must be better for the 2nd OSU, IMHO. Biggest challenge for Coach Freeman is re-recruiting. What KEY players do you see coming back for 2022? I certainly hope that you understand your extreme VALUE to us, diehard fans. You make Pandemics and Coaching changes and Recruiting ups and down very tolerable. THANK YOU and God Bless!

Eric Hansen

12:44

I skipped these kind of questions last week, because it's difficult to give this issue the bandwidth it deserves in a chat format. So I'll try to condense my thoughts. I think fans have as much right to be outraged as the players do to skip the bowl to protect their future. Where there is some legit concern on the fans' part is: Where does it end? If you're willing to skip the bowl, why not opt out of November games if a team falls out of playoff contention? From a players' standpoint, I support their choice. I saw what happened to Jaylon Smith. There was a semi-happy ending there and Jaylon says he has no regrets having played. Still, the insurance isn't enough for elite prospects, and the NFL does not look down on players who do opt out anyway. So there's no incentive not to opt out of a bowl game. The ND coaches and players are supportive of Hamilton's and Williams' decisions. And I really think that's the bottom line in this particular instance.

Guest

12:35

Dan - Croton-on-Hudson, NY. - FTLT - How can 2 team captains opt out of the bowl game? It is the ultimate sign of individual over team. Does a captain not feel a greater responsibility to the team? Should Freeman make as a condition of becoming a captain an understanding that opting out of a bowl game is unacceptable?

Eric Hansen

12:35

Notre Dame doubled back on some wide receiver prospects, some of who went ahead and signed anyway earlier this month, some of whom did not. They also are looking to expand the board at safety. And the portal may play into both positions. Spring injuries could also nudge ND in the direction of the portal. Once the bowl game is over, the degree to which the Irish may end up adding high school prospects on February will become much more clear.

Jeff from Phoenix

12:32

Hey Eric, are there any unsigned recruits in this cycle that ND is still involved with? Or has the ship sailed for this year and the focus moves to the portal post-Fiesta Bowl. Cheers and gallons of egg nog-

Eric Hansen

12:31

Keep in mind ND can still add portal players after spring practice concludes at any position.

12:30

Can it affect recruiting? Not necessarily. Oklahoma had three starting QBs in a row who were transfers -- Baker Mayfield (Texas Tech), Kyler Murray (Texas A&M) and Jalen Hurts (Alabama) and still landed the No. 1 QB in the country in both 2019 (Spencer Rattler) and 2021 (Caleb Williams). Now, Lincoln Riley has a much better rep than Brian Kelly at developing QBs. That now falls on Tommy Rees to project a reputation of being able to do so. That Book played way above his recruiting star rating and that Coan is a much better player than he was at Wisconsin is a good start. (more)

12:26

There are other plays in the portal that ND has not made a move on for various reasons. ... USC QB Kedon Slovis was looking to make a quick decision, so ND might not have been a match for him anyway (he quickly chose Pitt). He may not have liked the fact he'd have to compete for the position at ND. So again browsing the portal is way different than actually plucking someone from it. The fact that ND browsed I don't think will affect the QB room. I think they get that. (more)

12:23

A good case in point was 2020 with NC State cornerback Nick McCloud. The Irish staff reached out to McCloud in January when he first submitted his name to the transfer portal. But they didn't make a move right away. Their thought was to monitor two things -- McCloud's continuing recovery from a knee injury and the progress of the young Irish cornerbacks in spring ball. But COVID came along and negated 14 of the 15 spring practices, McCloud was healthy and still available, and so ND made a move for him in May. (more)

12:17

Merry Christmas, Marie. Let me explain Notre Dame's philosophy regarding the transfer portal -- and I think it's a good one -- and then I'll get to your individual questions/points. Just because you reach out to a player in the portal soon after he submits his name doesn't necessarily mean the intent is for him to end up at ND. But you have to cover all kinds of scenarios that may unfold in the coming weeks and months. And if you wait until later to probe mutual interest, you could lose out. (more)

Marie from Atlanta

12:09

Hi Eric, Merry Christmas! I hope you get to enjoy some quality time with your family before heading to the Fiesta Bowl. By showing some interest in Kedon Slovis, the staff has indicated that they would consider a QB from the transfer portal, in the case of Slovis he would be a player who would want to start and not be a depth player. Do you think this could have a negative impact on the QB room and also recruiting? If you bring in someone who wants to compete to be the starter do you think your current QBs are getting the message that they are not good enough. Would they more seriously consider transferring? Also, would it make recruits think there is a problem with QB development if ND keeps having to go to the portal, I know last year Clark was an unexpected loss, but that is not the case this year. I certainly understand wanting to bring in a depth addition at QB but I think a potential starter could be problematic. What do you think? Thanks for hosting the chat, and for all your great work.

Eric Hansen

Off we go.

12:07

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