JotCast | Notre Dame Football Live Chat Dec. 28, 2022

Notre Dame Football Live Chat Dec. 28, 2022

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Eric Hansen

1:54

Roger Happy Holidays. Thanks for keeping your rant diverse and relatively succinct. To your questions: If a level playing field is created for college football, it won't come from the NCAA. although there's hope for that to be an improved organization with new leadership at the top coming in. There is just over 60 days left of Mark Emmert's underwhelming reign as president of the NCAA. Quite frankly, I've seen houseplants have more positive impact on the college football than Emmert. At least they produce oxygen. So the guardrails and enforcement is going to have to come from Congress and the conferences, in that order. There is no established timeline yet for that to happen. You do not pine for the impossible, but for the perpetual perplexing. Pining for Pyne? Not to diminish what he did for the Irish during the last 10 games of the regular season, but no. No pining.

Roger from Peoria

1:40

Eric: I hope your Christmas holiday was a wonderful and memorable family event. Nothing tops the importance of family, not even Notre Dame Football! But, in a way, family and Notre Dame football are similar in that both reflect generational differences. I remember no Freshman eligibility, transfers having to sit out a year, and for perks, a training table for meals and tutors. Now with the transfer portal and NIL (how I wish that stood for Not In my Lifetime), and no limitations intended to maintain some level of competition, such as a "salary cap" or a "luxury tax on schools that overspend", will college athletics ever be the same? Enough of a rant. Let me ask 3 questions. Do you believe it possible for an organization to create an enforceable, more structured "level playing field" for college athletics in the wake of NIL? Or do I pine for the impossible? And, since this is the Live Chat, an actual football question; "Will Irish faithful "Pine for Pyne" during the Gator Bowl?

Eric Hansen

1:40

Kevin!! From a town that sounds made up, but IT'S NOT! I checked with someone who works with NCAA rules on a daily basis to see if someone could transfer twice during the same offseason, and it doesn't sound possible without a waiver. Even if it was possible, getting Sam Hartman on campus to compete to be the starting QB for Notre Dame in 2023 is well worth the risk. And if Buchner beats him out, then he's going to be one of the top 10 QBs in the nation next season.

Kevin-Sleepy Eye,mn

1:34

Eric!! So assuming we add hartman; what if he doesn’t start? Will he be content as buchner’s backup next fall? Will he transfer out asap if he’s not starting and we basically wasted reps at practice on him that would have gone to minchey and angeli who are an injury away from starting.

Eric Hansen

1:33

Happy Holidays. I probably don't know much more about Ron Powlus III than you do. He has been brought in for media access at least once before, but he came on a day when Drew Pyne, Tyler Buchner and Steve Angeli were also available. So given your time and resources, you have to make decisions and prioritize. People who I know who know him at Penn High School have good things to say about him. He is able to help the ND team as a scout-team QB. He is not an a trajectory to be in the mix to move up the depth chart. If that remains the case throughout his career, it might be interesting to find out at the end of his career what kept him satisfied in that role instead of seeking player time elsewhere.

JHS61 Evergreen, CO

1:24

Happy Holidays. What do you know about Ron Powlus III? Is he a hard worker in training and film study? Is he smart? How or where has he committed himself to helping the team? Does he have any personal goals in football?

Eric Hansen

1:23

Notre Dame may not publicize the NIL opportunities it has for the players to the general public, but it does do a good job of communicating it to the players during the recruiting process. The acquisition fee money isn't NIL. It's masquerading as NIL, and some players are going to want that guarantee up front no matter what the legit NIL opportunities look like. There's not a blanket outcome here, but there are trends worth watching and not all of them favor the people offering up front money. Two of the teams with the most players in the portal (both over 20) are teams that are alleged to be the biggest NIL violators, Texas A&M and Miami. The Aggies have lost more than half of that No. 1 recruiting class from last year ALREADY. So what good is paying the money (allegedly) and signing a class like that if you can't retain the talent? I think the good news is, ND isn't just saying, "Oh well." They're looking at every phase of the recruiting operation to try to get better.

1:14

Happy Holidays, Marie. Watching South Carolina during the regular season may not have given you or me much insight, because of the many key defections/opt-outs. Also QB Spencer Rattler was way better in the final two weeks of the season against Tennessee and Clemson than he was in the weeks leading up to those upsets. Let's start with special teams. It's hard to imagine a better special teams unit across the board anywhere than ND, and yet South Carolina is that team. Before the opt-outs (including notably Foskey. Mayer and Pyne for ND), the Irish had a huge advantage in the run game both ways -- their own and defending SC's. That gap is larger now. But again South Carolina will likely load the box to try to get ND to pass more. South Carolina is best at throwing the ball and defending the pass, but they're diluted there now too. ND won't have Mayer or Pyne, but their young wide receivers have a chance to make a statement. (more)

Marie from Atlanta

1:02

hi Eric, happy new year! I hope you had a fantastic Christmas. Although I live in SEC country, I have not watched much of South Carolina this year. Since football is a game of matchups, what do you think would be Notre Dame‘s biggest strength on the offensive and defensive sides of the balls versus South Carolina and what do you think would be their biggest weaknesses on the offenses and defensive sides of the ball versus the Gamecocks? Also, not related to this week’s game, but as a follow-up to recruiting, do you think Notre Dame would benefit from more publicly acknowledging how much legitimate NIL money certain players are getting? Maybe This could help with the transfer portal, and recruiting as there may be players out there who just assume Notre Dame players make little to no money, and it might change a player’s attitude about potentially playing for Notre Dame. Here’s hoping for a big Irish victory. Thanks for your insights and hosting the chat.

Eric Hansen

1:01

Well former USC quarterback JT Daniels has gone from USC to Georgia to West Virginia and now to Rice. So the answer apparently is four. Once you have grad transfer status, the second transfer (and others) are easier. You don't need a waiver (as underclassmen would) to avoid sitting out a year for the second transfer. We'll start to see less of this when the COVID exemption year phases out. The last class to be given that option was the 2020 group.

dennyrickert@comcast.net

12:58

Gator Bowl Greetings Eric; I noticed that Kedon Slovis has gone from USC to Pittsburg and now to BYU. How many times are players going to be able to find a new team? Denny from Beaverton

Eric Hansen

12:58

Hi Steve and Happy Holidays. It was not all speculation. I can't speak to everyone's process in reporting, but Conor O'Neill of the Rivals Wake Forest site reached out to us with some info on Friday. We posted the info on our premium message board. Now keep in mind, Hartman to ND is not a done deal until he signs, but we expect this to happen and have since Friday. So how can this not be tampering since Hartman didn't enter the portal until Tuesday? Players are free to reach out through a third party to gauge interest. Say a high school coach, for example. You can get a lot done through a third party without committing to the portal first. Sam also wanted to finish his time out at Wake the right way and not take the focus of their bowl game. Once he was in the portal, both the school and the player could contact each other. He can't visit campus, though, until after the transfer dead period ends on Jan. 4. So that may or may not elongate the process a bit.

Steve from St Louis

12:49

Hope you had a great holiday Eric. There were many reports up to a week ago that Hartman would transfer to ND. This was before he had even played his last game at Wake. Was this all speculation? By rule I believe player and school can’t communicate until after the player is in the portal, so how were so many people all over this assuming he ends up at ND?

Eric Hansen

12:49

Hi Frank. It's just me answering unless you want pitch in. Notre Dame recently missed out on Western Michigan DT transfer Braden Fiske, who picked Florida State. A lot of the top D-linemen in the portal found new homes quickly. But there are some good ones trickling in and will be until the window closes on Jan. 18. Then there's another window from May 1-15 in which new players can submit their names. Ideally, I think the Irish would like to add both an interior D-lineman and an edge player. The latter especially if Justin Ademilola opts to head to the NFL with his twin brother, who is out of eligibility. One option may be Wake Forest DE Rondell Bothroyd, who just took the portal plunge this week.

Frank from Royse City, Texas

12:40

Guys, do you think ND will get a DT in the portal?

Eric Hansen

12:40

Mike, if you're going to submit stuff like that, please do it more often!!! Seriously, it's very much appreciated. Happy Holidays.

Mike, from

12:38

Cincinnati. Long time reader, first time submitter. Just want to say how much I appreciate you and the team's coverage: fair; balanced; and insightful. You also remember that these are just young, college-aged men and women trying to figure out life, and school, athletics, and beyond. You hold the adults accountable, as you should. Keep up the good work. Happy Holidays.

Eric Hansen

12:38

With regard to an Alt/Morrison comparison, I think you're looking for an incoming freshman who wasn't ranked in the top 250 but who played at lot and played well as a freshman? There are so many top 250 players in the class (13), it limits the options. I'd say it will probably be a D-lineman or a safety. So my two guesses (and they are guesses) are S Brandyn Hillman and DE Boubacar Traore, the latter of whom missed almost all of his senior season with an injury. Sleeper is S Adon Shuler. ... Gator Bowl score prediction: Notre Dame 34, South Carolina 24.

12:32

I did have a great Christmas, thanks. Just had to delay it a little to travel. It will continue on New Year's Eve with the grandkids, who were snowed in. ... As far as Brandon Joseph, Marcus Freeman will be honest with him. Before the season, Brandon was bound and determined to go pro after one season at ND. A kind of so-so season diluted by injuries late may cause him to reconsider. I think the feedback he gets from the league will tell him another year of college would likely help him boost his draft equity. So, Marcus will relay that info and let Brandon Joseph decide. If he returns, in the SHORT TERM, that would be better than Peyton Bowen signing with ND. ... Assuming Hartman transfers to ND and beats out TB, I'm not sure there's the need to have a tag-team approach a la 2021 because Hartman is much more complete than Coan. But it might be a compromise that makes everyone happy and keeps Buchner developing. I'm not totally convinced of that, but open to it. (More)

Tom Kennesaw, GA

12:24

Hi Eric, I hope you had a great Christmas and survived that terrible cold weather that cem thru SB! 1) With P. Bowen going to OU, will MF put a "recruiting" push on Brandon Joseph to return?? If Hartman comes to ND and wins QB1, do you think TR would put together a package for Buchner like he did in '21?? Who is the Joe Alt/Ben Morrison in this year's recruiting class?? Gator Bowl score?? Have a great New Year!! Go Irish!!!!

Eric Hansen

12:23

Hi Jim, and Happy New Year to you. I don't think there's a compelling reason to put together a package for Angeli, say in the red zone, for instance. I think Buchner is the better QB in almost every situation. But Angeli has taken enough snaps with the 1s in December, I would think the coaching staff would like to get a look at him in a game situation if the circumstances allow it. ... As far as percentage of pass to run, Notre Dame would love to be balance and likely to lean into the run game to give Buchner a chance to adjust to being back in game action. My sense is that South Carolina is going to lead the box with an extra defender to coax ND to throw more or press the Irish to decide whether to get Buchner more involved in the run game. If ND can run with the extra defender and can play with the lead, the plays are going to be skewed toward the run game. ... Emerging? Tobias Merriweather and Jaylen Sneed.

Jim, Oakwood, OH

12:16

Hi Eric, Do you know whether Tyler Buchner is expected to play the entire game, barring injury, or will Steve Angeli share some snaps and have some special “packages?” Sounds like some OT work for the trio of running backs - your thoughts on the % of run vs pass plays? Who do you expect to emerge - in a good way- on offense or defense?
Happy New Year!

Eric Hansen

12:15

Hi Tom, and Happy Holidays. Starters at most position groups at ND are much more of a collaboration. Because of Harry Hiestand's track record and expertise, offensive coordinator Tommy Rees and head coach Marcus Freeman are happy to defer largely to Hiestand. It's going to be a fascinating spring to see that process play out. Remember, it's about who the best five are, not who the best guards are. So it's possible a backup tackle takes one of those spots.

Tom from Sister Lakes

12:11

Hi Eric, Happy Holidays. Given that Patterson and Lugg will be gone next year and ND will have two new starters at guard, who makes the decision on who will be the starters? I'm sure it's a collaborative process, but do you know if HH decides who will start or MF? This is more important than the other position groups because there is very little rotation/substitution on the o-line. Thanks.

Eric Hansen

12:10

Off we go. ...

Listen, I'll suspend the no-bare feet rule this week. If it's warm enough in your house or your office to do that today, have at it.

12:09

Here are the rules:

As far as today's chat, please remember to include your NAME and HOMETOWN along with your question(s).

12:08

► After a one-week hiatus for Christmas break and travel, Tyler James and I will be back with our YouTube show, Monday Night Live, on Monday, Jan. 2 at 7 p.m. ET. We’ll break down the Gator Bowl’s war of attrition between Notre Dame and South Carolina, the latest comings and goings in the transfer portal, a look ahead at the 2024 recruiting cycle, and more. If you can’t catch us live, you can watch anytime during the week, as the show keeps its shelf life going through the entire week.
► Finally, as far as this chat, we’ll be back next Wednesday, Jan. 4, at noon (ET) to answer all your post-Gaior Bowl questions.

12:07

Some quick programming notes:
► If you haven’t already, check out this week’s Inside ND Sports podcast presented by Dead Soxy with our special guest Aaron Taylor. The former Irish All-America offensive lineman and current college football analyst for CBS Sports helped preview Friday’s Gator Bowl matchup with No. 19 South Carolina (8-4). Taylor discussed No. 21 Notre Dame's clear advantage against the Gamecocks, how the Irish offensive line can respond to loaded boxes and defensive line movement, why the Irish weren't Joe Moore Award semifinalists, how Michigan has won it two years in a row, what Wake Forest QB Sam Hartman would mean to ND, how he would have treated NIL and the transfer portal as a player, the work he's doing to promote mental health and more.

12:06

Welcome to a thawing-out edition of Notre Dame Football Live Chat. That goes for Northern Indiana and Northwest Florida.

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