JotCast | Notre Dame Football Live Chat February 23, 2022

Notre Dame Football Live Chat February 23, 2022

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Eric Hansen

12:37

OK Paul, here's my take. ... The timing was awful. To Rees' credit, it wasn't a protracted process. And I can see why it rubbed some people the wrong way, whether it was Miami or a school of which you had a higher opinion. It would have been a lateral move. Not a good look in the context of what Rees said when he elected not to go to LSU. ... However, moving forward, the situation changes. ... as soon as the next coaching carousel. Tommy Rees is 29 years old. He has aspirations of being a college head coach. He has aspirations of coaching in the NFL. How long does being Notre Dame's offensive coordinator serve those career goals? That's Tommy's decision. If he wants to be the head coach at Notre Dame someday, he'll likely have to leave and come back to do so. At some point, Tommy Rees will leave Notre Dame. Again, that's all the more reason Marcus Freeman being the leader recruiter on every offensive an defensive prospect is a smart move.

12:26

Hey Paul. I'll give you Tommy's answer first to the question, though not quite worded as yours was:

"Anytime you have opportunities, no matter what profession you're in, I think it's your job to explore them. There's no harm in exploring what other opportunities may present. You want to handle all those things the right way.

"Nothing opportunity-wise (for Rees) was about anything except for let's take a look, let's see if it can help personal growth and development. At the end of the day, there's a lot of opportunities that come across your desk. There are very, very, very few of them that are better than Notre Dame.

"That's what it kept coming back to for me."

Paul from Stuart, FL

12:17

Eric, how can Tommy R. play for ND, graduate from ND, understand ND, work at ND, have his Dad work at ND, be promoted at ND, go through the Kelly traitor week, assist in the hiring of other offensive coaches who he will closely work with, and at that point, consider employment at U. Miami or some other integrity-challenged outlier?

Eric Hansen

12:17

Hi Frank, and thank you. OC Tommy Rees wasn't asked that last week and it wasn't the time/place. We'll get a definitive answer next coach access. My sense is competition in the spring will bring out the best in both of them. so I would assume fairly equal snaps, Freshman Steve Angeli will get some work too, particularly with the backups. My assumption is that Tyler Buchner will emerge as the No. 1 option if he's healthy and you'll see a less equitable split of the reps in fall camp. However because Buchner is exposed to potential injuries in the QB run game, the No. 2 QB has got to be ready.

Frank from Del Boca Vista, FL

12:12

Hi Eric, thanks for all of your hard work. Are Pyne and TB going to be getting equal reps in spring ball (and fall camp for that matter)? Or do you think TB is already the perceived starter and will be getting the majority of the 1st team reps? Thanks again

Eric Hansen

12:12

Jeremy, thanks for joining in. My former employer also now has a pay meter/pay wall. It's where sports content is headed. ... QBs, specifically, Tyler Buchner would be No. 1. Cornerbacks and wide receivers would be next. Those are the positions I have most questions about. I am curious about other positions, though, like what the O-line progress will look like with Harry Hiestand coaching them and how the four freshman linebackers and sophomore Prince Kollie fit with some experience ahead of them.

Jeremy from Goshen, IN

12:09

thank you for doing these chats. They are the highlight of the week, especially now that most of your work is behind Rivals paywall. My question is is centered around spring practice. What positions will you be following the closest/ intrigue you the most?

Eric Hansen

Let's get rolling.

Please include your NAME and HOMETOWN along with your questions.

12:07

Here are the rules.