JotCast | Notre Dame Football Live Chat June 2, 2021

Notre Dame Football Live Chat June 2, 2021

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Eric Hansen

1:45

I did a piece on a day in the life of Brian Kelly in the summer of 2017. Matt Balis and his program were a big part of that story, and being there to watch what went on and see all the sports science advancements was invaluable. I think you hit on a lot of Balis' best assets, but the list is a lot longer.

1:43

David, thanks. It was nice to get a break. Speaking of deep dive stories, I'd love to do an updated version of one with Matt Balis -- AS SOON AS in-person interviews are possible. That's one that would suffer from a Zoom version.

David Kaminski from Elkhart, IN

1:35

You have been missed Eric. Hope you took advantage of some well deserved rest and relaxation. However, I'm guessing you have been working on one or more of your deep dive stories which I am sure we will have to wait to read until we inch closer to Kickoff 2021...Today's question is centered around Matt Balis. I believe anyone who has been paying attention has seen the physical results since Coach Kelly brought him in after the 2016 season. Although the ND program has taken a holistic approach with Nutrition and Mental Health being priorities as well, is it possible to quantify the body of work Coach Balis has put together these past four seasons? Injuries seem to have been minimized and conditioning never seems to enter the conversation any longer. There seems to be quite a few more "First off the Bus" type of players than in years past. Thanks for all you do, ND nation is lucky to have you.

Eric Hansen

1:32

Have you ever been to Notre Dame's campus? I have talked to a lot of former players over the year, and ask them how critical to their decision was their official visit. And a good number of them say "everything." In fact, it's convinced a lot of players who were on a trajectory to sign elsewhere. ... They cite the beauty of the campus, the spiritual vibe, the history and the people. ... especially your future teammates. i think beyond those reasons the advantage ND has for its campus visits is that for a lot of kids it's unexpected. And you can only get so much of that from Zoom.

Caleb from Charlotte

1:22

Hi Eric, what is the big advantage of having recruits actually come on campus for official visits as opposed to the online recruiting activity? Does having recruits come to campus give ND any advantage over schools like Alabama, Clemson, and OH State?

Eric Hansen

1:22

Wow, thanks. If only our paychecks were similar ... I can't speak for everyone on the local media question, but I would say it's generally a good relationship. I think from my standpoint, it's one that benefits the reader, because he's pretty open to talking frankly about most things. ... I think the new line presents some challenges in the running game as will the fact that Jack Coan is not the running threat Ian Book was. Some of it is going to be dependent on how much of a threat the passing game can be. I still think Kyren Williams and Chris Tyree will find a way to be productive. C'Bo too when called upon. Really eager to see the freshman power back Audric Estime.

Robert from Minnesota Tundra

1:13

I think you and Brian Kelly have much in common. You are severely underrated! I hope Brian Kelly can solidify his place as an elite coach by bringing home a national championship before he retires. Two questions: how would you characterize Brian Kelly’s relationship with local media? Also, how good will the running backs be this year behind a new line?

Eric Hansen

1:13

Well the only two grad transfers in play at the moment to my knowledge are the two I mentioned -- CB Akayleb Evans and OG Cain Madden. We'll know sooner than later about both. ... I would imagine ND will probably have four or five new commitments by early July, perhaps more. And some other June visitors will decide before the season starts.

Frank from Rockwall Texas

1:11

How many commits do you think ND will land in June? Also, what Grad Transfer will ND get?

Eric Hansen

1:11

Thanks, Erik. Filling in the blank, I'd use the word flabbergasting. I respect the work Pro Football Focus does, but I think they were off on those two players in particular. I think it's difficult collating national lists in the spring without much film to go on, but I think Williams and Mayer had enough good film from 2020 to warrant top 10 status.

Erik (Granger, IN)

1:08

Thanks for being here! I hope the transition is going smoothly. Please fill in the blank: “The fact that PFF left Kyren Williams and Michael Mayer completely off their top eleven lists (by position!) is ______.” And where would you have them ranked nationally at their positions?

Eric Hansen

1:08

Jim, thanks for the good wishes. I have had the chance recently to connect with family (in Kettering of all places) and we had a great reunion. I'll give you a condensed version of the recruiting plan, since I plan to write about it in detail the next three days. Get ready for lots of recruiting coverage.

This week kids from the 2023 class have started to take unofficial visits. On Sunday, ND will hold its Irish Invasion camp and there will be more big names from 2023 visiting that weekend. The other three June weekends will focus on the 2022 prospects, and official visits for them with the players back on campus to help host at that point. Still, there will be key prospects from the 2023 class (more than a dozen top 100 prospects nationally) visiting throughout the month. Already committed 2022s will take their official visits to help with the recruiting effort. There will also be some midweek visits. So this is an extremely pivotal month for ND and a lot of schools on the recruiting front.

Jim Oakwood Ohio

12:59

Hi Eric and thanks again for all of your work doing the chat. I hope that you and your family have been safe as the U.S. opens up. I know that June 1 is the NCAA opening of in-person recruiting visits and contacts and that ND has a plan to maximize the recruiting visits to campus ... can you give us more details regarding ND's plan? And secondly, if I may, since July 1 is the date to enter the transfer portal might there be others from ND that enter the portal before that date? Thanks again and best wishes for a wonderful summer.

Eric Hansen

12:58

The players should get back to a more normal summer routine this year with COVID no longer disrupting schedules. Because of the heavy recruiting commitment in June, I'm not sure about the OTAs they normally do the first week the new freshmen arrive. A lot of what they do, they do on their own or under the eye of director of football performance Matt Balis and his strength and conditioning staff. That why leadership is so important in the summer and the creation of SWAT teams, that provide leadership structure and accountability. Yes it's possible to make improvement with little interaction with the coaches. In fact, it's very necessary for that to happen.

12:54

Hi Marie, hope all is well in Georgia. The good news in your first question is that every prospect in the 2022 class that is one ND's wish list is scheduled to take an official visit this month. There are nine Rivals top 100 players on that list and a handful more near the top 100. By Rivals ranking only, the top three would be OT Zach Rice, WR CJ Williams and RB Gavin Sawchuk. But that's not what you asked. When you factor in who's already in the class and on the roster, I'd put CJ Williams No. 1, safety Xavier Nwankpa No. 2 and S/CB Devin Moore as No. 3 (very underrated player at two positions of need). Really like LB Jaylen Sneed by the way. ND will land much more than three from the visitors this month. (more)

Marie from Atlanta

12:41

Hi Eric, so glad you are hosting the chat and hope you had a great long weekend. Lots of great 2022 recruits taking official visits in June. Of those visiting who do you see as the three biggest must gets for the 2022 class. Also, What do do the players do over the summer months? I know they cannot have on field coaching but can they meet with the coaches off the field, study film etc.? Is it possible to make a lot of improvement over this time without on field coaching? Thanks again for all your great work.

Eric Hansen

12:40

Where ND has fallen short of landing more five-star talent has been addressed. and that's why you'll see more five-star prospects from both the 2022 and 2023 classes visiting this month. For starters, the Irish are evaluating, identifying and offering those players earlier than ever before. They lost out on a lot of them by simply not forging a relationship early enough in the recruiting process. Then they'd have to play catch-up. I think Marcus Freeman's aggressiveness and fearlessness on the recruiting trail and Mike Elston's creativity has rubbed off on the entire staff. That helps too. And ND has a better product to see than earlier in the Kelly Era. They can couple a really good track record or sending players to the NFL and two playoff appearances in three years with their traditional 4-for-40 mantra.

Andy from Bryan,Ohio

12:34

Hi Eric...Thanks for taking my question...My question is...In your opinion,what is the missing ingredient into sealing the deal on legit 5 star guys?..I mean I understand the admission hurdles,but there is talent all over the place that can get into ND so from a recruiting dynamic,why has ND fallen short?...I ask because of all of the talk coming from BK about landing top 5 classes and they think..as a staff...that this is attainable on a regular basis..Thanks

Eric Hansen

12:34

Kevin hasn't suffered any setbacks and was cleared for a running program at the end of April. The team is on break now and will reconvene next weekend for the start of summer classes and workouts. At that time, I hope to have an update on his progress.

Terence Connors Rochelle Park NJ

12:30

Hi Eric. Thank you as always for hosting this forum. What have you heard about Kevin Austin‘s recovery? Is it realistic to expect good things from him this season? Also, What are your thoughts on Tommy Rees Relying more on the pass this year? I know we have two great running back’s but the offensive line is not what it has been.

Eric Hansen

12:29

Lots of fans from Canada in the chat today -- welcome. The media is not disappointed. Noon kickoffs are gold in our world. From a fan's perspective, I understand not wanting a noon ET kickoff (it'll be 11 a.m. local time). ND, however, did not have control of this one. This is technically Wisconsin's home game and thus part of the Big Ten's TV package. When the teams play in Green Bay in the rescheduled 2020 contest that was canceled, it'll be an NBC game and ND will have control over kick time.

Mike- Thorold

12:26

Hey Eric any news from ND about the start time for Wisc game? A noon kickoff for that game is disappointing.

Eric Hansen

12:25

Here's another position group that could be affected by a grad transfer. Marshall All-America guard Cain Madden is expected to visit ND this weekend after visiting Florida State for their Midnight Madness Monday night/Tuesday morning. So the Irish will either have him playing with them or against them Sept. 5 in Tallahassee. FSU was the favorite to land him. ... Whether he comes to ND or not, Jarrett Patterson is ND's best offensive lineman. He did not practice in the spring as he recovers from foot surgery. Individually, the other starters showed a lot of potential this spring, but collectively there's a lot we won't know until fall camp. Taking Madden out of the conversation, I'd expect the starting five, from left tackle to right tackle to be Blake Fisher, Jarrett Patterson, Zeke Correll, Rocco Spindler and Josh Lugg.

Trevor Drayton Ontario

12:14

Who on the offensive Line has stood out to you so far . And if the season started tomorrow who is the starting five??? Keep up the great work .

Eric Hansen

12:14

Hi Tyler. Thanks for joining us. It sometimes is difficult to follow along in the spring due to a kind of irregular news flow with a lot of it coming on the weekends. But Clarence Lewis had a strong spring, per Brian Kelly, and came out of it as a presumptive starter for fall. The Irish are looking at Tulsa grad transfer Akayleb Evans, who is visiting ND today and perhaps Thursday as well. If Evans were to join the Irish roster, my impression is that he'd be starting opposite Lewis and not instead of him. ND needs four capable corners minimally, so Cam Hart, TaRiq Bracy and Ramon Henderson are in the CB mix as well.

Tyler - Cleveland OH

12:07

Glad to have these back. Thanks for the time Eric! Any updates on Clarence Lewis? I feel BK has named everyone but CL. Did other guys emerge or is he just a solid #2 corner?

Eric Hansen

Off we go.

12:04

Please REMEMBER to include your name and hometown with your question(s).

Here are the rules.

12:03

Lots going on with ND football, with the NCAA's protracted recruiting dead period finally ending this week and unofficial and official recruiting visits cranking up for the first time in 15 months.

12:02

Welcome to Notre Dame Football Live Chat, early June edition.

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