JotCast | Notre Dame Football Live Chat Nov. 7, 2019

Notre Dame Football Live Chat Nov. 7, 2019

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Kevin_Tampa

12:34

Good afternoon Eric, last weeks game was tough to watch, but happy to see the win regardless of the sloppy play all around. BK is saying the right things after the close call, but if the team doesn’t get it together (like now) Duke, Navy, BC, & Stanford could all easily end up in loses. I know that won’t happen and hope ND wins out….but oh man do they have a long way to go to be elite. My question this week is Special Teams. Frankly said, they stink! ST’s are an important element that win or lose games and 10 years into the BK era I and others say “what the heck?” The Irish can’t return a punt more than a few yards most of the time and the last two weeks the weakness of ND’s ST’s have shown their ugly head…players jumping and losing possession of a block ed punt and fielding a kickoff at the end zone line that almost resulted in a safety. These are hilariously shown on a GameDay segment known as “You had only 1 job”. I don’t want to see my beloved Irish on those clips….Anyway, is there a fix?

Eric Hansen

12:30

That;s a little bit all over the place, but I tried to hit on several elements. Bottom line, among the recruiting analysts I've spoken to, a majority of them believe ND can make the necessary strides in recruiting to compete .. maybe not annually, but regularly. The way the 2021 class is coming together makes me think they're right.

12:28

Jim, thank you. There's a lot to unpack there and something I tackled a bit in my summer magazine piece on Kyle Hamilton and the star system. The oversimplified version of my answer to you is Clemson actually ascended to the elite level recruiting mostly four-stars and somewhat similarly to Notre Dame. Their recruiting has certainly picked up since then to help them maintain that elite status. And remember, an element ND can't ignore is fit. What good does it do to take on someone like Aaron Lynch for example when he wasn't going to invest in being a part of the program? I think ND's recruiting and player development with offensive and defensive linemen is where it needs to be. To me, the missing pieces were elite speed at running back and wide receiver. That's getting addressed. But you need them in volume. I'd say cornerback has now come into focus as an area with some shortfall. Georgia has become a very important state with regard to ND potential talent upgrades. Keep an eye on that.

James, Dallas

12:21

Thanks for doing these chats, Eric. We appreciate you!

How do you characterize ND's roster talent shortfall relative to UA, Clem etc.? Is there a measurable standard in recruiting results that you believe would indicate rough parity with these teams placing an NC within practical reach? I believe that the "next step" for ND is to produce multiple 5-star signings consistently every year. That alone wont produce party, per se -- Clemson is signing 5-7 per year, but consistent multiple 5-star signings would be an achievement and a new plateau for competitive progress.

The barriers seem to be (1) Adimissability -- 40%+ of Top 100 don't qualify (2) ND's "distracting" academic and disciplinary culture relative to the NFL path (3) geography. Can these barriers be realistically overcome, or should ND fans be very satisfied with consistent 9-10 wins, and #8-15 AP rankings?

Eric Hansen

12:20

Jeff, thank you. That was a fun series to do, and I'm glad you enjoyed it. I'm assuming with the "shadows" part of your question, you mean only offensive linemen. ... The two who are filling in, I believe are the two best options (Lugg and Ruhland). Because Ruhland is somewhat physically compromised (but incredibly tough), there will be some rotation with John Dirksen and/or Dillan Gibbons. My sense is next fall, it will be back to the five starters who started this season. In terms of long-term prospects, Andrew Kristofic at tackle is worth watching as is Zeke Correll in the interior. Quinn Carroll at tackle is an intriguing prospect, but he's losing months of development while recovering from a preseason knee injury. Among the players who will sign in December, Tosh Baker is the name to remember.

Jeff from Phoenix

12:13

Eic, great job breaking down the future characteristics needed of the team for being playoff worthy. My question is to the current state of the weakened offensive line. Can you give 1-2 names of players that are currently in the shadows but where there is great opportunity to contribute for the rest of 2019 or show skill in the spring of 2020 that could mean starting potential. Dread the thought but there could be more injuries to the OL in 2019. Thanks

Eric Hansen

12:12

Paul, thank you. Trust isn't always about drops or miscues in practice. Sometimes it's about making the most of your opportunities when they come around. Tommy Tremble is a good example of that. In August, we saw him drop some passes in practice and line up in the wrong spots, yet when Cole Kmet was hurt and they needed a boost from Tremble, he delivered in a game setting. I would imagine his practice performances have picked up. Lenzy works hard, is mentally tough and is healthy. I feel the time is now to invest in him in games to see what you have in him.

Paul from Lititz

12:09

Great work this season Eric. When asked about Lenzy coach Kelly spoke of building more in the “trust bank”. Does this mean too many drops or too many fumbles in practice? ND needs to utilize every asset they have to move the chains. RBs haven’t set the field on fire, some receivers still seem to struggle to get open even against lesser opponents. Hopefully Ian Book gets more time to go thru his progressions during the next four games. Even more importantly let’s hope Ian can put up enough points to give PJ some decent playing time.

Eric Hansen

12:09

We've got a queue teeming with questions, so without further blather ...

PLEASE include your name and hometown with your question.

12:08

Here are the rules.