JotCast | Notre Dame Football Live Chat Oct. 10, 2019

Notre Dame Football Live Chat Oct. 10, 2019

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Tyler From South Dakota

1:52

Which one of Southern Cal's wideouts would fit in best with ND?

Eric Hansen

1:52

Tim, I think it's a given now, so that's why it doesn't come up much. If I get a chance to do something one-on-one with Balis, which I hope to do, I can bring something new to the conversation. I think for most media people at this point, it's like reporting a plane landed safely at the airport after a routine flight.

Tim - Pleasant Prairie WI

1:50

Good Afternoon Eric. Just a comment. Although the transformation that Matt Balis has made to player conditioning has been noted frequently since his arrival for the 2017 season, I have not heard him mentioned specifically as it pertains to this year's Irish team and the correlation between his program and the way that the Irish are finishing games this year as opposed to when he first got here and even last season when they went undefeated. They just seem so much stronger in the second half and the fourth quarter this year. Is the correlation a fair one? I like to see people get the credit they deserve.

Eric Hansen

1:49

No. Dumbounded. No.

Joe from Georgia

1:48

Is Austin's university-imposed suspension lifted? If yes, how surprised would you be to see him in either of the next two games? Do you believe he will play in more than 4 games this season?

Eric Hansen

1:47

I think the most dangerous version of USC is the version that isn't its own worst enemy. As I wrote last night, they're 122nd in turnover margin nationally(out of 130), 113th in fewest penalty yards per game and 105th in red zone offense).

Sean from Columbus Ohio

1:47

Eric, great to have you on these chats. USC has some flashy wide receivers and a running back that can take it to the house at any given time, but their O-line is not very good. I know this is a rivalry game, but other than that, do you see anything from USC that spells an upset.

Eric Hansen

1:46

Chuck. I don't hate the idea. I wouldn't want to use a steady diet of it, but there might be a game or two where it makes sense. As Avery grows comfortable being back on offense and the coaches' trust grows in him, I wouldn't be averse to seeing that pop up.

chuck finkbiner

1:45

do you think that adding the Wildcat to our offense would be of help. i can see avery davis there either running or passing out of the wildcat. i can also see c bo flemister in the wildcat. seems that it would be of help in short yardage situations. thanks for all your work. i am from westfield indiana

Eric Hansen

1:45

Henry, you very direct, well-phrased question doesn't necessarily have an uncomplicated, well-phrased answer. I'll do my best. Ian Book as a starter has faced an inordinately low percentage of good to great teams in terms of total defense and pass-efficiency defense compared to every other ND starter for the past decade and a half. The three he has faced (Clemson, Georgia, Virginia) have been a struggle for him. The coaching staff believes Book can push the ball vertically and he did so against admittedly the worst pass defense in the nation (not a commentary, a statistical fact). If he can't do that against better teams, then they can do what Georgia did in the third quarter and play their safeties closer to the line of scrimmage, which makes winning very, very difficult. So the bottom line is he can do it. The coaches want him to do it. Now he must show he can do it against good/great defenses in games where it matters.

Henry from Stockton

1:40

Thursdays are good days during football season. I get info on the Irish I cannot get anywhere else. Thanks, Eric! In the spring coaches Kelly and Long decided to work on QB Book: have him throw the deep ball, improve downfield accuracy among other things. So far this season, Book has not looked as good as last season. He seems uncomfortable in the pocket, shows happy feet sometimes, etc. I'm wondering if the coaches are trying to fit a "square plug in a round hole". The 2018 Book was undefeated last year until the Clemson. In fairness, the Irish didn't lose the game solely because of Book. There were faults in other parts of the team. Likewise, this year's Georgia. Other units of the Irish could have played better. Maybe let Book play to his strengths rather than make him into something else? Your thoughts.

Eric Hansen

1:36

I wouldn't rule that out. USC Sports Info even has a stat on that, although it's a bit murky:

"USC is 12-11-1 in 'cold weather' games (where the cold temperature had such an impact on the game that it was mentioned in the media’s game recaps). The last time USC played a 'cold weather' game was at Utah in 2016 (a 31-27 loss when it was 45 degrees at kickoff).

Today the high in South Bend is supposed to be 76. On Saturday the high is projected to be 53 with a low of 43 degrees.

MoxieBravo from Chicago

1:33

Eric Hansen from South Bend: My question is - since the weather is forecast to be cooler than the USC kids are accustomed to, do you think that will have any impact on the game (like the Sun Bowl vs. Miami a few year ago).

Eric Hansen

1:32

Notre Dame really only has two New Year's Six options this postseason if it's not in the playoff -- the Orange and the Cotton. If it plays in the Orange, it could be a rematch with Virginia. If if plays in the Cotton, it would definitely be against the Group of Five rep. The committee does have some flexibility in working with the schools if they want to avoid a rematch,but again the alternative would be the Cotton, not one of the other New Year's Six bowls.

Sam from Durham, NC

1:29

Looking at bowl projections a lot of people have ND in the orange bowl because it’ll be highest non playoff ACC vs ND or couple other conference (forget which ones). Is this affiliation correct and if so would the committee block a potential UVA vs ND rematch in favor of something different?

Eric Hansen

1:29

I would say Stanford, based only on the way they improved and played against Washington last week, and then Navy, which has been better than advertised so far.

Dan from the UP of Michigan

1:28

I am way more worried about USC than UofM, because of the fact that USC can score a lot of points. Which of the other remaining games will be the toughest for Notre Dame besides those two rivals?

Eric Hansen

1:24

Carter Karels wrote about that very thing last night:

https://www.ndinsider.com/football/a-look-inside-notre-dame-s-pursuit-...

It sounds like if things go well, he could commit this weekend or soon after. Given how much ND likes to play three safeties together, I think it would be an impactful addition. ... Re Lacey, I think watching him on film, you'd get a better sense of his impact that looking at his stats (6 tackles, 1.5 TFL, 0.5 sacks through five games). Yet when you compare them to starter Kurt Hinish's (7 ts, 3 TFL, 1.5 sacks) and Jerry Tillery's freshman year stats for an entire season (12 ts, 2 TFL, 1 sack), they line up very favorably.

Jonathan from Torrance CA

1:19

Hey Eric, what do you think the chances of ND landing Isaiah Pryor from OSU and the effect he would have next year? Also, what are your thoughts on Jacob Lacey so far this year? After hearing so many good things about him in the spring I was expecting to hear his name more and seeing more impact. Thanks!

Eric Hansen

1:13

Tom, thank you. Actually, Thanksgiving week is remarkably unhectic for the ND team. They only have classes early that week. And this is something that ND wants. They like ending the season in California, with Kelly and an assistant coach or two usually staying out there to do some recruiting. They certainly have the freedom to try to change it after the USC contract runs out in 2026. Or they can renew.

Tom from Grand Rapids

1:05

Hi Eric, I appreciate the job you do with this format. My question is this. Every year at the end of the season during the Thanksgiving Holiday week, which is already hectic enough, Notre Dame has to trek out to California to play a game. Why can't they come to South Bend. Please don't try to feed me the weather BS answer. It's not like it isn't scheduled for either sc or stanford. I think the IRISH have been getting the short end of that stick for a couple decades now.

Eric Hansen

1:04

Mike, yes I meant to ask Brian if he felt like crediting you was the right thing .... I think there's an intent to use him, especially since there is a stated intent to redshirt Donte Vaughn. If they can pull off both, all the better, but I think Hart benefits most by playing this season.

Mike from Rochester NY

1:03

Eric, glad to see Coach Kelly saw my question about Javon last week and decided to get him the ball more LOL. Regarding the Cam Hart move, do you think he’s going to see the field a lot as a CB this year or will they try to preserve his redshirt year?

Eric Hansen

1:02

Linebacker Drew White and Asmar Bilal have shown remarkable improvement. Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah shows tremendous growth too, and ND's interior D-line rotation is getting stronger. All those played a part. ND will face two strong tests in the running game in November ... Navy (2nd nationally) and BC (11th). For comparison's sake, USC is 91st and Michigan 102nd. ... Cornerback quality and quantity is the No. 1 concern, this week and against Michigan, because of Shaun Crawford's injury and because of the matchups.

Matt in August NJ

12:59

Eric, going into the season and the talk leading up to the Georgia game, was that the defense might have trouble stopping the run. We lost a lot on the interior d line and at linebacker so the questions about our interior defense were expected. When Louisville has some success running the ball, most thought Georgia would have a field day and push ND around. At Georgia the defense played well upfront, until late when Georgia had some success. What changed ?Who defensively has stepped up there play? Also is the interior defense and stopping the run still a major concern going forward? Secondary depth has to be number one.

Eric Hansen

12:56

The player you are thinking of is Markese Stepp. He's a redshirt freshman at USC and the team's third-leading rusher with 159 yards on 25 carries (6.4 avg) and 1 TD. He did not meet certain academic benchmarks presented to him during the recruiting process, so he was unable to sign with the Irish. ... VICIS is a helmet technology company, which outfits about 80% of the Irish in their helmets.

Rick from the OC

12:50

Big week, especially for us ND fans that live in SoCal. Go IRISH! 2 questions, the first is what happened to the running back from Indiana that was a BIG ND recruiter and switched his commitment to USC? WHY? 2nd question is on the back of the ND helmets most have IRISH on them but some have VICIS or something similar on them. What is that?

Eric Hansen

12:49

I'm picking Notre Dame 34-27. That's for entertainment purposes only, right?

Jay Weir

12:48

Jay Weir Huntington Beach, CA Hi Eric- the line is Irish -10.5 and has not moved much, if at all. You are the all-knowing King of data and analysis- Care to predict a score or a winner this week?

Eric Hansen

12:48

Charlie, I understand your skepticism. Keep in mind when Dexter Williams returned from suspension last season, he had never had more than 37 carries in a season or 8 carries in a game. So sometimes a player's history hides his progress and potential. With Armstrong, he had to learn to play running back from scratch in 2018. He didn't have the natural vision. He didn't know how to let his blocks set up. Now you have a 6-2, 220-pound former Kansas state sprint champ who has improved drastically in those areas and showed it in the spring and in August. I wouldn't compare his addition to the lineup as identical to Dexter's, but I do think -- if he stays healthy -- you'll see a dynamic player who's clearly ND's best option at the running back position.

Charlie, Dom. Rep.

12:44

Hi, Eric! I read your analysis of Jafar Armstrong's probable return this week, and the effect he will have on the offense. The article seemed to echo the feelings of many fans that his return will be just what this offense needs to jump start the running game. Last year, our running tandem of Armstrong and Jones was inconsistent early on. It wasn't until Dexter Williams came back that the running game really got going. While I agree that a Jones and Armstrong backfield is better than Jones carrying the load practically by himself, I don't really understand why people are talking like Armstrong's return this year will be similar in significance to Williams's return last year. What has he done to deserve this type of anticipation/admiration?

Eric Hansen

12:42

He's an old school middle linebacker. .. Love him on special teams. Don't see him beating out a healthy Drew White at this time.

ND Harvey, S. Philly

12:41

E, ND Harvey here from South Philly. Big Bo Bower fan, besides special teams, do you see him getting moretime on the defense. Beat SC. Thank you

Eric Hansen

12:41

Mike, it's really not a Finke-or-Lenzy choice. Lenzy is competing with Michael Young at the outside receiver at the open side of the field. Lenzy's own health issues have limited some of his opportunities. When Chip Long wants to play Chase Claypool and Javon McKinley together, that also limits Lenzy. The personnel group that hinders his opportunities and Finke's at slot receiver the most is when ND plays two tight ends. And right now, that's the most effective formation running and passing for the Irish. As far as special teams, Notre Dame has only opted to return five of 18 kickoffs this season, and one of those was a squib fielded by Shayne Simon, so I'm not sure that his presence there would be particularly impactful. ... I still like his long-term potential with this team — a lot.

Mike - Thorold, Ontario

12:34

Just wondering your thoughts on Lenzy, are you surprised he hasn’t played more meaningful downs or even attempted to return kicks? I haven’t been overly impressed with Finks performance so far this year, was wondering why lenzy isn’t receiving more playing time. Thanks have a great day

Eric Hansen

12:33

I think the linebacker play was scary at first, with sharp improvement since. What USC's defense has done best this season is pressure opposing quarterbacks.

Patrick, Fort Wayne, IN

12:32

Eric, what is your assessment of the LB play so far this season? Second question, What portion of the USC defense will give ND's offense the most trouble?

Eric Hansen

12:31

I don't have that data at my disposal, but with all the advances both medically and with injury prevention through sports science, I would think the opposite is true.

Mike in Maine

12:30

1. Is my perception accurate that college players, in general, and ND players, in particular, are missing a lot more games due to injury than players 20, 30, or 40 years ago? Are you aware of studies on that?

Eric Hansen

12:29

Thanks, Erik. I think we have to give Todd Lyght credit for things like developing Julian Love into an All-America cornerback, etc. Recruiting is an important aspect of the job, no doubt. I know Terry Joseph is getting more involved in that. Not a lot is going to change with the 2020 class, but I do think there needs to be a step up in 2021. When you look at how the 2020 Irish are shaping up on the field, cornerback is the position group with the most questions floating around it.

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