Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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www.BLUEANDGOLD.com OCT. 15, 2018 17 BY LOU SOMOGYI U ntil the Stanford game this year, the last time a season- ending knee injury in the first half of a football season oc- curred to a Notre Dame three-year starting offensive lineman who also was a captain and All-America can- didate was 1970. Left guard Larry DiNardo's knee injury in the first quarter of the fourth game that year was a devas- tating blow … yet Notre Dame still set a school record in total offense (510.5 yards per game) that stands to this day and capped the year with a 24-11 victory versus No. 1 Texas in the Cotton Bowl. Forty-eight years later, the 2018 edition was expecting to follow a similar course after losing three-year starter, captain and All-America can- didate Alex Bars at left guard during the third quarter of the 38-17 win versus No. 7 Stanford Sept. 29. During the week of preparation for the game at Virginia Tech Oct. 6, junior left tackle Liam Eichenberg spoke in respectful tones about the Hokies' defensive front and the leadership they have received from longtime venerated coordinator Bud Foster. And then came the surprise. "I'm excited to go in there, kick the s--- out of them, get a win and then get out of there," Eichenberg stated matter-of-factly. It did not follow the tenets of the "Know Your Clichés Notre Dame Football Handbook," but head coach Brian Kelly did not appear to object to the statement made in public — provided it can be backed up. "I'd rather have a confident foot- ball team so long as it is not a cocky and overconfident football team," Kelly said. "I'd much rather be con- fident than a team that is not feeling confident. They know if they prepare the right way and eliminate distrac- tions that they are a good football team. I am okay with that. "We've worked hard on that. They know who they are. … As long as it is not too far out there." "We want to show that no mat- ter what situation and what circum- stance, we can get out there and dominate," Eichenberg summarized. Replacing Bars is senior Trevor Ruhland, who received his first ca- reer start at Wake Forest Sept. 22 when junior right guard Tommy Kraemer was slowed by an ankle in- jury. He acclimated well in the 56-27 romp over the Demon Deacons. Center Sam Mustipher, like Bars a fifth-year senior and captain, rooms with his injured linemate, Ruhland and walk-on guard Logan Plantz off- campus, so there is at least a bond/ chemistry that is shared. "His football IQ is off the charts," Mustipher said of Ruhland. "I ex- pect nothing less of him than what I would from Bars in terms of physi- cality and understanding the game." "We don't have to alter our game plan or calls when Trevor is in," Kelly said. "He's very reliable. He doesn't have the size, necessarily, as Alex does, but he brings some other strengths to the position. "… He's a really solid player, very instinctive, very smart." Ruhland was given a first shot as a starter along the line this spring be- fore a torn pectoral muscle (the sec- ond of his career) early on sidelined and limited him. "What helps with Trevor is he was the backup center, and so he's ready to step in at all times [to make calls]," Mustipher said. "At center you really have to know what everybody has to do. It is an advantage because it's like having two centers on the field at once — not to say Alex didn't know as much as Trevor, because he clearly did. "Trevor knows all five positions, and he knows how to see blitzes and pressures." The lone senior offensive lineman on scholarship, Ruhland arrived with advanced strength (27 bench-press reps of 225 pounds as a freshman, he said), but a shoulder injury com- bined with the two pectoral tears has scaled back to a degree his prowess in the weight room. "I know I probably won't ever reach how I could have been strength-wise," Ruhland said. "I've had a little bit of a setback there, and I'm back to where I should be. I fit right in with everybody else." Also assisting Ruhland at left guard, per Kelly, will be sopho- more Aaron Banks, who at 6-6, 319 pounds supplies more range and girth than the 6-3½, 295-pound Ruhland, whose forte is as a pulling guard with his quickness, leverage and sound technique. "The biggest thing is being able to hold my own when it comes to a bull rush or moving a big guy off the ball," Ruhland said. That's where Banks might come into play. He has taken snaps as an extra tight end in goal-line situations and is becoming a physical force. "He's a big and athletic kid that has gained confidence in his ability," Kelly said. "What we like about him the most is that he's adapted well to go from tackle to guard." A prime reason why Bars was shifted from right guard to left guard this spring was to serve as a mentor next to first-time starting left tackle Eichenberg. Through five games, Eichenberg is grateful how that ap- prenticeship had already yielded huge dividends. "Words don't explain how we feel losing one of our captains … it was just horrible what happened," Eichenberg said. "I can't explain how much he's improved my game, espe- cially from picking up tendencies to understanding each individual play, my responsibility and how I should block it. "One of the things he really stresses is you can never quit. Even if you mess up, just keep going, give 100 percent no matter what you're doing." It's the best way to keep the offen- sive line bar, or Bars, high at Notre Dame in 2018… just like nearly a half-century ago. ✦ ON THE LINE The loss of left guard standout Alex Bars is a blow, but the standards of the offensive line don't change Senior Trevor Ruhland, the lone senior offen- sive lineman on scholarship, will be tasked with replacing three-year starter, captain and All- America candidate Alex Bars at left guard. PHOTO BY BILL PANZICA