Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1039349
www.BLUEANDGOLD.com OCT. 29, 2018 5 FAN FORUM 'THE VOICE' Kudos on your decision to include Bryan Driskell's astute evaluation of the Notre Dame quarterback history under Coach Kelly's nine-year tenure of the program. I am eager to see how BGI's readers respond to the ar- ticle and the truths held therein. Whether it be Kelly or someone on the coaching staff who finally saw the light and suggested the switch, it might be the most important since Lou Holtz converted tight end Andy Heck to left tackle in 1988, increasing quarterback Tony Rice's threat as a runner and adding more punch to the Irish ground game. Now comes the two-month Oc- tober/November boot camp-type schedule regimen which will define whether or not it is a Final Four-cal- iber team. Can it withstand the rigors of hav- ing only two home games the last eight weeks of the regular season, while having to travel cross country twice? Can it avoid serious injury, espe- cially at QB? Can it keep Syracuse — a team that does not have Notre Dame-type tal- ent, but has shown a propensity to play superior opponents tough — from becoming a trap game sand- wiched between Florida State and USC? Syracuse was listed as the final home game of 2018, but morphed into the annual Shamrock fiasco and found Yankee Stadium as a venue replacing Notre Dame Stadium. Tony Roberts Gainesville, Va. Mr. Roberts, what an honor it always is to hear from the longtime "Voice of Notre Dame Football." How great it would be for this current team to propel the kind of run you had on the broadcast from 1988-93. WHATEVER HAPPENED TO … I have been wondering what has be- come of No. 58, Darnell Ewell. I thought he had been recruited as a defensive lineman and would be a good one. He was redshirted last season, and I note he is now listed as an offense line- man. And he's gigantic at 330 pounds! After profiling the incoming freshmen, I usually make a mental note as to one or two who I think will be especially good and then follow their careers. This year I'm keeping an eye on TaRiq Bracy from my neck of the woods. He's an astonishing athlete and could easily step in at running back if those ranks get thin. Woody Nedom Los Gatos, Calif. Mr. Nedom, the strength of Ewell is tremendous but his technical skills com- ing in were extremely raw. At the end of spring, the staff made the judgment that his skill sets would be better served at offensive guard,. He has three seasons of eligibility remaining after 2018. Bracy indeed has been, so far, the top sur- prise of the 27-man freshman class, moving into a No. 2 role at cornerback while also starting on some special teams units. Sophomore Darnell Ewell wore No. 94 last year when he began his career at nose tackle, but this spring the Irish coaches decided his skills could be better used at offensive guard and he now wears No. 58. PHOTO BY COREY BODDEN BE HEARD! Send your letters to: Blue & Gold Illustrated / Letters P. O. Box 1007 Notre Dame, IN 46556 or e-mail to: lsomogyi@blueandgold.com FROM THE WEBSITE Following the resounding victories over Stanford (38-17) and Virginia Tech (45-23), the Fighting became classified again as a legitimate College Football Playoff aspirant, right up with the likes of Ohio State, Clemson and Georgia … but with Alabama still in its own class. Many Irish fans on BlueanGold.com were getting uncomfortable with all the hype only halfway through the season, while others embraced it. Here's a small sample: Iam4Irish: I love ND, but there is NO team that can beat Bama. Only Bama can beat themselves. We can play against GA, Clemson, OSU, PSU, etc., but Bama is on an entirely different level. We can only beat them IF they beat themselves with foolish mistakes and mishaps. NDtarheel7: We need Bama 13-0 and the No. 1 seed, and for us to be either 2 or 3 and hope Bama loses in the semifinal game. At least if we faced them in the championship game, Saban would have only one week to prepare for us. We can beat Clemson and OSU. That's our path. NDIrish23: Don't know about beating Alabama but this team is much better than the '12 team. If they don't run the table it will be a huge disappointment, but I don't know how you could have anything but praise for Kelly as this team is extremely talented and deep. BettisND: Did Clemson fear playing Bama in 2015 and 2016? Was Georgia shaking in their boots last year in the national championship? Absolutely not! They relished the opportunity to play the best and try to knock them off. I find it amusing that so many posters want ND to make the playoff but only if they can hand pick the teams they get to play. If you are trying to win a national championship then you are going to have to beat the best teams in order to accomplish that goal. Sports are littered with upsets that no one thought was possible at the time. If you are afraid of play- ing the best because of what might happen, then you don't deserve to be a champion anyway! I believe if ND plays their best game they can compete with anyone.