Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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www.BLUEANDGOLD.com OCT. 29, 2018 7 UNDER THE DOME OFFENSIVE LINE In the first two games Notre Dame rushed for a meager 249 yards and averaged just 2.8 yards per carry while the line had to get used to an offseason reshuffle. New offensive line coach Jeff Quinn's group started to turn it around in game three, and the Irish averaged 231.3 yards per game in the final four contests of the first half. The line also surrendered only three sacks in the final four games. Fifth-year senior left guard Alex Bars went down in the win over Stanford, and it remains to be seen how the team will overcome that loss. Bars was with- out question the team's best blocker in the first half of the campaign. Getting better play from center Sam Mustipher and right guard Tommy Kraemer would go a long way to- ward overcoming the loss of Bars. Sophomore right tackle Robert Hain- sey graded out poorly in the first two games, but was considerably more productive over the next four. Junior left tackle Liam Eichenberg has shown flashes of big-time play, but he will have to clean up his tech- nique in the second half of the season. Grade: *** DEFENSIVE LINE With the offense sputtering early, the defense fueled the team's early season victories and the front four led the way. In the opener the line dominated Michigan en route to a combined six run stops, three sacks, nine quarter- back hurries and four quarterback hits in the win. The Irish defense held the Wolverines to 58 yards on the ground, and the play of the front was the driving force. According to Pro Football Focus, the line accounted for 68 quarterback hurries, 21 quarterback hits and 13 sacks through its first six games. Senior tackle Jerry Tillery ranked fourth nationally in sacks after six games, bringing opposing quarter- backs down seven times in the first half of the season. Tillery's seven sacks were the most among interior defenders. The Irish defense ranked 30th na- tionally in yards allowed per rush (3.4) and 15th in yards allowed per pass attempt (5.8). Being able to control the line of scrimmage has been a driving force in that level of dominance. Grade: ***** LINEBACKER Notre Dame entered the season with an experienced group of line- backers, and through six games the unit has performed at a high level. Fifth-year senior Buck linebacker Drue Tranquill and senior Mike line- backer Te'von Coney have combined for 88 tackles and 10.5 tackles for loss through six games. Tranquill paced the defense with 14 run stops and six run stuffs through six games, and Coney was right behind him with 13 stops and four stuffs. Tranquill started at rover during the 2017 season, and it took him a couple of games to get acclimated to playing the Buck position, where he has aligned since the spring. After making just five run stops in the first two games, Tranquill exploded as a run defender against Vanderbilt. He had at least a 16.7 percent run stop rate in three of the team's final four games. For context purposes, anything above 15 percent for a line- backer is considered outstanding. Coney has been active against the run and his production in the pass game has improved as well. Senior rover Asmar Bilal has been solid on the outside. He was espe- cially effective in the victory over Stanford, and he set a career high with nine tackles against Virginia Tech. Inconsistency in the pass game is what keeps the linebacker grade from being higher. Grade: **** SECONDARY The back end of the Irish defense didn't come out fast, earning its two lowest grades of the season in the first two games. Beginning in the second half of its 22-17 win over Vanderbilt Sept. 15, the Irish secondary started to pick things up significantly. Opponents have averaged just 5.8 yards per pass attempt and 10.2 yards per completion, which ranks the defense 15th and 16th in the country, respectively. The five touch- downs allowed ranked 12th nation- ally through six games, and the pass efficiency defense ranked 15th. Junior cornerback Julian Love was the star of the Irish secondary. Love tied for the national lead with 12 passes defended, which puts him on pace to break the school's single-sea- son record that he set a season ago. Junior safety Alohi Gilman has been a strong run defender and he made crucial goal line plays in the wins over Michigan and Vanderbilt. Another boost for the secondary has been the emergence of junior safety Jalen Elliott, who has shown dramatic improve- ment as a run defender and in coverage through the season's first six contests. The up-and-down play of junior cornerback Troy Pride Jr. and the struggles at the nickel position drag down this grade a bit. Grade: ***½ SPECIAL TEAMS The Irish special teams started off rough, giving up a 99-yard kick return for a score in the second quarter of the opener. A missed field goal in the fourth quarter of Notre Dame's win over Vanderbilt overshadowed the team's first big return of the season. This area started trending up dur- ing Notre Dame's win at Wake Forest and its victory over Stanford. Fifth- year senior punter Tyler Newsome was especially stellar in that game, out-dueling Stanford punter Jake Bailey, a preseason All-American. The coverage units were strong in the win over Virginia Tech, but a muffed punt in the second quarter set up a Virginia Tech score. Grade: **½ ✦ Senior tackle Jerry Tillery led the way for a dominant defensive line that, according to Pro Football Focus, accounted for 68 quarterback hurries, 21 quarterback hits and 13 sacks during Notre Dame's 6-0 start. PHOTO BY ANGELA DRISKELL