Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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18 DECEMBER 2018 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED BY LOU SOMOGYI M aybe the greatest testament to the combination of big- time talent, experience and depth on Notre Dame's 2018 roster was the relatively mini- mal role the 27-man freshman class had to play. Any freshman help in 2018 was far more a luxury than a necessity. Yes, a Kevin Austin at wide re- ceiver could take about 10 to 12 snaps per game while catching five passes for 90 yards through the first 11 games, but there were plenty of other far more seasoned targets for quarterbacks Ian Book and Brandon Wimbush. On a 5-7 team in 2003 or 3-9 outfit in 2007, a highly touted freshman quarterback such as Phil Jurkovec would have started as well — just as Brady Quinn (2003) and Jimmy Clausen (2007) had to during major rebuilding efforts while taking their share of beatings. This year, someone such as Jurkovec didn't need to be pressed into action before his time. During the preseason, head coach Brian Kelly said that beyond the starting 22 on offense, or even the top 55 players or so, the 2018 crew had a chance to become one of his strongest because of the quality of players on the back end of the scholarship chart from 60 through 85. That was com- prised mostly of this freshman class that was the largest at the school in 12 years. "[Running backs] Jahmir Smith, C'Bo Flemister … [receivers] Law- rence Keys, Micah Jones, [tight end] Tommy Tremble, these are all really, really skilled players that could be playing in a lot of Power Five schools right now that are helping our de- fense," Kelly said in early November. "You can see that when we've been tested in pass coverage situations. These guys have really helped our de- fensive backs by going against them. "We're fortunate that we have those kinds of players and the depth that allows those guys to compete every day." That's not even including other freshman receivers such as Joe Wilkins Jr., who has been on the two- deep all year, and speedster Braden Lenzy, who was slowed by a concus- LUXURY , NOT NECESSITY The freshman class bides its time behind a veteran roster, but contributes to program's overall growth Despite his 170-pound frame, TaRiq Bracy has worked himself into the cornerback rotation while also contributing on special teams. PHOTO BY ANGELA DRISKELL Wide receiver Kevin Austin has easily seen the most action on offense among the freshmen while plying his craft behind standout senior Miles Boykin as a boundary receiver. PHOTO BY BILL PANZICA "… These are all really, really skilled players that could be playing in a lot of Power Five schools right now that are helping our defense. You can see that when we've been tested in pass coverage situations. These guys have really helped our defensive backs by going against them. We're fortunate that we have those kinds of players and the depth that allows those guys to compete every day." HEAD COACH BRIAN KELLY ON HIS FRESHMEN SKILL POSITION PLAYERS