Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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6 SEPT. 16, 2019 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED BY LOU SOMOGYI A mong Notre Dame's 22-man fresh- man class, five were listed on the two- and sometimes three-deep chart released by the school's media rela- tions office five days before the sea- son opener versus Louisville Sept. 2. • Punter Jay Bramblett, despite a rough finish to the spring, had a strong August camp, especially with hang time, and is becoming what the staff believed he eventually would be. "Having him here for the spring was really good, and it was really impor- tant," special teams coordinator Brian Polian said. "The spring was a little bit of a struggle — we kept putting holes in the ceiling of Loftus. I had this young man from Tuscaloosa, Alabama, and I have him out in March at seven in the morning on LaBar [Practice Field]. "He couldn't find a groove, and frankly, I couldn't blame him. But he has really steadily improved." • Safety Kyle Hamilton, who earned five-star notice from 247Sports, was an interception machine during Au- gust and will be involved in sub pack- ages. Second-year Notre Dame safe- ties coach Terry Joseph remembers how he was first introduced to the rangy 6-4 Hamilton while still coach- ing at North Carolina. "One of my walk-on DBs said, 'Coach, do you recruit Atlanta?' I said, 'Yes.' He said, 'Well, if you get a chance, stop by my school [Marist]. I think they have [someone] who's a pretty good player,'" Joseph recalled. "He was describing Kyle. … Then you see the kid play and move around and you're like, 'Oh my God. How can I keep this from the rest of the world?'" When Joseph arrived at Notre Dame, he described it a "perfect storm" to recruit Hamilton. "It was a kid who was very level- headed, knew what he wanted, and basically at Marist he went to a 'little Notre Dame,'" Joseph said. "So it was kind of already set up for us. … Started off as a two- or three-star; ended up as a five-star. But the truth of the matter is he never really got affected by the process. "He called me about a month be- fore he went public and said he was coming to Notre Dame, just to not tell anybody. So that was the biggest challenge, to not tell anybody. I had to stay quiet for a month, and he was true to his word." • Like Bramblett, defensive tackle Jacob Lacey enrolled in January and quickly became part of the two-deep rotation, much like Jayson Ademilola last year, Myron Tagovailoa-Amosa and Kurt Hinish in 2017, and Jerry Tillery in 2015. "He's big, he's fast, he's very ath- letic for his size … and then also he's very intelligent," 10th-year Notre Dame assistant/defensive line coach Mike Elston said. "Coming out of high school he's one of the top stu- dents in his class and he learns really well. He's not a high-rep guy who needs 50 reps to get it right. "He makes one mistake, you show him on film, and he gets it right." • Howard Cross III was listed as the No. 3 defensive tackle. For now, if not needed urgently, the 269-pound Cross is more likely to play the maxi- mum allowed four games while still preserving a redshirt season. • On offense, the lone freshman listed was No. 2 right tackle Andrew Kristofic, although the reality there is if an injury occurred, junior No. 2 left tackle Josh Lugg could be moved there, or inside at guard while veteran starting guards Tommy Kraemer or Aaron Banks could shift out to tackle. However, just because those were the only five freshmen listed doesn't necessarily signify it is a weak group. The veteran strength on the two deep is a testament to the roster develop- ing as it should with older players. Defensive end is a prime example with five seniors, three of whom could be in the NFL next year. "Isaiah Foskey is a guy that maybe in other years could have played con- siderably out of the gates," head coach Brian Kelly said. "We're really blessed and talented at that position. That doesn't mean he won't play this year, but there's a young man that I think maybe a couple years ago would be vying for considerable playing time." Likewise on offense, Kyren Wil- liams wasn't on the three-deep at run- ning back, but his skills at catching the ball could have him or starting junior running back Jafar Armstrong (a former receiver) split out regularly. "I found with him the bigger the moment the more he rises to the oc- casion," first-year running backs coach Lance Taylor said of Williams. "Every time we've gone into a scrim- mage type of situation, good on good, we've asked him to do some- thing where, 'Hey, you're going to be highlighted on this play,' he's stepped up and made a play." Williams also could join Armstrong as the deep men on kickoff returns. Meanwhile, freshman No. 3 rover Jack Kiser also will be on special teams. "We think he can be a difference maker there," Kelly said of Kiser. ✦ UNDER THE DOME BIDING THEIR TIME A handful of freshmen are prepared to aid Notre Dame's veteran-laden lineup Freshman rover Jack Kiser, from Royal Center, Ind., is expected to take on a major role on spe- cial teams this year. PHOTO BY MIKE MILLER