Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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18 MAY 2020 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED BY LOU SOMOGYI W hether there will be a 2020 college football season is up for debate and might not fully crystallize before summer. Until then, Notre Dame head coach Brian Kelly — and the rest of the coaching fraternity and athletes— must sustain urgency and prepared- ness for eventually a return to some normalcy and football competition. The Fighting Irish were able to hold only one spring practice (March 5) prior to the start of spring break two days later. During that respite, the COVID-19 pandemic took the nation by storm, resulting in the cancellation of the NCAA championship events for win- ter and spring sports, with students not even returning to campus while continuing with online classes from home. Not having the remaining 14 prac- tices this spring to assess the lineup was a setback from a vetting perspec- tive, but shouldn't put the Fighting Irish at a competitive disadvantage should football resume in 2020. "We're just going to have to do those evaluations as we prepare for our preseason," Kelly said during a Zoom meeting with media April 8. "Everybody is going to have the same situation. We're not going to be unique. All the teams that are on our schedule are going to have a similar question, so there's no competitive disadvantage from that standpoint. Everybody will have the same chal- lenges to make those decisions that they wish they would have earlier. "If that's the worst that we have, that means we're back playing foot- ball, we're back evaluating and we'll be able to manage that." Minus the opportunity for player development this spring, it becomes imperative to compensate with forg- ing stronger relationships after a time of separation. "We'll circle the wagons more," Kelly said. "Spend a little bit more time together and build the team a little bit more this camp than any camp I've been in." What will especially be critical to not underestimate is physical condi- tioning that was taken away from a structured environment on campus, never mind not having the 14 other practices this spring. Human nature suggests to Kelly to be on guard for overcompensat- ing because of the time missed in the spring and beyond. "We will probably look at heart rate a little bit more and make sure that cardiovascular is at the top of the list," Kelly said. "We never worried about cardiovascular coming into camp. We want to make sure that we're very fit from that standpoint and we want to be careful that we don't push too fast and too quickly that we get into soft tissue injuries or stress fractures or things of that nature. "If all of a sudden you're allowed to go out and play — everyone wants to go at it right away. We've got to be patient, very smart. We've got to do things the right way and not forget that this is a team game and really do a good job of building your team first and foremost. … Not rushing at this, where you put some guys in harm's way." A total of 117 players so far — 88 scholarship and 29 walk-ons — have been projected to be on Notre Dame's 2020 roster. Per NCAA rules, the scholarship count must be down to 85 in Au- gust. The scholarships awarded to former walk-ons Mick Assaf and Colin Grunhard were for the 2020 spring semester, with no guarantee thereafter. Also, junior wide receiver Isaiah Robertson was not at the lone spring practice because of academic com- mitments. There is a chance he could graduate early and have two years of eligibility remaining as a graduate transfer. There could also be other forms of attrition as well to get to 85, if not below it. For now, just having a football sea- son at all would be a victory in itself. ✦ Head coach Brian Kelly wishes he had the spring with his team, but notes that every team in the country is in the same situation "so there's no competitive disadvantage from that standpoint." PHOTO BY MIKE MILLER WAIT LIST Personnel topics remain amid uncertainty about the 2020 college football season