Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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20 MAY 2020 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED BY LOU SOMOGYI E ven when a sense of normalcy returns to the world from the COVID-19 pandemic, Notre Dame head coach Brian Kelly realizes the time lost on the practice field, in the weight room and old- fashioned team bonding at school won't instantly return. July 1 is somewhat an unofficial cut-off date of knowing whether the 2020 college football regular season will be given the green light. That month will have to be utilized just to get back into a rhythm or structure to be better physically and mentally conditioned in August. "This notion of trying to play the game at its highest level without safety being at the core of what we're doing, it's not going to happen," Kelly stated. "I'm not going to put a young man on a playing field and ask him to compete unless he has had the opportunity to be properly conditioned and trained to play this game at the highest level. "We're going to need a proper amount of training necessary for our guys to be prepared from a safety standpoint to play this game. … It's not going to be just a few days. It's not just going to be a week. We're going to need a minimum of three to four weeks to prepare our football team. "… We're preparing as a staff that we're going to have to make adjust- ments. We know that when we do get the green light to go back, it's not going to be, 'Okay, don't worry about this virus.' We're going to have to take precautions and do some things differently." If or when the return is complete, this is how we view the position groups on paper when combining ex- perience, past production and depth. 1. Offensive Line With 114 career starts returning among six different players, this is — per our research — the most veteran line returning for the Fighting Irish since college football went to two platoons in 1964. If fifth-year senior left tackle Liam Eichenberg cleans up some penalty issues (11 last season), he could con- ceivably become the fourth straight Irish first-round pick at his position. Fifth-senior right guard Tommy Kraemer, senior right tackle Robert Hainsey and senior left guard Aaron Banks all could get drafted in 2021 as well, while junior Jarrett Patterson should benefit from his 13 starts at center last season. Senior Josh Lugg, who started the final five games in 2019 in place of an injured Hainsey, might be capable of playing any position up front. All eyes are on third-year line coach Jeff Quinn to make this unit jell, because seldom will there be this type of veteran assemblage. 2. Defensive Line For now there isn't a potential first- or second-round figure in the lineup like last preseason with ends Julian Okwara and Khalid Kareem. Still, what boosts this unit is quality depth that lends itself to a confident rota- tion and fresh legs, just like last year. Ten years ago, a starting front line with four-star figures such as interior men Jacob Lacey and Jayson Ademi- lola — who each averaged about 20 snaps per game last season — and sophomore end Isaiah Foskey, along with the promising development of junior Ovie Oghoufo, would prompt optimism. What bodes well is that group is this year's second unit. Thus, having them rotate in with a veteran starting quartet of graduate students Ade Ogundeji and Daelin Hayes at end and seniors Kurt Hin- ish and Myron Tagovailoa-Amosa inside speaks well of the quality re- cruiting here. 3. Linebacker Rover Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah, a prototype at his position, and Mike linebacker Drew White, both seniors, paced the team in tackles last year with 80 apiece (21.5 for lost yardage). Who will replace Asmar Bilal at Buck linebacker is the primary question. The X-factor is how much the ju- nior quartet of Shayne Simon, Jack Lamb — both recovering from in- juries — Bo Bauer (Mike) and Paul Moala (rover) develop in their third seasons under defensive coordina- tor/linebackers coach Clark Lea. TOP LINE On paper, the fronts on both sides of the ball boast the best balance of experience, past production and depth Notre Dame will feature its most veteran offensive line since college football went to two platoons in 1964, with six returning blockers accounting for 114 career starts. PHOTO BY MIKE MILLER