Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/123805
Missing From Action Junior defensive lineman Chase Hounshell (labrum, will miss his entire 2013 season), fifth-year senior linebacker Dan Fox (shoulder), sophomore safety Nicky Baratti (shoulder), senior cornerback Bennett Jackson (shoulder), junior running back Amir Carlisle (collarbone), senior corneback Lo Wood (undisclosed)walk-on senior running back Tyler Plantz (undisclosed) and freshman receiver Corey Robinson (hyperextended elbow) were held out of the Blue-Gold Game. Carlisle is four weeks removed from surgery and campaigned to return to contact to no avail. Fifth-year left guard Chris Watt was a late scratch after he slept on his neck wrong the night before, per head coach Brian Kelly. Sophomore Ronnie Stanley (6-6, 318 pounds), who did not see action in 2012, filled in for the veteran. "Watt got a little nicked up there and there's no reason to mess with anything for the spring game," fifthyear senior left tackle Zack Martin said. "Ronnie got thrown into the fire there a little bit, but I thought he did a good job. With never playing an inside position and being so big and long and stepping down in the inside, I thought he did a great job. "We didn't really have any communication errors, which was good. I thought he stepped in and did a nice job. That's good for him; anytime you can show the coaches you're versatile like that it's only going to help you." ✦ Miscellaneous Notes • A crowd of 31,652 spectators was on hand on a sunny but brisk afternoon. It's the fifth-largest attendance in the history of the Blue-Gold Game. The most number of fans to file into Notre Dame Stadium for the annual scrimmage was 51,852 in 2007. The Irish went on to post a 3-9 record the following fall. There were 41,279 fans present in 2006, 35,675 in 1981 and 32,071 in 1986. This year's crowd beat out the one last year (31,582) to crack the top five. • The offense officially finished with 42 running plays that ended up netting only 17 yards. That's because the defense was credited with 10 sacks — or "tags" of the quarterbacks for a loss of 79 yards. There were four other lost-yardage plays for nine yards. Junior running back George Atkinson III was the top rusher with 10 carries for 49 yards, with a long gain of 17. • Sophomore wide receiver C.J. Prosise, who was moved from safety just three days before spring practices began, continued to impress in the slot position. He had two receptions for 40 yards and the game's only touchdown. There's a long way to go in terms of route running and an overall grasp of the playbook, but his teammates and the coaching staff give the 6-0, 220-pounder a lot of credit for making the transition on the fly. "Very athletic kid … seemed to come very natural," head coach Brian Kelly said. "But he's very raw. He's got a lot of work to do. "But we feel very confident that if we stick with him and continue to work with him that we can see a finished product as we move through the season." • Fifth-year senior linebacker Carlo Calabrese and fifth-year senior left tackle Zack Martin led Notre Dame out of the tunnel. • Notre Dame Stadium paused for a moment of silence for the Boston Marathon bombing. The players wore a "B" decal and ribbon in support of Bostonians.