Blue & Gold Illustrated: 2020 Notre Dame Football Preview
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1264448
WIDE RECEIVERS BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED 2020 FOOTBALL PREVIEW ✦ 59 POSITION COACH Del Alexander, a coaching vet- eran with more than two decades of experience at the collegiate level, is entering his fourth season as Notre Dame's wide receivers coach. Last year, Alexander mentored a productive veteran unit that was led by Chase Claypool and Chris Finke. Claypool capped his career with a tremendous senior season, leading the team in receptions (66), receiving yards (1,037) and touchdown catches (13), while Finke contributed 41 grabs for 456 yards and four scores. Claypool was Notre Dame's first 1,000-yard re- ceiver since Will Fuller in 2015 and the go-to target for the highest-scoring offense in head coach Brian Kelly's 10 seasons in South Bend. He went on to be selected in the second round of the 2020 NFL Draft by the Pittsburgh Steelers. In his second season with the Fighting Irish, Al- exander guided a wide receiver group led by Miles Boykin, who was selected in the third round of the 2019 NFL Draft by the Baltimore Ravens. Boykin, Claypool and Finke took the majority of snaps out wide in 2018, and combined for 158 catches for 2,082 yards and 14 touchdowns. During his first year in South Bend, his Irish wide- outs accounted for 62.1 percent of the team's re- ceptions (113 of 182), 73.8 percent of the receiving yards (1,716 of 2,326) and 75.0 percent of the touch- down catches (15 of 20). Alexander came to South Bend following five sea- sons at Arizona State, where he coached wide re- ceivers and oversaw the Sun Devils' passing game from 2012-15 before mentoring tight ends in 2016. Prior to his time at ASU, Alexander spent five sea- sons (2007-11) at Wisconsin as the wide receivers coach. He was a part of two Big Ten championships and five bowl appearances, highlighted by back-to- back Rose Bowls in 2010 and 2011. Alexander also served as the running backs coach, assistant travel coordinator, assistant special teams coordinator and NCAA rules representative at the University of San Diego (2005-06) under then-head coach Jim Harbaugh. In addition, he was the recruiting coordinator and wide receivers coach at Oregon State (2003-04), and coached wide receivers and quarterbacks at UNLV (2000-02). In 1999, he worked for the San Diego Chargers as a senior offensive assistant. The Los Angeles native spent two years as a wide re- ceiver for his hometown USC Trojans (1993-94) while lettering in both football and track, and earned his bachelor's degree in social sciences/history in 1995. He began his coaching career at his alma mater that same year, serving as an assistant video coordinator. He spent the next two years (1996-97) as a graduate assistant for the Trojans, working with the tight ends. RETURNING PLAYERS KENDALL ABDUR-RAHMAN • WR So. • Edwardsville, Ill. Ht.: 5-11½ • Wt.: 195 • Did not receive any playing time in 2018. • Starred for Edwardsville High School, carrying the ball for 1,135 yards and 19 scores while throwing for 647 yards and 15 touchdowns as a senior. • Showed off his explosive speed on the ground, with 10 of his 19 rushing touchdowns covering 40-plus yards. • Named the Class 8-A All-State quarterback in 2017 and 2018 by the Illinois High School Football Coaches Association. • Landed on the USA Today's All-State second team. • Ranked by Rivals as a three-star recruit, the No. 14 player in Illinois and the No. 59 athlete in the land. KEVIN AUSTIN JR. • WR Jr. • Fort Lauderdale, Fla. Ht.: 6-2 • Wt.: 210 • Did not see game action in 2019. • Reeled in five passes for 90 yards while seeing action in 11 contests as a true freshman in 2018. • Was a do-it-all weapon at North Broward Prep, notching 761 yards and 11 touchdowns as a pass catcher plus 390 yards and two touchdowns on the ground during his senior season. • Selected to compete in Nike's The Opening and the Miami-Dade County North vs. South All-Star Game in 2017. • Ranked by Rivals as a four-star recruit, the No. 22 player in Florida, and the No. 15 wide receiver and No. 88 overall prospect in the country. Year G-GS Rec. Yards Avg. TD 2018 11-0 5 90 18.0 0 2019 Did Not Play AVERY DAVIS • CB Sr. • Cedar Hill, Texas Ht.: 5-11 • Wt.: 205 • Arrived in South Bend as a quarterback, before transition- ing to running back in 2018, cornerback the following spring and finally wide receiver during the 2019 campaign. • Saw action in 11 games last year, and caught 10 passes for 124 yards and two touchdowns while also rushing six times for 10 yards. • Played in nine contests in 2018, and carried the ball 22 times for 70 yards while also compiling 30 receiving yards. • Spent his freshman season in South Bend as a quarterback on the scout team. • Showed his multi-talented skill set off at the Ce- dar Hill High School, throwing for 2,876 yards and 37 touchdowns while rushing for 350-plus yards and six scores during his senior season. • Named the 2016 Texas District 7-6A Offensive Player of the Year and landed on The Dallas Morn- ing News SportsDay HS All-Area second team. • Regarded by Rivals as a three-star prospect, the No. 80 player in Texas and the No. 19 dual-threat quarterback in the country. MICAH JONES • WR Jr. • Gurnee, Ill. Ht.: 6-4½ • Wt.: 210 • Garnered playing time in four contests in 2019, but did not haul in any receptions. • Did not see game action in 2018. During his time in South Bend, wide receivers coach Del Alexander mentored Miles Boykin and Chase Claypool. Both players had productive senior seasons and were selected within the first three rounds of the NFL Draft. PHOTO BY BILL PANZICA