Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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12 OCT. 31, 2020 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED UNDER THE DOME UNDER THE DOME Personnel News & Notes No single position remains more competitive for snaps than Buck linebacker, where junior Shayne Simon and sophomore Marist Liufau are listed as co-starters, with sophomore Jack Kiser also promi- nently in the mix. All have been unavailable at times this year, presumably because of the coronavirus. Junior Jack Lamb played there regularly last year before major hip surgery set him back. "Quite frankly, it's still one that is evolving," head coach Brian Kelly said. "I don't know if we're at a point of destination where we can say, 'Hey, this is the guy.'" Through the first four games, Simon led the trio with 102 defensive snaps, Liufau 50 — mainly in sub packages — and 41 of Kiser's 46 snaps came when he received the game ball for the South Florida game Sept. 19 prior to his health setback. He did see two snaps versus Louisville in relief of senior rover and All-America candidate Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah. Liufau's Pro Football Focus coverage grade of 64.8 was the best among the three after four games. "The game reps definitely help you build that confidence and generate the action you need to get better," Simon said. "But it is what it is, and we're all working to get better. Coach [Clark] Lea is working to put the best 11 players on the field, and we're all trying to contribute to that and raise our game." • The team announced Oct. 19, two days after the 12-7 win versus Louisville, only one player tested positive between Oct. 12-18, and is in isolation. One other player is also in quarantine due to contact tracing. Both players were presumed out for the Oct. 24 game at Pittsburgh. The team conducted 278 tests in that span. Notre Dame did not have any COVID-19 absences among players on the two deep in the win over Louisville, and the same versus Pitt. Players who test positive must isolate for 10 days. When cleared, they can begin a gradual ramp-up to return that starts on the 11th day and ends with full participation on the 14th day. Players identi- fied through contact tracing must quarantine for 14 days, but can begin a modified workout program halfway through that if they test negative. • A "soft-tissue injury" limited junior wide receiver Braden Lenzy to two snaps against Louisville. Per head coach Brian Kelly, Lenzy was able to practice for the Pitt game, while classmate and slot Lawrence Keys III was cleared from concussion protocol and declared available for the Panthers. • Despite a stellar defensive effort in the 12-7 win over Louisville Oct. 17, Kelly acknowledged that a lack of playing time for sophomore defensive end Isaiah Foskey (seven snaps on defense), maybe the team's best pure past rusher, and instinctive sophomore linebacker Kiser (two snaps on defense) became a point of discussion. "Foskey and Kiser are key players moving forward," he said. "… They have to get on the field for us. In my postgame notes, they were two guys [defensive coordinator] Clark [Lea] and I talked about in terms of how we get them involved more — just like how do we get [wide receiver] Joe Wilkins involved more." — Patrick Engel and Lou Somogyi MICHAEL MAYER NAMED TO FWAA FRESHMAN ALL-AMERICAN WATCH LIST After Notre Dame's 4-0 start, tight end Mi- chael Mayer was named to the Football Writers Association of America's Freshman All-Ameri- can watch list. Mayer has been a regular with junior Tommy Tremble and senior Brock Wright in Notre Dame's multiple-tight-end packages. Through four games, Tremble had 202 snaps and Wright 132, while Mayer had 124 (31 per contest) with one start. Mayer's 124 snaps al- ready were the most a Notre Dame true fresh- man tight end has played since Alizé Mack had 252 during the 10-3 campaign in 2015. In the first four games, the Independence, Ky., native has seven receptions — at least one in each game — for 80 yards and a touchdown, the latter coming versus Florida State Oct. 10. That score against the Seminoles marked the first time a Notre Dame freshman tight end crossed the goal line since Kyle Rudolph in 2008. The Covington Catholic product is on pace to record the second-most receptions ever by a Fighting Irish freshman tight end, behind only Rudolph's 28. Notre Dame's most recent FWAA Freshman All-American was safety Kyle Hamilton last season. — Lou Somogyi Junior Shayne Simon and sophomores Marist Liufau (No. 35 above) and Jack Kiser are listed as co- starters at Buck linebacker, and head coach Brian Kelly said all three will continue to see playing time at that spot. PHOTO COURTESY NOTRE DAME ATHLETICS Mayer had seven receptions for 80 yards and one touchdown through four games, putting him on pace to have the second-most catches by an Irish freshman tight end (Kyle Rudolph had 28 in 2008). PHOTO COURTESY NOTRE DAME ATHLETICS