Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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8 OCT. 22, 2022 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED UNDER THE DOME Tommy Rees' Adaptability Gives Him The Edge By Tyler Horka Here's the list of offensive coordinators in college football that had to go up against a top-five team on the road in Week 1 and then lost their starting quarterback to a season-ending injury in Week 2: Notre Dame's Tommy Rees. That's it. That's the list. Everyone talks about Ohio State's prolific, powerfully potent offense. Rightfully so. Buckeyes quarterback C.J. Stroud is the best in America right now. But what about that defense led by highly respected coordinator Jim Knowles? That unit ranked No. 7 in the FBS in total defense through Week 6. There is no excuse for Notre Dame losing to Marshall and only racking up 351 total yards in doing so. And a 297-yard outing in a narrow win over Cali- fornia wasn't very alluring either. But how about 576 yards and outplaying one of the better offenses in the country in North Carolina? And 496 yards against then-No. 16 BYU at a neutral site in Las Vegas? All with a guy who lost the offseason quarterback competition and is viewed by many as nothing more than a career backup? Rees has put junior signal-caller Drew Pyne in positions to be successful. Period. He's eliminated his weaknesses — a lack of athleticism and so-so arm strength — and highlighted his strengths — accuracy, decision-making and game management. Rees has also juggled the three-headed running back monster as well as a trained circus performer. He hasn't dropped the ball. All three have feasted at one point or the other this season. The bottom line is Rees has worked brilliantly with what he's got in 2022. Al Golden's Defense Has Been Steadier By Todd D. Burlage The Notre Dame defense garnered neither the headlines nor the im- provement praise that the Irish offense did through six games because the former hadn't demonstrated all the highs and lows the latter did. And even while Al Golden followed a calmer course through the first half of this season, the Irish defensive coordinator still found steady improvement while building one of the deepest Irish defensive rotations of the last decade. During the 0-2 start this season, when none of the Notre Dame units played particularly well, the Irish dropped to No. 113 in rushing defense at 195.5 yards per game. Three games and three wins later, the Irish defense trimmed almost 50 rushing yards a game off its opponents' average and climbed to No. 74 in rushing defense at 146.6 yards per game. Notre Dame headed into the Stanford matchup ranked No. 37 in total defense and No. 18 in sacks with 3.00 per game. Golden has faced injuries, suspensions, transfers and rookie mistakes within his units this season, and still built a top-40 defense, with more im- provement certainly to come. During the three-game winning streak after the 0-2 start, Notre Dame re- corded 11 sacks and forced 2 turnovers, so improvement is already evident and ongoing. Yeah, posting only 2 takeaways through five games was disappointing, and an area still in desperate need of improvement. Though, at least 2 dropped interceptions by Irish players skews the turnover numbers some. And as Golden continually says, "turnovers come in bunches." And when they do, Golden's talented defense is set to become one of the best in the country. Point ✦ Counterpoint: WHICH IRISH COORDINATOR HAS DONE THE BEST JOB TO DATE? Armed with the assuredness almost every other elite and wide-eyed high school athlete brings to college, Notre Dame sophomore Jayden Thomas at this time last year expected that he'd already be making his mark with the Irish as a freshman wide receiver. And, like almost all of the other wide-eyed elites before him, Thomas quickly found out that improving as player and earning trust from his coaches at this level is a process, not a promise. Willing to listen, work and improve, Thomas is emerging as a valuable asset at a position of need. Last year, the 6-foot-1, 215-pound wideout ap- peared in three games but did not record any catches. Not much changed through three games this season when Thomas managed just 1 recep- tion for 8 yards. Since then, Thomas has recorded 2 receptions for 24 yards against North Carolina Sept. 24 and a memorable 3-catch, 74-yard performance in a 28-20 win over BYU in Las Vegas Oct. 8 that included a one-armed, 30-yard circus touchdown grab for the first score of his college career. Blue & Gold Illustrated and other local media caught up with Thomas to discuss his expanding role this season, staying patient so far and his progress at an important position. BGI: Where does the spectacular touchdown catch against BYU rank among your football ca- reer highlights? Thomas: "Definitely up there, for sure. My first collegiate touchdown with my mom watching, my whole family, it's definitely up there. But at the end of the day, it's football. It's what I've been doing since I was a little boy." BGI: You stayed patient while waiting your turn in the rotation, what did you learn from that down time? Thomas: "Whatever ath- lete you are, you feel like you are definitely going to play right away when you get to school. It was a very good experience, being able to im- prove my skill set in practice, day by day, and eventually seeing that pay off." BGI: How would you describe your evolution as a wide receiver? Thomas: "When I started to pick up the offense last year, I felt more confident. Confidence is big in an offense, especially at receiver. Being able to know where you are, what routes to run, how to get open, what technique to use. "I feel like that was a confidence booster for me." BGI: After just 1 catch in your first six career games, what kept you engaged? Thomas: "Just our identity here, our culture here at Notre Dame. Nothing's easy, everything is hard. You have to choose hard. That's what I've been doing since I have been here, sticking my head down and grinding. " There's always light at the end of the tunnel as long as you work hard." BGI: How would you evalu- ate your season to this point? Thomas: "There's always room to improve. So, I wouldn't say pleased at all. You're never satisfied here. Whatever you do, your skill set can get better regardless of what you're doing, whether it's in the classroom, be- ing a better person or a football player." — Todd D. Burlage Five Questions With … SOPHOMORE IRISH WIDE RECEIVER JAYDEN THOMAS Through Notre Dame's first five games, Thomas had 6 receptions for 106 yards and 1 touchdown. PHOTO BY CHAD WEAVER GOLDEN REES