Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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54 OCT. 29, 2022 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED T he Notre Dame media relations office is our friend. Without them and their cooperation, this publication is not possible. It is an important element of their job to put a positive spin on news, and we respect that. In our job, though, we sometimes have to challenge that spin for the sake of balance. The most recent example oc- curred a couple of days before this year's Stanford game when head coach Brian Kelly noted how Notre Dame's current roster is the young- est it's been since 1972 (the year freshman eligibility began). That's because it is highlighted weekly in the press release that the seven "returning starters" this season among a possible 22 on offense and defense are the fewest in 44 years. Reach any farther and you might touch China. I imagine the seven starters included quarterback DeShone Kizer and linemen Mike McGlinchey and Quenton Nelson on offense. On defense they would be linemen Isaac Rochell and Daniel Cage, linebacker James Onwualu and corner- back Cole Luke. Yet I would be inclined to say running back Josh Adams had a "starting" type of role in 2015 considering he rushed for a Notre Dame freshman-record 835 yards. That's not even including fellow running back Tarean Folston, who had 13 career starts entering his junior sea- son before getting injured. Maybe it's semantics, but if the grad- uated Amir Carlisle could be considered a "starter" last year at slot receiver, so could current senior Torii Hunter Jr., who split snaps with him last season while totaling 363 receiving yards com- pared to Carlisle's 355. I suppose academically ineligible tight end Alizé Mack would be considered the "starter" last year because he caught the most passes at his position. However, current junior Nic Weishar unofficially did take 286 snaps there last year com- pared to Mack's 239 — plus once senior Durham Smythe returned from surgery, he was technically the "starter." Over on defense, sophomore line- man Jerry Tillery did have only three "starts" in 2015 — but do you realize his 351 snaps were more than seven-game "starter" Cage's 262? What a bonus to have both back! Oh, did we mention that fifth-year se- nior Jarron Jones actually had started 12 games prior to an injury that sidelined him for all but the bowl game in 2015? In reality, that's at least about seven more "starting" figures, but that's not what is important. What is significant is that it is beneath Notre Dame and Kelly to be point out such data in Year 7 of their regime. It's done to justify the 2-4 start, while ignoring Texas' own youth, Michigan State's plethora of departures and even Duke losing its two best play- ers (Thomas Sirk and Devon Edwards) to injury. In Phil Steele's more realistic pre- season look at starters returning in 2016, he had Ohio State with the few- est (six) and Navy with the second least (eight). Both still excel — including the Midshipmen recently vanquishing then-No. 6 Houston — because they are "programs," whereas the Irish remain a year-to-year "team" (we've covered this many times). That doesn't make Navy better than Notre Dame personnel-wise by any means, just more proficient with its "plug and play" operation, which Kelly translates to "next man in." No t re Da m e wa s a p o o rly coached/led football team the first half of 2016, and that is the major reason why it began 2-4 when it had no business to do so. It could conceivably finish un- der .500 — which would be as difficult for Kelly to bounce back from perception-wise, as it was for recently deposed defensive coordinator Brian VanGorder af- ter last year's final drive debacle at Stanford. That doesn't mean I am on the "Fire Kelly" bandwagon. When I go through my realistic short list of potential replacements (Urban Meyer not included), no one im- presses me as an upgrade for all this job mandates. My minimum on-field "standard" for a Notre Dame football coach is one bona fide national title contention per five years, which I define as entering the last game of the regular season, you are still in the conversation. If you can achieve it twice over that period, that's extra credit. Kelly achieved that in 2012 and 2015. Kelly and Meyer are the only two active coaches who have had two 12-0 regular seasons at two different schools. That has to account for something, too. Has Kelly reached his plateau here? T h a t's t h e sca ry t h o u g h t , wh i c h prompts the angst. Yet just three years ago there was similar discontent with Mike Brey, who had just one Sweet 16 appearance in 14 years, and in Year 14 was 15-17. Today, the perspective is dif- ferent on him. Maybe it changes with Kelly likewise, but it has to begin with getting rid of the "spin cycle" that is unnecessary and tries to justify the maladies. Balance is needed in more than just on offense. ✦ Notre Dame's issues in 2016 had more to do with coaching then they did with the number of returning starters on its depth chart. PHOTO BY CHAD WEAVER BEST OF THE FIFTH QUARTER ✦ LOU SOMOGYI ✦ OCT. 31, 2016 Playing 'The Youth Card' Is So Unnecessary EDITOR'S NOTE: The late, great Lou Somogyi possessed an unmatched knowledge of Notre Dame football, and it was his mission in life to share it with others. Those of us at Blue & Gold Illustrated would like to continue to provide his wisdom and unique perspective from his more than 37 years covering the Fighting Irish for this publication.