Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1526111
14 SEPT. 7, 2024 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED BY TODD D. BURLAGE I n a communication advancement that was at least 10 years overdue in college football, it took a cheating scandal at the University of Mich- igan last season to finally bring some corrective action from the slow-moving folks at the NCAA. In April, the NCAA's Playing Rules Oversight Panel approved the use of real-time, in-game, on-field helmet communication between coaches and players during FBS competition this season, and Notre Dame is all in. Under the new rules, teams have the opportunity for a coach to verbally communicate, one way, with an offen- sive or a defensive player through a hel- met speaker before every game snap, presumably with the quarterback when on offense and the middle linebacker while on defense. The NCAA guidelines for " helmet comm" largely mirror those in the NFL, which adopted this technology 30 years ago. The specially equipped helmets will be marked with a green dot on its back midline — no more than one on offense and one on defense on the field per play — and communication between the coach and the player will be cut off by a game official with 15 seconds left on the play clock, or upon the snap of the football, whichever comes first. The helmet comm initiative was pro- posed, at least in part, when the Michi- gan sign-stealing scandal dominated the headlines much of last football sea- son after a Wolverines staff member was accused of studying and decoding op- ponents' sideline signage and/or hand signals to gain a strategic advantage. "I think it's time," Irish defensive co- ordinator Al Golden said of this new communication initiative. "The game has gotten so complex, and there's so much energy trying to conceal, trying to fool, it's time." Fo r so m e tea m s — m a i n ly t h ose with inexperienced quarterbacks — helmet communication might mark the return of the traditional pre-snap huddle to slow down the game, let the signal-caller gain guidance from his coach, catch his breath, and allow of- fenses to become more prepared and informed because of this real-time communication. For others, this initiative will serve as a chance to speed up the pre-snap pro- cess and increase the number of offen- sive plays per game, without cumber- some hand signals or sideline signage. How helmet comm will be used is program preference, and Irish head coach Marcus Freeman said his team used spring ball and much of fall camp determining what worked best. "It's just something new," Freeman said. "It's going to be a relationship be- tween the coordinator and the quarter- back, right? What amount of informa- tion do they want? What's too much? What's too little?" TRIAL AND ERROR In 2023, the 69 Power Five confer- ence teams averaged 26.1 seconds per offensive play — measured from when the play clock started to the snap. Among those 69 teams, 19 checked in with an average of less than 25 seconds per snap. While on the other end of the spectrum, 14 teams used at least 28 sec- onds per play. The other 36 teams fell within 25 and 28 seconds. 'IT'S TIME' Notre Dame fully supports the NCAA's implementation of on-field helmet communication between coaches and players Offensive coordinator Mike Denbrock believes helmet communication will be a valuable tool for the Irish with an experienced quarterback such as senior Riley Leonard. PHOTO BY CHAD WEAVER