Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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the very best. Clearly, we did not have either one on our side this time. We will." "Not a great one, but respectable," summarized longtime recruiting analyst Tom Lemming of the 2010 Irish class. Collectively, that class ranked approximately 18th among myriad recruiting services, as high as 14th by Rivals and as low as 21st by ESPNU (with James included). Entering its senior campaign in 2013 on the heels of a 12-1 record and appearance in the BCS National Championship Game, the class' reach so far has exceeded its projected grasp as the proverbial "complementary" group for higher-ranked hauls that came before and after them. Seven Starters Of the 23 players signed in 2010, 18 are still with the football program. Seven of them were in line to be central figures in the 2013 lineup, with each already having racked up a minimum of 11 career starts. To no one's surprise, the group features the three consensus four-star players: Nix, Jones and Lombard. They are perhaps three of the the top five NFL prospects in the Notre Dame class, with cornerback Bennett Jackson and outside linebacker Prince Shembo the other two. After two full seasons of starting and excelling, Nix is in line to become the first defensive lineman from Notre Dame selected in the first round of the NFL Draft since Renaldo Wynn in 1997. This spring, he was No. 7 overall on ESPN draft guru Mel Kiper Jr.'s "Big Board." Nix is a centerpiece on a Fighting Irish defensive unit that could rank again among the nation's elite. The next step for the 357-pound man mountain is to possess the stamina that increases his work volume. "Louis participated about half the game, roughly," Notre Dame defensive coordinator Bob Diaco said of the 2012 season and the snaps taken breakdown. "I'm sure Louis wants to participate more than half the game. It isn't just about being a starter. If he wants to participate the whole game, this is what he needs to do." The hope is that Notre Dame is far enough ahead in the contests where he doesn't have to participate the entire game. At wide receiver, Jones experienced his breakout campaign last season while tying Eifert for the team lead in receptions (50) and improving his yards per catch to 13.0. Kelly shocked many when he stated that it wouldn't surprise him if Jones developed into Notre Dame's third straight top-round pass receiver, after Michael Floyd (2012) and Eifert (2013). After starting all 13 games at right tackle last season, former USA Today first-team All-American Lombard is a wild-card figure along the offensive line, where he has worked at right guard this August when an injury briefly sidelined junior Conor Hanratty. Whether at guard or tackle, Lombard provides a vital versatility element to the Irish front. Those three are joined by four other classmates who can be classified as full-time starters entering 2013: