Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/176703
Daniels — whose first two career touchdowns came in a span of four plays against Temple, while his next two scores came on back-to-back receptions at Purdue — is striving to be more consistent. Photo by Bill panzica going to be one of the best,' and I was like, 'I don't doubt you.'" To get there, Daniels will have to go back to the "over and over again." The next step in has maturation he said, and head coach Brian Kelly agrees, is playing with consistency. Offensive bursts against Temple and Purdue showed how dangerous Daniels can be at his best. He scored the first two touchdowns in his career in a span of four plays against the Owls on opening day. His next two scores came on the back-to-back receptions at Purdue. In between, though, he churned out 10 quarters of relatively pedestrian production. "He's two quarters of the way [to his potential]," Kelly said. "He needs to be four quarters of the way. He can obviously impact a football game. We want him to impact it four quarters, and he's capable of doing that." Daniels and his coaches — Kelly and wide receivers coach Mike Denbrock — have been honing in on the steps that it will take to fill those gaps. He said the consistency will come as he continues to work, but he doesn't think it's something that he can be taught. He pointed to his first score against the Boilermakers as a step in the right direction. That catch won't make the list of the most athletic plays Daniels makes in a Notre Dame uniform. There were no stiff-arms or full-speed changes of direction. He ran the right route and used his body to keep his defender away from the ball. He did the small things that fill the gaps between great plays to make for a great career. "The hardest leap to make is from being very good to being great," Denbrock said. "I think he's a very good receiver. He has a lot more in him to get to that great level, and that's what we're trying to help him push through that next barrier." ✦