Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/259072
tioning Notre Dame on Twitter or Facebook all the time. It's fine, though, because it was always Notre Dame for me." Although he may not have been the most outgoing or media friendly, he was working his tail off behind the scenes to make sure that Notre Dame signed one of the best classes in the country. "I developed some really good relationships with the guys in this class," Nelson said. "[Irish quarter- back signee] DeShone Kizer, [offensive tackle signee] Alex Bars and [defensive tackle signee] Jay Hayes are all really good friends of mine now. We've got- ten real close, talk all the time and just have that bond that teammates and friends should have. "We all think we are going to do some really big things at Notre Dame and think this class and the one before it are really going to make some noise and make a run at a championship before we leave South Bend in a few years." One of the biggest reasons behind Nelson's early commitment was his re- lationship with Notre Dame offensive line coach Harry Hiestand. The two struck an early bond and it played a FILM ANALYSIS Strengths Nelson could be a day one starter at many programs across the country … Very polished technically, but still has room to grow into an elite college football offensive tackle … Terrific balance … Very good with his hands and does a good job of not overextending …Smart, patient, calm and comfortable player. Areas For Improvement Doesn't necessarily have the speed and quick- ness you look for in a left tackle … Has some difficulty with speed rushers off the edge … Needs to avoid getting too vertical at times … Keeps a wide base, but needs to keep pad level low at all times.