Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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UNDER THE DOME If you win, it's depth. If you lose, it's not having a rhythm or a go-to runner. "We are trying to figure that out," he admitted. "We don't have an exact science. I wish I could be that smart. But we are really trying to figure out how to get them the carries that they all deserve, and also keep them in the flow of the game. "We all believe that they bring some- thing to the game, and that's what we kind of felt like that was the best way to start this game." At this point of his career, the vet- eran McDaniel is the best college-level back with assignment consciousness, running, blocking and receiving, and maybe the most trusted when Notre Dame is backed deep in its own end. He also would be less likely than Bry- ant and Folston to have an NFL future. The three combined for 182 yards on 28 carries, with Folston and Bryant each amassing 71 yards apiece. Bryant has the most explosiveness with his first step, and Folston has the best shiftiness. Folston's 12 carries were the most in the Rice game, and his style seemed to evoke the most pos- itive response from teammates. "He's elusive. … Very rarely does the first tackler take him down," Kelly said. "The players like to watch him Tag-Team Returns Running back, wide receiver and defensive line won't be the only positions that will operate by com- mittee this year at Notre Dame. Punt return duties might be in that category, too. Against Rice, fifth-year senior corner Cody Riggs returned punts 24 and 25 yards in the first quarter before getting replaced by sophomore running back Greg Bryant, whose three returns netted 31 yards. Because Riggs plays so much at corner while Bryant alternates at running back, head coach Brian Kelly said Riggs was "gassed," which led to the insertion of Bryant, who had some stretches where he didn't play on offense. "Cody is taking a lot of snaps right now [including kick coverage], and we want to make sure that we keep him healthy for the entire season," Kelly said. "We cannot afford to lose Cody. … If [the Irish defense is] on the field a long time and it's a punt situation, we've got to give him a blow." The pair accounted for 80 yards on punt returns. The Irish recorded 46 and 48 yards during the 2012 and 2011 seasons, respectively. In 2013, TJ Jones amassed 106 yards as the team's primary returner. Kelly said the ability to plant and cut sharply on the new FieldTurf played a part with the return game. "The biggest difference for me was our ability to stick our foot in the ground," Kelly said of the early upgrade in punt returns. "The surface really made a difference for us. I know that might sound a bit crazy for you, but we were able to really make some sharp cuts on that surface that allowed us to get north and south." Kelly also said the blocking efforts were stronger. "They've got to be fearless, stick their foot in the ground and go north and south, and you've got to have great effort [overall]," Kelly summarized. "Those three things were hit and miss for us over the last three years." — Lou Somogyi