Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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forces you to pull up in the pocket, can bend around the edge, a really, really good athlete." Heading into fall camp, Hill had not yet separated himself from fresh- man defensive end Jhonny Williams or freshman defensive tackle Jonathan Bonner, but while those two appear headed for a redshirt season, Hill has already left his mark on the defense. "Retention of information," Kelly said when asked why Hill has played already. "When we're going through our team work and they can repeat what we're asking them to do without making the errors. … I know, third down, I know what to do in this third- down package, but I don't know all the base calls." Through three games, Hill had re- corded 2.5 tackles for loss and two sacks. "Just watching in the Rice game was something that I was a little up- set about at first," Hill said. "But just learning from the guy that was in front of me was something that I looked forward to. "I knew I could make an impact on this team. That Michigan game was re- ally something that I wanted to show what I was capable of doing." Hill helped preserve the shutout against the Wolverines with a pair of tackles on consecutive plays. "Kolin played well," senior line- backer and team captain Joe Schmidt said after that victory. "I haven't watched on tape, but the energy he provides, he's a real positive guy, loves the team, does anything for the team. He had a great night tonight. He de- serves that praise." Like Hill — who one year ago at this time did not factor into Notre Dame's plans — Cage was a late ad- dition to the 2014 recruiting haul. With the departures of Louis Nix and Kona Schwenke to the NFL and Tony Springmann's career-ending health issues, Cage had an immediate op- portunity to play. So far he has not disappointed. He showed up on campus in June around the 350-pound mark, but has since dropped 30 pounds to fit the VanGorder defense where being fleet of foot is more important than bulk. "Me going down, I have more explo- sion off the ball. I'm quicker, so I use that to my advantage," he said. Whenever starting defensive tackle Jarron Jones needs a breather, Cage is there to relieve him. His presence goes beyond the three tackles in three games he has recorded. He has come a long way from the end of the first fall practice when he needed to step off to the sideline and deposit the items in his stomach onto the grass, with defensive line coach Mike Elston encouraging him after a difficult practice. "That first day, where we were go- ing hard, I really wasn't in shape like that," Cage said. "It was really hard for me. That was probably the time I hit the wall. "It was definitely trying to get used to that incredible difference [between high school and college practice], but right now I have lost over 30 pounds. I'm coping with what's going on." As Notre Dame's defense adapts, so too do Hill and Cage. So far, it has paid off for the Irish. ✦