Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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BGI from acknowledging Fighting Irish standouts from this season. Here are some of our thoughts. MOST VALUABLE PLAYER 1. MICHAEL FLOYD — A blue chip pros- pect out of Cretin-Derham High in Minnesota, Michael Floyd was one of the most touted Notre Dame re- cruits from 2000-09. In 2011, the 6-3, 224-pounder put a bow on one of the greatest careers ever compiled in a gold helmet. Whether it was new head coach Brian Kelly's honest appraisal of the star wideout or a motivational tool, he pushed Floyd's buttons in August 2010. Upon his arrival in South Bend, Ind., Kelly praised Floyd for an unparalleled work ethic but also claimed Floyd was "overrated," rely- ing too heavily on athleticism rather than fundamentals. The dig sparked a jump in pro- duction in Floyd's junior year, when he hauled in 79 receptions for 1,025 yards and 12 scores. And instead of parlaying that success into a fat NFL paycheck, Floyd opted to return to Notre Dame for his final year of eli- gibility. The good news turned into a collective gasp from Irish Nation when Floyd was arrested in March for driving under the influence of alcohol, forcing Kelly to suspend his star player indefinitely. Both Kelly and the university showed an abun- dance of mercy, first allowing Floyd to remain in school, followed by his full reinstatement to the football team at the start of fall camp. Through 12 regular-season games this season, Floyd caught 95 passes for 1,106 yards and eight touch- downs. His blocking ability was as Senior wide receiver Michael Floyd rewrote virtu- ally all of Notre Dame's career receiving records, was a productive blocker and forced defenses to game plan around him. PHOTO BY JOE RAYMOND www.BLUEANDGOLD.com PLAYER DEVELOPMENT AWARDS N A review of some standouts from 2011 BY WES MORGAN otre Dame honored the 2011 Notre Dame football team at its annual Awards Show on Dec. 9, but that didn't stop fine as you will find at the position, as was his desire to sacrifice his body to spring teammates. Before facing Florida State in the Champs Sports Bowl Dec. 29 in Or- lando, Fla., the senior already owned six career or single-season school receiving records: career receptions (266), career receiving yards (3,645), career touchdowns (36), yards per game (86.8) and games with at least 100 yards (17). He also boasts the single-season record for receptions with 95 this year. "He's exhibited all the things nec- essary that we asked him to do," Kelly said. "He's gotten his degree from Notre Dame. He's lived his life the right way. He's been extraordi- nary in his preparation and practice." 2. MANTI TE'O — The junior linebacker helped anchor the defense with a team-high 115 tackles during the regular season despite playing with a sprained ankle a good portion of the year. His 13 tackles for loss and 4.5 sacks were the most of his career. 3. HARRISON SMITH — The fifth-year senior captain anchored the second- ary with 84 tackles at safety. Off the field, Smith was instrumental in re- gaining team unity after comments from Kelly concerning the difference between his recruits and players he inherited briefly caused a rift in the locker room. MOST IMPROVED 1. LOUIS NIX III — The massive nose guard showed up as a freshman last year at 368 pounds and didn't see any action. His first year was spent getting acclimated to the academic rigors at Notre Dame and slimming down. Nix dropped 42 pounds and worked his way into the rotation with senior Sean Cwynar. With in- juries to Cwynar, defensive ends Kapron Lewis-Moore and Ethan Johnson, and illness forcing fresh- man Stephon Tuitt to miss two games, Nix responded by registering the seventh-most tackles on the team (42) during the regular season — the most among the linemen. Nix joked that he couldn't even make it through stretching exercises in 2010 without "needing an ambu- lance." Now it's the opposition that is worried about needing medical attention. "Louis has had a great year for us," Kelly said. "One thing about Louis is that he has to be a better practice guy from week to week. We love the way he plays on Saturday." 2. JONAS GRAY — Before 2011, the 5-10, 230-pound running back had rushed 75 times for 309 yards, no touchdowns and was close to being classified as a certified bust. After this year, which featured 791 yards and 12 scores on 114 carries, he's a legitimate NFL prospect. His effort combined with junior Cierre Wood for an average of 166.0 rushing yards per game — nearly 40 more yards than the weekly output in 2010. Unfortunately for Gray and the Irish, his season came to an end with a knee injury on Senior Day against Boston College on Nov. 19. 3. TYLER EIFERT — The star power trickled in during his sophomore year in 2010 when he was a mid-sea- son replacement for an injured Kyle Rudolph, the top tight end selected in the 2011 NFL Draft. This year Eifert put himself in Rudolph's category, leading the na- tion for most catches per game by a tight end (4.75), breaking 1977 Walter Camp Award winner Ken MacAfee's 34-year-old school record for most catches in a season (57), and earning Walter Camp first team All-America honors, plus second team from the Associated Press. The stat that particularly stands out is his team-high 18 catches on third down that resulted in first downs. He repeatedly came up with the clutch grabs in hard-fought wins versus Pitt (15-12), Wake Forest (24-17) and Bos- ton College (16-14). TOP SURPRISE 1. JONAS GRAY — There was little rea- son to believe the 5-10, 230-pound senior would suddenly be a dynamic back for the Irish, or that he'd devote as much time to improving on the football field as he did in other ex- FEBRUARY 2012 15