Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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Russell had during his first two seasons combined. Getting Russell and Luke to play their best football together would give VanGorder tremendous flexibility with his defense. It would allow the Irish coordinator to be more disruptive with his blitzes, give him the ability to be more aggressive with his safeties in both the run and pass game, and serve as a catalyst for an Irish pass defense that struggled for much of the 2014 sea- son. Regardless of how the class got to where it is now, the presence of Stanley, Russell and Day gives the Irish three seniors with the opportunity to play like stars. If the trio can live up to their preseason expectations it gives the Irish coaching staff a championship-caliber foundation that it can build around. BIG-PLAY POTENTIAL Two of Notre Dame's fastest athletes are wide receiver Chris Brown and running back C.J. Prosise. Both have flashed big-play ability, but neither has produced on a consistent basis — at least not yet. Prosise was the talk of the spring, and despite a hip flexor injury in fall camp he remains a vital figure in the Irish offense. With the suspension of junior Greg Bryant, Prosise is now a full-time running back and could pos- sibly challenge junior Tarean Folston for touches. During his junior season, Prosise made a name for himself as a home-run threat. He was second on the team in gains of 20 yards or more (13), trailing only standout receiver Will Fuller (19). Prosise had issues catching the football with consistency, but when he did have the ball in his hands he was a big play waiting to happen. His transition to running back has been smooth, and his presence gives the Irish the much-needed home-run threat it lacked a season ago. As good as Folston has been, he has not shown he could take the ball the distance. Prosise can be that type of weapon, serving the big play role that was occu- pied by Jonas Gray in 2011 (6.94 yards per carry), Cierre Wood in 2012 (6.51 yards per carry) and George Atkinson in 2013 (5.97 yards per carry). Without After flashing big-play potential throughout his career, wide receiver Chris Brown has one last chance for a breakout season. PHOTO BY BILL PANZICA