UPON FURTHER REVIEW TODD D. BURLAGE
W
hen Harry Hiestand was hired as
Notre Dame's new offensive line
coach in January 2012, the news
wasn't necessarily met with much fan-
fare.
"Harry who?" was the overwhelm-
ing reaction throughout most of ND
Nation.
Four seasons later, there is no debate
that Hiestand has become the most
valuable hire Brian Kelly has made in
his six seasons as Notre Dame head
coach.
"I asked some of the most respected
offensive line coaches in college foot-
ball whom they would recommend,"
Kelly said at the time of the hire, "and
Harry's name was routinely mentioned
as one of the best."
Referrals were only one small part
of what landed Hiestand on Kelly's
coaching radar. A long reputation for
developing talent and landing elite
high school players topped Hiestand's
qualification list.
In an era where coaches rely heavily
on Facebook, Twitter and other social
media to flatter and persuade prospec-
tive players, Hiestand, 56, handles his
recruiting old school: straightforward
and honestly.
Hiestand has only 21 friends on his
seldom-used Facebook page. He also
has a Twitter handle, @CoachHiestand,
that includes more than 1,000 followers,
but he has never composed a Tweet.
Yet, even without the benefit of mod-
ern recruiting gimmicks, Hiestand con-
tinues to establish himself as one of the
best in the business at attracting top
talent.
"There are a lot of guys out there in
recruiting that feed you a bunch of B.S.
about their school and who they are,"
Irish junior guard Mike McGlinchey
said.
"You meet Coach Hiestand, and he is
100 percent the real thing. He doesn't
change. From the moment you talk to
him on the phone, the moment you
meet him, and then the moment you
step on campus, he's the same guy."
And while most top college players
can't wait to trade college class work
Low-Key Hiestand Paying
Handsome Dividends
Offensive line coach Harry Hiestand has become
arguably the most valuable hire head coach Brian
Kelly has made in his six seasons in South Bend.
PHOTO BY JOE RAYMOND
