Blue and Gold Illustrated

CHALK TALK BRYAN DRISKELL T he spread offense has largely taken over college football. It comes in a variety of forms, but its influence permeates the college landscape. Coaches on offense are trying to figure out ways to implement the ap- proach, or at the very least adopt some of its core principles into their own phi- losophies. Defensive coaches have been trying for years to stop it, or at least slow it down. Nine of the 14 teams to play for the national championship during the past seven seasons have run a form of the spread offense. When Brian Kelly was hired to be Notre Dame's head coach in December 2009, he brought to South Bend his own version of the spread offense. Kelly has nuanced his scheme over the years and has finally built an offense that must be considered one of the nation's top units. Kelly's version of the spread is quite unique — most notably the lack of em- phasis on being up-tempo — but there are a number of foundational principles that carry over. Notre Dame is a no- huddle offense that looks to spread op- ponents the width of the field. Here is a look at Notre Dame's ver- sion of the spread: BALANCED AND FLEXIBLE Recruiting at Notre Dame is challeng- ing because of the academic require- ments, and being able to consistently land elite skill players on a year-by- year basis is not something Kelly and his staff can count on. That has played out during Kelly's tenure, with the running back, wide re- ceiver and tight end positions all going through periods of being the strength of the offense — and then a major ques- tion mark during other stretches. Quarterback recruiting at Notre Dame is also difficult. Kelly has re- cruited a run-first quarterback (Malik Zaire), a pass-first quarterback (Everett Golson) and a pair of signal-callers with a balanced skill set (DeShone Kizer and Gunner Kiel). Only current freshman Brandon Wimbush brings an elite abil- ity as a passer and runner, but players like him are rare. Kelly has had to install an offense that could adjust from year to year. That flexibility gives the Notre Dame offense the ability to easily adapt to the strengths of its skill personnel. This versatility explains how Notre Dame was able to attack with a run- heavy offense in some seasons (2012) and a pass-oriented attack in others (2010 and 2014). It also gives the Irish the flexibility to adjust to the quality of its defense. In 2012, the Irish were able to play ball- control offense in order to balance what turned out to be one of the nation's pre- mier defensive units. Notre Dame also has the ability to be a more explosive offense in order to protect its defense. Inside Notre Dame's Spread Offense

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