Blue and Gold Illustrated

Preseason 2016

Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football

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that allow a talented player to make the right play in the fourth quarter. "Every competitive football game comes down to three or four plays. That's the margin you're trying to find. Holding on to the ball as op- posed to dropping it. Sustaining a block longer. "You have to know everything about the tendency of your oppo- nent, everything about strength and conditioning. You have to make sure the right meals are served, because those are the margins you're dealing with. "One can call it an arms race if they want, but it's a natural consequence of the other things that used to dis- tinguish and differentiate programs. Now it's shifted because those dif- ferentials are largely not available to you anymore. These are more techni- cal in nature." One of the biggest myths Swarbrick has to dispel is that Notre Dame is not economically competitive with salaries for coaches — a residue from the past. "I can tell you that we have not lost any coach in the time that I've been here — either one we wanted to bring here or one who was think- ing of going somewhere else — over compensation," Swarbrick said. At the same time, do not expect Notre Dame to have the almost gar- ish opulence of facilities that an Ala- bama or Oregon might possess. It will invest into the best equipment or in sports science to aid its student- athletes, but it won't be about keep- ing up with the Joneses from an op- tics standpoint. For example, just because Michi- gan is making headlines and creating a buzz with second-year head coach Jim Harbaugh hosting satellite camps throughout the country doesn't mean that is what Notre Dame also should be doing. "We want our approach support- ing the program consistent with who we are in our identity," Swarbrick said. "We're not trying to be some- body else. It's why we're not doing satellite camps. Brian has talked about it. It's not who we are. We're about, 'Come to our campus. See this place and what we represent.' "I'm not focused on what some- body else is spending; I'm focused on what's right for us." His points of emphasis are sports science and recruiting, which in- PRESEASON 2016 73

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