Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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of course very concerned given the nature of the allegations, but I am still gathering information," Kelly said in a statement released the day after they were arrested. "I'll withhold judgment until I can collect all the facts and speak with both Carlo and Tommy." There are no specific disciplinary ac- tions laid out in the student handbook for students charged with misdemeanor crimes. A 2010 revision of the rules gave the school's Office of Residence Life more flexibility in dealing with each case on an individual basis, according to a Notre Dame spokesman. It also relaxed what was seen by past football coaches as an overly strict and outdated process. The one precedent that Kelly and the thousands of armchair coaches who will be trying to diagnose the situation this summer have to work with is wide re- ceiver Michael Floyd. Notre Dame's two- time MVP was arrested for drunken driv- ing last spring, his third alcohol-related issue while on the team. He did not miss any school, but was held out of spring practice. There are enough variables in that equa- tion to make it impossible to relate one case to the other. Any consequences for Rees have the potential to be far more damaging than they were for Floyd. For a program-leading receiver, no spring prac- tice is a light slap on the wrist. For Rees, any missed practice time could have seri- ous consequences. He remains neck and neck with junior one who makes the biggest leap this sum- mer. If Rees is held out of team workouts by Kelly, the university or because of legal issues, he'll have another major hurdle to clear. Rees already was under fire because of a history of lapses in judgment for a quarterback who is normally better than most at reading a defense. Whatever con- sequences he faces, this latest lapse will easily be the hardest he has had to over- come in his career. ✦ issued his statement on Tommy Rees and Carlo Ca- labrese, he found himself addressing a third Notre Dame player, sophomore wide receiver DaVaris Dan- iels, who was in trouble with the law. Police in Vernon Hills, Ill., cited Daniels and 28 others Less than two weeks after head coach Brian Kelly Come in Threes Bad Things for underage drinking at a party early in the morning on May 13. The address in the police report is the same as Daniels' home address. The citation is not a criminal charge, but he will have to appear in court. Daniels, like Rees and Calabrese, was expected to compete for major playing time if not a starting job in the fall. The 6-4, 190-pound sophomore is billed as Michael Floyd's replacement at wide receiver because of his athleticism and ability to stretch defenses verti- cally. Kelly did not make any public comments about a possible punishment for Daniels. "I'm aware of the citation DaVaris received and will be speaking with him about the matter," Kelly said in a statement released on May 16. "Any team-related discipline that may be forthcoming will be handled internally." All coaches are well aware that getting from May to Andrew Hendrix and sophomore Everett Golson in a race to keep his starting job. Kelly said that the quarterback who takes the field in September will likely be the August, when they have little control over where their players are and what they are doing, is like dancing through a minefield. The month of May was a particu- larly treacherous waltz for Kelly and the Irish. — Dan Murphy JUNE/JULY 2012 45