Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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pass blocking] in high school. It was run the ball or play action." decorated or unheralded, will have about a five- or six-man nucleus of mainstays. What distinguishes premier recruiting Every recruiting class, no matter how THE MORTAR IN 2012 AND BEYOND classes from good or average ones is depth. The top groups will generally have more than a half-dozen NFL prospects — and about a dozen bona fide starters that rou- tinely help propel double-digit victory cam- paigns. The top six projected players from the game. However, his combination of better physical skills than Rees (and potential dis- ciplinary measures against Rees) and more meaningful game experience than Golson just might make him the early "compromise candidate" at quarterback. He needs to seize the opportunity now, or it might be too late by 2013. The ability to adept to all situations is the main area that has held Hendrix back, according to offensive coordinator/quarter- backs coach Chuck Martin. "It's not a lack of intelligence," Martin 2012 juniors is fairly evident — although their development in the ensuing years can't be taken for granted — but how much will the other 14 come to the forefront in the back half of their campaigns? • Safety Austin Collinsworth, like Jack- son, has been a special teams demon, and he was going to become a regular in the sec- ondary before June shoulder surgery likely ruled him out from action until maybe the latter part of October. By then, a medical redshirt season might be in the offing. • Schwenke's spring was so inspiring that he and fifth-year senior receiver John Good- man were selected as the team captains for the Blue-Gold Game. He played only 33 snaps as a freshman and 44 as a sophomore. This year, Schwenke and Nix are expected to form a formidable tag-team tandem at nose guard. • Quarterback Andrew Hendrix does not said of the pre-med major. "It's being in all the different situations, being able to adjust to all those situations on the fly." • Alex Welch started at tight end in the Blue-Gold Game when All-American Tyler Eifert was split wide. If his blocking contin- ues to improve, Welch will almost assuredly be a regular in the lineup with sophomores Ben Koyack and Troy Niklas to complement Eifert. • Dog linebacker Danny Spond doesn't have any starts to his credit yet, and he will compete with sophomore Ben Councell for snaps in certain situations. • Inside linebacker Kendall Moore was a conspicuous figure in the Blue-Gold Game, recording a game-high eight stops (one for loss). However, if he is to succeed Manti Te'o at Mike linebacker in 2013, he must first ward off the strong challenge of sophomore Jarrett Grace (if not potential fifth-year se- niors Carlo Calabrese and Dan Fox). possesses the experience of classmate Rees, nor did he have the "wow factor" effect of sophomore Everett Golson in the spring just too many other players in front of them have prevented at least six members from Injuries, adjusting to position switches or FINDING A NICHE AUGUST 2012 36