Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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New York Yankees first baseman and cur- rent Los Angeles Dodgers manager Don Mattingly, had 35 receptions for 350 yards and eight scores last fall. Schools such as Oklahoma were after him exclusively for his pass-catching skills. He said it was tempt- ing. "We actually don't pass the ball much at Mattingly, who is the nephew of former playing tight end include his familiarity with passing routes and what receivers try to do to find space. Mattingly said he has a good understanding as to how to limit that space in pass coverage. A young man of his word, Mattingly ex- all," he said. "When we did throw, it was to me last year. We might have completed maybe 40 passes last year. I never knew I'd get recruited on both sides of the ball. That was probably the hardest thing for me. "There were some other schools that wanted me to play just tight end. That would have been pretty cool. Playing tight end is a lot of fun, but so is linebacker. I'll have fun playing no matter what." The obvious positives that come from FILM ANALYSIS and the ball carrier physically … Plays with a high level of emotion and an infectious demeanor … Cut from the same cloth as Irish sophomore tight end Troy Niklas in regards to being able to compete on either side of the football … Defensively, lines up both on the line of scrimmage and at the second level, and looks to be an ideal fit for the Cat linebacker position. Strengths Quick feet off of the edge and attacks both blockers the football. Focusing on reads without losing speed or playing complacently will be a balance that comes with additional experience … Needs to work on playing lower and increasing overall body control to be capable of playing off the edge and in the flats in coverage. Areas To Improve Plays over-aggressively at times and over-pursues plained that just because he committed to Notre Dame doesn't mean other schools have backed off. In fact, he's routinely tell- ing coaches at major programs that he's not about to change his mind, no matter how many times his phone rings. His list of offers included Alabama, Ar- izona State, Boise State, Nebraska, Okla- homa, Oregon, Oregon State, UCLA, Utah, Washington and Washington State. "Notre Dame wasn't my first offer," he said. "There were a lot of other great schools recruiting me. Once I got that Notre Dame offer, it's hard to look at those other schools when you've been an Irish fan all your life. I'll never regret making that decision. Plus, when you make a commitment, I think other schools should value that. That's re- ally important to me — my word." In an era where recruits flip-flop all the time, it's no wonder why coaches don't put as much stock into oral pledges. "I don't know what the coaches think, but just myself, I think it's really stupid how kids handle it now," Mattingly added. "Once you tell a school that you're going to be part of their program for the next four years, I think they should respect that. That's your word. "They still want you, but I've made it — Jason Sapp clear to them that Notre Dame is going to be my school ,and that's where my new home will be. When a player commits, I think that should be the end of it." ✦ AUGUST 2012 73