Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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to Notre Dame have decided for the right reasons. You're involved with some people at the end and you're going to win some and you're going to lose some. "Fortunately for us, if you had to "Most of the kids who decide to go Robby Toma, a close friend and team- mate of Te'o, was added to bring the final haul to 18. Still, the collective class was deemed subpar for several reasons: • The Irish wanted to sign at least two defensive ends, but landed none. They signed only one defen- sive lineman overall (nose guard Ty- ler Stockton). • Notre Dame whiffed at corner- pick the right one, the one that said yes today [Te'o] was a big one for us." Shortly thereafter, wide receiver highly coveted Los Angeles native and wide receiver Shaquelle Evans would transfer after his freshman year to UCLA, as would offensive lineman Alex Bullard to the Tennes- see Volunteers in his home state. Unbeknownst at the time was that recruited by Notre Dame from 2004- 10, this year's current seniors that came aboard in February 2009 might possess the most NFL talent (see chart), despite the small volume and attrition. The 2008 class has had four drafted Surprisingly, of the seven classes PRIME-TIME FIGURES back, although Pittsburgh's E.J. Banks, mainly a quarterback in high school, would get a shot despite coming off a knee injury (Banks would later leave Notre Dame and walk on at Pitt). • No drop-back quarterback signed with the Irish, which was un- derstandable given that they signed five-star prospects in 2007 (Jimmy Clausen) and 2008 (Crist). But the problem was if Clausen were to turn pro after his junior year in 2009, it would present a depth problem. • Three of the players signed were specialists: kicker Nick Tausch, punter Ben Turk and long snapper Jordan Cowart — the first player ever at his sole position to be awarded a four-year scholarship by the Irish. so far: tight end Kyle Rudolph, wide receiver Michael Floyd, outside line- backer Darius Fleming and defensive back Robert Blanton. At least two more current fifth-year seniors — center Braxston Cave and defensive lineman Kapron Lewis- Moore — should have a pretty good chance at advancing to the next level after overcoming season-ending inju- ries last year. The recruiting class from 2009 is highlighted by Te'o and the less her- alded three-star tight end recruit Ty- ler Eifert. In 2013, they could become the first duo from the same Notre Dame graduating class to be selected in the first round since 1994, when defensive lineman Bryant Young, of- fensive lineman Aaron Taylor and defensive back Jeff Burrs were picked (joining running back Jerome Bet- tis and cornerback Tom Carter, who Pro Upgrade Draft. Traditionally, the better Irish classes yield six to eight pro prospects. For example, the 23-man class Since 2004, Notre Dame's recruiting efforts have not yielded fruitful results years later in the NFL in 2003 had eight: quarterback Brady Quinn, tight end John Carlson, offensive linemen Ryan Harris and John Sullivan, defensive linemen Victor Abiamiri and Trevor Laws, and safeties Tom Zbikowski and Chinedum Ndukwe. Wide receiver Jeff Samardzija also would have been selected had he not opted for Major League Baseball. The truly great ones have double digits, a la the 1990 haul with 13, led by five first-round picks (Jerome Bettis, Tom Carter, Bryant Young, Aaron Taylor and Jeff Burris). Here are the five results from 2004-08. 2004: 17 recruits, 0 drafted. 2005: 15 recruits, 1 drafted (safety David Bruton) 2006: 28 recruits, 2 drafted (offensive linemen Sam Young and Eric Olsen) 2007: 18 recruits, 3 drafted (quarterback Jimmy Clausen, wide receiver Golden Tate and safety Har- rison Smith) *2008: 23 recruits, 4 drafted (tight end Kyle Rudolph, receiver Michael Floyd, outside linebacker Darius Fleming and defensive back Robert Blanton). The 2009 group will be led by Manti Te'o and Tyler Eifert, but several others could be in the equation Left tackle Zack Martin has started 26 consecu- tive games over the last two seasons and graded out as the team's top lineman both years. PHOTO BY BILL PANZICA entered the pro draft as juniors, from the previous year). The achievements of Te'o and Eif- ert have been well documented, but there are several others from this har- vest with legitimate NFL aspirations: • Left tackle Zack Martin has started as well. * Denotes that there are still 2013 NFL prospects such as center Braxston Cave, defensive end Kapron Lewis-Moore and safety Jamoris Slaughter. — Lou Somogyi 26 PRESEASON 2012 26 consecutive games over the last two seasons and graded out as the team's top lineman both years. Back in 2009, one of the demerits given to this Irish class was it failed to sign a big-time left tackle prospect, such as Xavier Nixon (Florida). Martin was perceived as more of an interior figure with his 6-4 frame, but his footwork, technique, work ethic and athletic skills have made him one of the top players nationally at his position. • Running back Cierre Wood could become the fourth Notre Dame back since 1950 to lead the Irish in rush- ing three consecutive years, joining Allen Pinkett (1983-85), Autry Den- son (1996-98) and Darius Walker (2004-06). Last year, he became the first since Walker to eclipse 1,000 yards rushing in a season (1,102), BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED