Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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www.BLUEANDGOLD.com PRESEASON 2017 51 BY BRYAN DRISKELL N otre Dame defensive coordi- nator Mike Elko and the rest of the Irish staff have their work cut out for them head- ing into the 2017 season. Coming off the worst three-year stretch of de- fense in school history, Notre Dame will have to improve significantly on that side of the ball to return to at least the top 25 this fall. Since his arrival in January, Elko and the staff have orchestrated a slow rebuild of the defense. "Any time you go somewhere and try to implement your philosophy, initially it's not something the kids are ready for," Elko explained. "They don't know exactly what you're look- ing for, and they don't know exactly what you're talking about. "As we went through spring we saw that feeling-out process. … We've picked up in fall camp." Head coach Brian Kelly noticed that, too. "For the first time in several years, our defense is ahead of our offense," Kelly said, to the surprise of many. "It's a good feeling to have." Elko brushed off that notion, but he was gratified about how his unit was progressing. "As a group, we are starting to understand how to play defense to- gether," he said. "Our strength has to be all 11 guys playing this defense together the right way, understand- ing where their help is, understand- ing where their leverage is, under- standing how to play fundamental football. "I'm happy with how the defense is working. I think we have the right mindset. I think we have the right attitude. "We are coming out to work ev- ery day, and the product on the field looks better every day. That makes me happy." Elko wants his players working every day toward what's in front of them, not trying to overcome what might have happened in the past. "There is motivation in the group to be successful at Notre Dame," Elko said. "There's pride in who they are, pride in this program and pride in what they want to be. "They want to go out and make Notre Dame successful. I would hope that would be the case regardless of what happened last year." IS THE DEFENSIVE LINE A STRENGTH? One of the concerns for the Irish defense, at least from an outside perspective, is its line. This is espe- cially true of the interior, which lost starting nose guard Jarron Jones to graduation and backup Daniel Cage to concussion issues. Notre Dame also must replace three-year starter Isaac Rochell. For the most part, the front is going to battle this season with an inexperi- enced group of players that were part of a vastly underachieving defense a season ago. Elko, however, does not share the same skepticism about the line, espe- cially his interior players. In fact, the coordinator believes his line will be a strength this season. "That perception is wrong, I don't know where it came from but it's not right," Elko stated emphatically during an Aug. 16 interview. "You're going to see a group that plays really hard, that's extremely disruptive, that's active. "It will be a group that will be a strength for us." Elko has not been shy about de- fending his line. Going back to the spring he has shown greater confi- dence in his unit than observers of the program. Kelly and defensive line coach Mike Elston have offered similar praise for the group. "That group is going to surprise a lot of people," Elko said. "I keep saying it, and I'm not just making it up. That group has been a lot more competitive. … They're continuing to develop and get better every day." Kelly has pointed out the strong play of senior end Andrew Trumbetti on multiple occasions. Elko also likes what he has seen from the Demarest, N.J., native. "He's playing really physical, re- ally fast," Elko noted. "I'm happy with what he is doing and where he is going. He's having a really good camp." YOUTH MOVEMENT If Notre Dame can't get better at attacking offenses, the improvements will be minimal. In 2016, the Irish defense ranked 102nd nationally in tackles for loss (61) and 102nd in sacks (14). Wake Forest, where Elko coached last year, ranked 24th in tackles for loss (94) and 11th in sacks (41). Elko's defense is at its best when it is being disruptive. There are things he can do from a scheme standpoint to generate pressure, but at some point individual players have to make good individual plays. Elko believes his defense has that kind of talent, and it is going to come from the sophomore class. "The pass rushers are a year older," Elko said. "It's always hard for a freshman to be successful. Some of the kids in that freshman class that are now sophomores will be better pass rushers off the edges. "They have developed because they are a little more comfortable playing college football." While starting drop end Daelin Hayes has received most of the atten- tion in the class, all four ends signed in the 2016 haul could see action this season. Sophomore Julian Okwara has spent time as a situational pass rusher, and Khalid Kareem is pushing for minutes at the strongside position. A player to watch is Adetokunbo Ogundeji, the lone three-star end commit in that class. Ogundeji has filled out his frame and has been im- pressive during open practices. On the inside, Notre Dame's fresh- man class is expected to provide depth, and juniors Brandon Tiassum and Micah Dew-Treadway are also pushing for time. "We've gotten some reps from some of the freshmen — Kurt [Hin- ish] and Myron [Tagovailoa-Amosa] — those guys have done a good job," READY TO SHINE Mike Elko expects his defense, led by the line, to improve in 2017 Drop end Daelin Hayes is one of four sophomores expected to provide an improved pass rush for the Irish defense. PHOTO BY BILL PANZICA