Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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first part of the process. In its first four games this season, Notre Dame put 47 different players on the field, and that was without running out a punt or punt re- turn unit. Twenty-five players made at least two tackles on defense during the first month of the season. The depth Defensive Category Points Per Game First Downs Per Game "We don't cramp up, we don't get tired and we can bring that same en- ergy until the end of the game." On the back end of all made significant con- tributions during their early debuts. True freshmen and Notre Dame's defense, depth has taken on a different meaning and served an even more critical role. A trio of in- juries to upperclassmen Rushing First Downs Per Game Yards Allowed Per Rush Rushing Yards Per Game REAPING THE RESULTS 2007-09 25.5 19.5 8.9 4.4 * Through Sept. 29; ^ Ranks 11th out of 120 FBS teams Rushing Touchdowns Per Game Passing Yards Per Completion Passing Touchdowns Per Game Total Yards Per Play Total Yards Per Game chart on that side of the ball had developed to create interchangeable parts at the majority of positions, including all along the defensive line and three of the four linebacker spots. The steady rotation of packages and personnel keeps the team's elite players fresh for four quarters and puts them in a position to make plays from wire to wire. "It creates a chance for us to breathe," Tuitt said. 360.7 11.9 1.4 5.3 165.7 1.5 2010-12* 18.9^ 18.5 7.5 3.8 136.8 0.8 343.0 10.5 1.2 5.0 Austin Collinsworth, Lo Wood and Jamoris Slaughter forced the Irish to turn to an in- creasingly young roster of defensive backs to fill out the secondary. So far, that athletic group of first-year players has emerged to plug gaps that might have other- wise held back the rest of the defense. Sopho- more Matthias Farley and freshmen KeiVarae Russell, Elijah Shumate and Nicky Baratti have redshi r ted players have played a big role throughout the defense this year. Sheldon Day and Tony Springmann combined for three vi- tal sacks in the first four games. Sophomore Ben Councell has played in all four games as an out- side linebacker. Danny Spond slowly returned from a training camp setback. The Irish played nine true freshmen on all their units in Septem- ber, which is more than all but 19 other teams across the country. Diaco said collecting depth along the perim- eter of the defense is still a priority for the coach- ing staff, but what they have built so far allows his players to be better equipped physically and mentally. Dame with a modest, common sense goal for his defense: find ways to keep the points down. In doing so, he and the Irish adopted a bend- but-don't-break philos- ophy in their first two Kelly started at Notre THE NEXT STEP