Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/871976
6 SEPT. 18, 2017 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED BY LOU SOMOGYI I f there is one position in football other than quarterback where an in-game rotation is generally not recommended, it's along the offen- sive line. Continuity and chemistry among those front five players is at a premium. Nevertheless, in this year's opener against Temple, the snaps at right tackle were split relatively evenly between sophomore starter Tommy Kraemer (43) and freshman Robert Hainsey (32), with both either enter- ing the contest the ensuing series or replacing the other during a drive. Shortly afterward, Notre Dame head coach Brian Kelly stated that neither he nor offensive line coach Harry Hiestand feel compelled to play only one of them among the four other established senior or fifth- year senior starters in the lineup. Kraemer was the top-ranked Irish recruit in the 2016 class (No. 41 nationally) while Hainsey was at No. 108 this past cycle, and behind only tight ends Brock Wright (No. 44) and Cole Kmet (No. 95) in the 21- man class. The competition between Kraemer and Hainsey is deemed beneficial to both now and the future. "I think we'll leave that open- ended in terms of whether we'll have two guys there or not," said Kelly, who lauded the performance of both in their college football debuts. Hainsey did commit the only two penalties on offense with illegal pro- cedure infractions, but the early en- rollee from superpower Bradenton (Fla.) IMG Academy has made his presence felt since the spring with advanced technique for his age. Among the 35 offensive linemen who have signed with Notre Dame since 2007, Hainsey joined Trevor Robin- son (2008) and Steve Elmer (2013) as the only ones not to be redshirted. Robinson and Elmer likewise were early enrollees who participated in spring drills. "I kind of like playing both of them right now, but we'll see how that goes," Kelly said. "I don't want to be married to one concept there. I think we'll let that kind of play itself out and see where it goes." All five tight ends on scholarship had a role, with the freshman Wright lined up in a classic fullback position in the I-formation for short-yardage situations. The one surprise was that because of using multiple backs or tight ends, less of the wideout corps was uti- lized, with neither junior C.J. Sanders — who caught 24 passes last year — nor classmate Miles Boykin inserted on offense. Meanwhile, on defense, 27 players were inserted against Temple, and 25 had a minimum of 10 snaps versus the Owls. It wasn't merely a case of mop-up duty either in the 49-16 rout. Most, especially freshman interior tackles Kurt Hinish (24 snaps) and Myron Tagovailoa-Amosa (20 snaps), were inserted prior to the end of the first quarter. Notre Dame defensive line coach Mike Elston had said that 50 snaps in a game often is the threshold for even some of the game's best linemen, yet in recent years players such as Isaac Rochell have taken 60, 70 and even more regularly, often resulting in di- minishing returns in November. Versus Temple, 11 of his linemen took between 11 to 45 snaps, with ju- nior nose tackle Jerry Tillery leading the way. Junior tackle Micah Dew- Treadway also was projected to play but was sidelined with a knee strain. Part of the more liberal rotation is because there is not, for now at least, a dominant figure such as a Stephon Tuitt in 2012, so the strategy is to go more by committee because there isn't a significant disparity between the top units. At linebacker (including rover), five different players rotated at the three starting positions for 34 to 50 snaps, with captain Nyles Morgan's 50 at the Mike the team high. "We'll continue to do that," Kelly said the week of preparation for the Georgia game. UNDER THE DOME IN DEPTH The lineup rotation is more evident in certain areas Sophomore Tommy Kraemer (78) got the start at right tackle and played 43 snaps in the season opener against Temple Sept. 2, while his backup, freshman Robert Hainsey, saw action on 32 snaps. PHOTO BY BILL PANZICA