Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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www.BLUEANDGOLD.com APRIL 2018 31 Not in 2018, though. To get the five best linemen on the field, the tag-team duo had to be split into more likely full-time solo acts under first-year offensive line coach Jeff Quinn. At the start of spring practice March 6, Hainsey' skills were moved to McGlinchey's vacated left tackle spot, where he will protect the quarterback's blind side. Meanwhile, Kraemer remained at right tackle. Yet if Eichenberg proves to be one of the five best linemen, then potentially Kraemer could move down to the vacated left guard slot. "It really doesn't matter," Krae- mer said. "I've played both. I played guard [redshirting in 2016] and I played tackle [in 2017]." Hainsey benefitted tremendously by attending superpower IMG Acad- emy in Bradenton, Fla., where he received exceptional training and coaching to complement trips to foot- ball camps. Enrolling early as a Notre Dame freshman in January 2017 was equally helpful. In the nine previous seasons from 2008-16, 31 offensive linemen were signed by Notre Dame — and 29 of them were redshirted as freshmen, including first-round picks such as Zack Martin in 2009 and Ronnie Stanley in 2012, plus McGlinchey (2013) and Nelson (2014). The only two who did not redshirt also hap- pened to be early enrollees: Trevor Robinson (2008) and Steve Elmer (2013). At the start of last spring, Hainsey was auditioned at guard, but then Hiestand put him out more in space at tackle, where his sound technique compensated for a relatively small 290-pound frame at this level. "What helped me a lot was work- ing with Coach Hiestand's technique, because even though I wasn't the heaviest guy, using that technique worked out for me because he was able to put me in the right position to make blocks," Hainsey said. "[Pass blocking] felt pretty natural, and then taking his coaching points and then trying to apply them to the game helped a lot." Just as vital was assimilating into college life while going through 15 spring practices. "It helped a ton," Hainsey said. "To be able to learn about time manage- ment before the season came — be- cause the season was tough. We had long days, and being able to manage my time correctly because I had pre- vious experience [at Notre Dame in the spring] helped." Possessing maturity well beyond his years, it's clear that Hainsey has a captaincy forthcoming down the road. Competing against and even tasting some success against pro- jected first-round picks such as North Carolina State's Bradley Chubb, Bos- ton College's Harold Landry and Mi- ami's RJ McIntosh buoyed his confi- dence level. "Everyone we played I thought was really good," Hainsey said. "I'm really glad I got the opportunity my freshman year to play against some of these guys that are going to be in the NFL next year and be able to look back and say I played against those guys, learn from it and just use the technique that I learned and be able to make those blocks in those key situations, even though I was only a freshman." Flying solo for longer durations in 2018 under a new instructor will be the next step for both. ✦ Kraemer played an average of 34.1 snaps per contest at right tackle in 2017 and helped the Irish rank seventh nationally in rushing offense (269.5 yards per game). PHOTO BY ANGELA DRISKELL