Next man up. Our depth will be tested. Going forward, the most successful programs will be those who best adapt to the changing circumstances. I'm not sorry about Mayer and Fosky et al. I'm just glad I got to watch them while they were with us. If our coaching staff is going to be successful in the long run, as certain others have been in the past, they'll build quality depth through recruiting, similar to what Alabama - the gold standard of this era - has done.
Building quality depth is next to impossible going forward. The "depth" enters the portal. Successful recruiting of high school talent is now a distant second to being able to attract disenfranchised talent from other programs. You get a more mature, game-day ready talent vs a high school kid who has to be developed. I'm guessing that the more successful programs of the future will be those that churn through at least 15-20 transfers per season.
Irish lost a RB recruit, Dylan Edwards, interestingly he got an offer from a family friend who just got the HC job at Colorado. Dylans dad knew Sanders from when they both coached in a Youth football league in Dallas. We still have 2 RB commits in the class but another one is looking around, Jayden Limar who is looking at Oregon and UCLA. He's a West Coast kid. If he bails that leaves just Jeremiyah Love , but the RB room could be crowded if Tyree comes back and add in Diggs, Estime, and the freshmen who didn't play (injuries) Price and Payne.
George, I respectfully disagree that it's "next to impossible" to build quality depth. It'll take several years to determine the full impact of the transfer portal on roster management, but my impression currently is that; 1) with exceptions, many transfers are not starting players in their programs and are looking for more playing time. I read somewhere that the vast majority of these players from power 5 or similar programs land in programs at mid-levels or lower; 2) some high-level transfers, e.g., Coan, with one year of eligibility can fill gaps in depth charts caused by shortages of experience at specific positions; 3) Just a guess on my part that incoming transfers will come close to filling roster spots left by outgoing transfers and/or graduating players who otherwise might have been asked to stay for a 5th year to round out experienced depth but now will be allowed to leave. Put all those possibilities together, and they won't impact traditional recruiting much if at all. Like I said, it remains to be seen, but IMO teams with strong coaching and recruiting still will be able to build quality depth through a well-balanced strategy of recruiting and transfer portal. Time will tell.
Bit of a surprise to ND fans that Michael Mayer did not win the Mackey Award as the best TE in college football. It went to Brock Bowers of Georgia who is a really good TE for sure, but he's not as good as Mayer iMHO.
I’ve put the Mackey award in the same trash bag as the Pulitzer Prize (NY Times for Russia collusion) and the Nobel Peace Prize (Obama.)
Terry, you won't find anyone remotely connected with ND, or who saw Mayer play, who will disagree with you, including me. What really matters in the end is that he'll be drafted ahead of Bowers. Count on it.
If you watch Bowers on the plays he's not involved with, you would really be impressed. Great hands, great routes and great blocker.
No I have watched him play and he is as I said really good and likely will be a 1st round choice as well. I just think my guy Mayer is better. FWIW Mayer has been named 1st team AA on CBS and The Athletic. I'm sure more are to come. I think he be very successful in the Pros if he goes somewhere that has a good QB. If he came to Houston I pitty him!
Bowers had a NC winning QB throwing to him all season. Poor Mayer got stuck with a backup who hit the portal the minute it opened. Despite that Mayer had more catches for more yards and more TDs.
I'm a big fan of all that Mayer has accomplished and think he's the best TE in the country but at the same time Brock Bowers is a really good TE as well and he's worthy of the award as well. Sure he did play for a better team but when you watch him play you can tell he's really good. BTW I see that Marcus Freeman said that there are no more transfers coming at this time and no more players opting out of the Bowl game for the NFL. I salute Jarett Patterson and Josh Lugg for manning up and not abandoning their teammates and finishing the season with them. I hope they are rewarded with a good bowl performance and an Irish win.
George many of the old feelings of loyalty no longer seem to exist. I think that's what most of us older folk seem to miss and frown upon. Thinks have changed drastically over the years. We now have a me generation and the rules have been altered by the youngsters.
Don, with the utmost respect, I find that members of the younger generation are smart, self-motivated, and adaptable. It's pretty common for the older folks of each generation - those of grandparent age - to complain about the younger generation. I'm sure our grandparents looked at our generation and crossed their fingers and prayed, but on the whole we turned out OK. It's easy to judge the whole by the conduct of a few but IMO it's a mistake to do so. I don't like some of the changes or some of the conduct I've seen, not only by the younger generation, but by members of our generation. Nevertheless, I'm comfortable that we're in good hands for the future.