While everyone is talking about the lack of depth at RB it really is a sign that we are thin at WR. Theo Riddick was a RB and could have been move back to that position if we had more experienced talent in the slot. Other than Toma who else is a slot receiver? I think that Atkinson gives some depth at WR and if Wood goes down Riddick may have to move back to RB.
Speaking of depth at RB....Pete Sampson says that Te'o is lobbying the staff to let him be the short yardage goal line RB/FB. Personally I'm against it, I know that there have been guys who do that, most recently the kid from Stanford who last year scored on us playing fB and on a int as LB. But I'd just as soon he concentrated on being a great AA MLB. Of course I might tell him that he can do it as a Sr!! :roll:
No way. No experience carrying the ball that I know of. An additional chance to get dinged up. His presence would only telegraph the play unless he was a decoy.
Rivals preseason eval of the Irish. Pretty fair. Has us ranked #13 which to me is a tad high given all the questions we have and playing a tough schedule.
Our friend, the guy in Red, the TRAIN guy...got derailed yesterday in South Bend. Irish Womens Soccer team beat the Huskers 5-0...I believe that is about the same as 65-0 in mens football isn't it!!
Looks like Fox is giving Carlo a battle in camp. That's good for both of them and hopefully says a lot about our depth on defense.
from BGI..... Personnel Issues Junior Carlo Calabrese has had a very professional approach to his first week of training camp, according to the coaching staff, and has separated himself a bit from Dan Fox at the Will linebacker position. from Sports Illustrated... On the defensive side of the ball, the Fighting Irish return nine starters from a unit that ranked 30th in the nation last season. The backbone of the D will be the linebacking corps, with tough junior Manti Te'o and breakout sophomore Carlo Calabrese leading the way. Hard-hitting safety Harrison Smith spearheads a secondary which drastically improved as 2010 progressed. Read more: http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2011/football/ncaa/08/09/notre-dame-preview/index.html#ixzz1UiSSW4lZ
Sadly former Michigan player and Notre Dame coach, Corwin Brown, is involved in a SWAT standoff at his home in Granger (suburb of South Bend). I hope they can talk him out of the house before he harms himself.
He was riding high till Charlie brought Tenuta in and then he really became the DCoord in name only, he was a great recruiter though. Last year he coached the Patriots but was fired at the end of the season. I saw an aritcle that said "sources" on the team said he was a great guy but not a very good coach and that's why he was let go. He was unemployed this year. Quite a come down for a guy who after his first year at ND, guys were saying they thought he'd get a HC job pretty quick and they hoped though that he'd stay around. On the rise to down and out of work...had to be very difficult to deal with. I hope he's ok and can get his life back together again.
Now for some positive stuff. Troy Niklas from JO'Co area (Servite), is having a great camp for a true freshman. When I saw his video of his signing day routine, I thought man that kid looks like a basketball player not a football player. But apparently the kid can play!! Kelly on Niklas Q: And Troy Niklas? BK: He’s a guy that can play both the “cat” and the “dog.” His ability to play in space is extraordinary. Whatever adjective that you would use, you would throw one on that kid. His nickname is Hercules. He’s a pretty special kid. Also reading that Crist and Rees are in a very tight battle for QB. Good for them competition means both will have to stay focused and on point for the fall camp. I'll make both of them better players.
I and many others out here were amazed at the lack of reaction from Notre Dame fans when Niklas signed with the Irish. Kelly already had Lynch and Tuitt and Ishaq, so the reaction was like "Oh how nice, another defensive end." He's not just another good player as the coaches are finding out. He's over 6'6" and weighs 260lbs coming in. He might have been the best lineman on either side of the ball in the entire state of California and USC wanted him very, very, bad. He comes from a Trojan family that named him "Troy" so you can imagine what a downer this was for the locals to lose a player like that. He was one of the precious few "Best in the Western United States" who wasn't grabbed by USC or Oregon. Mater Dei coach Bruce Rollinson called Niklas "the best player that we saw all year" and he should know. Mater Dei had beaten arch-rival Servite twenty years in-a-row before Niklas came along. Servite has now beaten the Monarchs the last two years. <object><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/C4avyusQ2is?version=3"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/C4avyusQ2is?version=3" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" allowScriptAccess="always" width="640" height="390"></object>
In looking for a clip of Troy Niklas, I found something that I think you fans of Catholic school football will get a kick out of. It's the "Hut Drill." All Catholic schools have great traditions and most of them take their football way too seriously. This is a typical example. The school that I went to, Damien High School, was no different and we also performed the Hut Drill before and after every game and practice, rain or shine. Here's Servite doing the Hut Drill after defeating Mater Dei. They're the originators of the Hut Drill and they have performed it since the early 1950's when the school opened... <object><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/M_8TpHZEplo?version=3"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/M_8TpHZEplo?version=3" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" allowScriptAccess="always" width="640" height="390"></object>
:idea: The little thing at the end is where you stamp your feet backwards like a bull does right before it charges. It's also been described as "wiping your feet on an opponent" but it's done after defeat as well as victory...
I read that Carlo has nailed down the LB position next to Te'o. Has had a great fall camp. Also that the battle between Rees and Crist has been a great one Tommy having really improved from last year and seriously challenging Dayne for the starting job. Competition!!!