IFP Spring Depth Chart Review

Spring is in the air, the Cubs are 17-11 and coming off their best April since the dawn of man, the Boston Celtics are the betting favorite to bring an NBA crown back to Beantown but are struggling to get past the 8th seeded Atlanta Hawks in the first round, IRL and CART signed an historic and Nobel Prize-worthy peace accord in advance of the most eagerly anticipated Indianapolis 500 in years, and Big Brown is looking to parlay a dominant Beyer figure and acceptable dosage profile to win the 134th running of the Kentucky Derby despite only having three lifetime starts. All of which means, of course, that it is time to talk about . . . Notre Dame football.

Budget cuts, labor unrest, and Justin Roberts’ only Park Ridge, Illinois concert appearance of the new millennium prevented the Irish Forum Preview research staff from attending the 2008 Blue Gold game on April 19 in person. IFP is nevertheless happy to provide our loyal readers with the following spring depth chart review, cobbled together from various websites and hard copy print sources, in advance of Mark Kromkowski’s nationally televised Notre Dame football presentation to 10-year NDLS alums at 2008 Reunion Weekend on campus in late May. We will follow up this post with brief spring practice overviews for 2008 Notre Dame opponents and then take a look at the incoming class of 2012 Irish football recruits sometime over the next few weeks (T-ball schedule permitting, of course).

Beat San Diego State!


Offense

Quarterback
While there will probably never be clear, rock solid, absolutes for general public consumption regarding Notre Dame quarterbacks as long as Charlie Weis is in charge, IFP believes it is safe to assume that (a.) Jimmy Clausen had arthroscopic elbow surgery to remove a bone spur before the 2007 season and that procedure affected his preseason conditioning, (b.) the bum flipper affected Clausen’s performance and Charlie Weis’ approach with the QB position coming out of summer camp and throughout the season, and (c.) Clausen did not have any form of elbow surgery this past-off season and his preseason conditioning will reflect such. To that end, the rags and chats unanimously agree that it was a noticeably different, healthy, 210-215 pound version of Clausen under center and getting virtually all the important quarterback reps this spring as compared to the injured, 190-195 pound version from a year ago that split spring snaps pretty much evenly with Evan Sharpley (playing baseball this spring), Demetrius Jones (playing for the Cincinnati Bearcats this spring), and Zach Frazier (playing for the UConn Huskies this spring). The importance of this focused attention cannot be understated --- the need for Clausen to rapidly take the next steps in his development as a quarterback with regards to decision making and dealing with the pass rush almost goes without saying. Clausen came to South Bend as a mechanically sound and talented passer. His primary problems last season were the elbow, which clearly prohibited much of a deep ball option in the Irish passing game, and how he faced the heat of obvious pass rush situations. Clausen was sacked an offensive efficiency-killing 34 times in his 9 starts a year ago and while many of those were due to offensive line breakdowns (see below), many others were simply the result of a young and inexperienced quarterback holding on to the football too long against pass rushers coming at speeds he never encountered in Division III high school ball in California. IFP expects a quantum leap in Clausen’s performance in 2008. He is healthy and has now spent a full year and a half in the program. His talent has never been questioned.

Bottom line? The 2008 Notre Dame Fighting Irish will go where Jimmy Clausen takes them. Call that safe assumption (d.).

Clausen was 10-27 for 183 yards in the Blue-Gold game. He made some plays and made some mistakes as well. His completion percentage for the afternoon wasn’t anything to write home about (although it was hurt by more than a few dropped, catchable balls), he unnecessarily burned a couple timeouts early on, and he was picked off for a score. Clausen connected with Golden Tate on a 57-yarder late in the scrimmage, however, that set up his 8-yard fade route TD pass to Duval Kamara that was the “game winner” for the offense. A successful deep ball setting up a late scoring toss? That alone would be considered progress.

The steady if unspectacular Sharpley (6-2, 210, Marshall, MI, Marshall HS) will likely back up Clausen in 2008. Sharpley spent most of his spring away from football practice enjoying a breakout year with the Notre Dame baseball team (0.340 BA and a team-leading 10 HRs through April 30). Sharpley, who will be a senior this year, did not play in the Blue-Gold game. Highly touted California prep standout Dayne Crist (6-5, 225, Canoga Park, CA, Notre Dame HS) enrolls in the fall.

Offensive Line
A source of continuing concern if not an outright weakness in 2007, the Notre Dame offensive line allowed and untenable (and worst in the nation) 58 sacks last year and were similarly helpless in the running game (75 ypg, 4th worst). Inexperience was a major factor, for sure, given that the 2007 Irish offensive line was one of the youngest and rawest in recent history, although many, including the IFP staff on our darker days, worried about everything from execution to overall talent level to coaching to mental toughness to the Curse of Joe Moore (i.e., the clear lack of production up front since longtime ND offensive line coach Moore’s well-publicized dismissal by Bob Davie and follow-up age discrimination suit in 1996-97). Hopefully Coach Moore, who passed away in 2005, isn’t chain-smoking in heaven, chuckling to himself.

Returning starter and senior Paul Duncan (6-7, 310, Dallas, GA, East Paulding HS) will open at left tackle, swapping spots with junior Sam Young (6-8, 310, Coral Springs, FL, St. Thomas Aquinas) who moves back to right tackle. Of the many possible, technical reasons for the switch, one less publicized view is that Young had a bad right wrist last year and his move to the left side early in the season was, at least in part, to protect his right mitt (which is on the outside and more exposed more for right tackles than left tackles). Whatever the reason, it is IFP’s opinion that flipping offensive line personnel during the season is invariably a bad sign. You see college and even NFL teams try to do it, almost always out of necessity (e.g., lack of quality depth). And it rarely clicks. Hopefully Duncan and Young stay put in their respective slots and begin to dominate like the recruiting rags suggested they could coming out of high school. Duncan was a first-time starter last year whereas Young has started all 25 games of his career and is the most experienced returning member of the Irish offense. Young played right tackle as a freshman and is, in fact, the only Notre Dame offensive lineman to start every game through his first two seasons which is either quite an accomplishment or an indictment of the well-documented lack of offensive line recruiting completed by the previous Notre Dame football coaching regime. It is IFP’s opinion that freshman simply should not have to start on the offensive line at Notre Dame, even USA Today first-team prep All Americans (like Young).

Junior Chris Stewart (6-5, 340, Spring, TX, Klein HS) and junior Eric Olsen (6-4, 305, Staten Island, NY, Brooklyn Poly Prep) will likely open at the guard spots for the Irish offense. Olsen was the starting right guard in 2007 from the UCLA game on. Stewart returns to his natural offensive line role for good after providing depth at nose tackle last spring and then flipping back to offense in the summer. Olsen was the 2005 Gatorade Player of the year in New York and Stewart was a second-team USA Today prep All American.

Junior Dan Wenger (6-4, 300) likely gets the nod at center and while he did not start the majority of the 2007 season, Wenger did step in at center for an injured John Sullivan and start the Duke and Stanford games at the end of the year (note: Sullivan was selected by Minnesota in the 6th round of the NFL Draft last weekend). Wenger was Sam Young’s teammate and classmate at St. Thomas Aquinas HS in Coral Springs.

Senior Mike Turkovich (6-6, 300, Bedford, PA, Valley Ford Military Academy) is the likely “sixth man” for the 2008 Notre Dame offensive line, providing experienced depth at both guard and tackle. Turkovich started every game at left guard a year ago. The Irish are likewise hoping sophomore Matt Romine (6-5, 280, Tulsa, OK, Union HS) can get healthy and provide offensive line depth. Romine lost most of the 2007 season and half of 2008 spring practice to separate injuries.

Running Back
The fight for carries is on. While the official depth chart listed junior James Aldridge (6-0, 220, Crown Point, IN, Merrillville HS) on the top line all spring, sophomores Robert Hughes (5-11, 240) from the Chicago Public League (Hubbard) and Armando Allen (5-11, 190, Opa Locka, FL, Hialeah-Miami Lakes) will both play substantial roles in 2008. Maybe even more so than Aldridge, once the dust settles. Hughes had 22 carries for 100 yards, a TD, and earned offensive MVP honors in the recently completed Blue-Gold scrimmage. Hughes is more of a battering ram/bellcow type than Aldridge or Allen. Allen had 50 yards on 11 carries and Aldridge had 18 yards on 6 carries in the spring scrimmage. Charlie has not tipped his hand in the slightest regarding his intentions with this trio. The Irish showed very little in the way of two-back sets during the Blue-Gold game, however, opting more toward three-wide/no fullback looks, leaving 6-0, 265 pound senior FB Asaph Schwapp (Hartford, CT, Weaver, HS) out for the most part. In a word of caution, though, the IFP staff has learned to extrapolate very little from formations, distributions of carries, or anything else offensively important from Notre Dame spring games in the Weis era. Junior Jabbie’s game high 13 carries and 87 yards rushing in the 2007 Blue-Gold Game come to mind.

IFP does suspect, however, that Aldridge might be the odd man out in 2008, at least early on, given Hughes’ power and late season surge (246 yards rushing on 35 carries in the Duke and Stanford games) and Allen’s speed. Being better able to shed the initial hit will go a long way toward making Allen the game breaker Irish fans expect him to be. There is no doubt the necessary speed this there. As a wise Notre Dame fan once said, “Just because you get hit, doesn’t mean you have to go down.”

Wide Receiver
A 2007 honorable mention Sporting News Freshman All American, Duval Kamara (6-5, 225, Hoboken, NJ, Hoboken HS) will likely start at the ‘X’ receiver spot (split end). From a pure physical tools perspective, Kamara stands out from his Notre Dame receiver peers and his 32 catches a year ago broke Tim Brown’s freshman record (his 4 touchdown catches a year ago were likewise the most ever by a Notre Dame frosh). Kamara’s 8-yard jump ball touchdown catch from Clausen at the end of the Blue-Gold scrimmage was a spring highlight. Developing consistency as a route runner and a pass catcher have to be next on Kamara’s to do list. He has the tools to be sitting in the ‘Green Room’ on draft day a couple Aprils from now but tools alone won’t get him there. He must put in the work.

Who will start at ‘Y’ (flanker), who is the third receiver when the Irish go three wide, and who are the primary backups at all three spots is less clear. Senior David Grimes (5-10, 175, Detroit, MI, DePorres HS), who will be one of the Fighting Irish captains in 2008, is probably the first choice at ‘Y’ and junior George West (5-8, 200, Spencer, OK, Northeast Academy) is likewise an experienced option. The big play potential of sophomore Golden Tate (5-11, 185, Hendersonville, TN, Pope John Paul II HS), however, cannot be ignored. Tate, a high school running back playing WR for the first time last season, had a 57-yard catch late in the Blue-Gold game that may have been the highlight of the scrimmage and his 3 catch, 1 TD, 104 yard day vs. Purdue last year was a lone bright spot on an otherwise crappy day for the Irish (note: Tate missed some spring football due to baseball obligations as well, but not as much as Sharpley). Likewise, junior Robby Parris (6-3, 205, Olmstead Falls, OH, St. Ignatius) demonstrated last year that he has a nice combination of hands and size and can contribute as part of the rotation. Parris’ 361 receiving yards led Irish WRs last year (Kamara had 357). After these five, senior D. J. Hord (6-1, 195, Lee’s Summit MO, Kansas City Rockhurst HS) is probably next in line.

More is expected from this group, frankly. More consistency, more big plays, more work, more leadership. Coach Weis pretty much let the world know he was unhappy with the inconsistency of his WRs this spring and with the dropped balls in the Blue-Gold game in particular. If IFP is reading the tea leaves correctly, this group has been formally called out and will be under major, uncomfortable scrutiny this summer; scrutiny of the “show up ready to play and play every day or be ready to sit because there is talent behind you” variety. To that end, IFP has a sneaking suspicion that highly touted, incoming freshman wide receiver Michael Floyd (6-4, 195, St. Paul, MN, Cretin-Durham Hall HS) could see some playing time in the fall.

Tight End
The Irish are probably thinner at tight end, depth-wise, than anywhere right now, creating a huge opportunity for sophomore Mike Ragone (6-5, 240, Cherry Hill, NJ, Camden Catholic) if you do the math. Ragone likely gets the nod to replace productive John Carlson for the 2008 Irish and attempt to continue the march of Charlie Weis-coached Notre Dame tight ends to the NFL (ref., Anthony Fasano, the 2nd round pick of the Dallas Cowboys in 2006 and Carlson, the 2nd round selection of the Seattle Seahawks last weekend). Ragone backed up Carlson last year and was easily the fastest TE on the roster, but had only one catch in limited offensive minutes as a freshman. Ragone was a very highly touted recruit (#3 tight end in his class per Rivals.com, #2 by Lemming) despite sitting out his senior year of high school due to an off-season injury. A former high school heavyweight wrestler of similar acclaim, Ragone had a nice 23-yard catch in tight coverage during the Blue-Gold game that set up a 31-yard Brandon Walker FG. Ragone was the only scholarship tight end on the roster this spring, but help is on the way. Highly recruited, USA Today first team All American tight end Kyle Rudolph (6-7, 235, Cincinnati, OH, Elder HS) enrolls in the fall.

Given the lack of numbers at the position (which was not helped by Will Yeatman’s indefinite suspension), junior Luke Schmidt (6-3, 250, Jasper, IN, Jasper HS) was asked to slide up to the line of scrimmage from his fullback slot, where he is battling Schwapp for PT, and play some tight end this spring as well. And if the season started today, Schmidt would probably be the back-up TE. Schmidt, who was the 2005 Gatorade High School Player of the Year in Indiana, was a running back in high school and a busy one at that (73 TDs, 4,600+ yards rushing in his junior and senior years combined).


Defense

Defensive End
If the season started this weekend, junior Morrice Richardson (6-2, 245, College Park, GA, Westlake HS) would get the first call at replacing the almost irreplaceable Trevor Laws at one defensive end. Richardson, the leading tackler in the BG scrimmage with 7 stops, is much more of a speed rusher than a powerful run stopper like Laws (who was selected in the 2nd round by the Philadelphia Eagles last weekend), perhaps reinforcing the “pressure package” and “dictating to the offense” and “never let the quarterback set his feet”-type quotes often cited from both Defensive Coordinator Corwin Brown and newly hired Assistant Head Coach/Defense John Tenuta this spring. Fifth-year senior and returning starter Justin Brown (6-3, 260, Clinton, MD, Bishop McNamara) would line up opposite Richardson at the other end. Brown had 30 tackles and 3.5 tackles for loss a year ago. Junior John Ryan (6-5, 255, Westlake, OH, St. Ignatius), however, probably figures in the defensive end mix as well and may force his way into the lineup before August is over. Ryan, who started 10 games last year (8 at LB, 2 at DE), sat out spring ball recovering from shoulder surgery. Sophomore Emeka Nwankwo (6-4, 285, Miramar, FL, Chaminade-Madonna Prep) will provide depth at DE.

Nose Tackle
Football Writers Association of America Freshman All American Ian Williams (6-2, 300, Altamonte Springs, FL, Lyman) returns for his sophomore year at nose tackle for the 2008 Fighting Irish. Williams’ 47 stops in 2007 were the 3rd most ever by a Notre Dame freshman. Williams was a key backup a year ago, playing in all 12 games and starting the final two.

There is likewise talk of Pat Kunz, the primary NT in 2007, returning and contributing this fall, although IFP is not quite sure how that would work given he is not enrolled in school right now.

Linebackers
Fifth year senior, 2008 captain, and Weis favorite Maurice Crum Jr. (6-0, 235, Riverview, FL, Tampa Bay Tech HS), the pulse of the Irish defense, returns at MLB. Crum Jr. will likely crack the Notre Dame Top 10 all time tackler list somewhere around the 2nd quarter of the Washington game this year. Toryan Smith (6-1, 245, Rome, GA, Rome HS), who had two starts in 2007 and a 25 yard interception return for a touchdown vs. Boston College’s all everything QB Matt Ryan a year ago, probably starts at the other MLB slot in the Notre Dame 3-4 this fall. Sophomore Brian Smith (6-3, 235, Overland Park, KS, St. Thomas Aquinas) should start at strongside OLB (SAM) and sophomore Kerry Neal (6-2, 240, Bunn, NC, Bunn HS) is the likely candidate at weakside OLB (WILL). Neal forced his way into the lineup with noticeable hustle and playmaking ability last year, starting 5 games, notching 20 tackles and 2 sacks on the year. B. Smith had likewise cracked the starting lineup by the end of the season (25 tackles, 1.5 sacks) and he had two sacks in the Blue-Gold game this year.

Cornerback
Fifth-year senior, and likely the 3rd of three 5th year seniors that will start on defense for the Irish this fall, Terrail Lambert (5-11, 195, Oxnard, CA, St. Bonaventure) returns at one corner. Lambert, a 3-year starter with 22 consecutive games started leading up to the 2008 opener vs. San Diego State, has more in-game experience than anybody on the roster. Lambert has 4 career INTs and may have had the biggest hit of the BG scrimmage, laying some serious lumber on Armando Allen that took Allen a few minutes to recover from (evidence of the let’s-see-who-wants-to-play mentality that Weis + Staff imposed throughout what has been reported as the most physical 15-practice Notre Dame spring slate in recent memory). Junior Darrin Walls (6-0, 180, Pittsburgh, PA, Woodland Hills) will start opposite Lambert at the other corner. Walls “blew up” during 2007 spring ball and cracked the starting lineup as a sophomore. He was the primary nickel option as a freshman and a second team USA Today prep All American as a senior in high school. As bad as last year was, the Irish secondary actually held their own more than most would think, thanks in large part to the presence of Lambert and Walls. And while IFP won’t say the Irish have the best pair of corners in the country, we do believe that, more importantly, nobody on Notre Dame’s 2008 schedule has a better pair.

Junior Raeshon McNeil (6-0, 185, Cooleemee, NC, Davie County HS) will back-up both Lambert and Walls and play nickelback for the 2008 Irish when situations call for an extra DB. McNeil had an 11-yard sack in the Blue-Gold scrimmage during the first series of the game and broke up a couple passes during the afternoon. And in case anyone doubts that McNeil was all over the field during the scrimmage, the well-publicized skirmish in the middle of the scrimmage was, in fact, prompted by a McNeil punch (for which he got some quality face time from Charlie). A lot is likewise expected from highly touted sophomore CB Gary Gray (Columbia, SC, Richland Northeast HS), who missed the entire 2007 season recovering from shoulder surgery after enrolling early in January.

Safety
Senior Kyle McCarthy (6-1, 205,Youngstown, OH, Cardinal Mooney) likely gets the first crack at replacing departing four-year starter Tom Zbikowski at strong safety. McCarthy earned high praise from the defensive staff for his work this spring and had 6 tackles in the BG scrimmage. But he has company at strong safety as the coaching staff appears intent on finding somewhere for sophomore Harrison Smith (6-2, 205, Knoxville, TN, Knoxville Catholic) to play, either at strong safety, or outside linebacker, or some form of SS/OLB hybrid or “monster” back. Harrison, who intercepted a Clausen pass and returned it 15 yards for a touchdown in the BG scrimmage and earned Defensive MVP honors for the day, has probably made as rapid an ascent up the depth chart as anyone this spring. He’ll play this fall . . . somewhere. As such, memorize the program before the games, gang, because IFP is counting three ‘Smiths’ among the top 11 on the defensive side of the ball right now (Toryan, Brian, and Harrison).

Senior co-captain David Bruton (6-2, 205, Miamisburg, OH, Miamisburg HS) returns at free safety and he has simply gotten better every year. Bruton had 85 tackles as a junior last season, the most 2007 tackles of any returning starter, along with 3 interceptions. IFP actually believes that Bruton may have as much “play on Sunday” potential, right now, as anyone on the Irish two-deep. Junior Jashaad Gaines (6-0, 205, Las Vegas, NV, Las Vegas HS) will probably back up Bruton at FS.


Special Teams

Kicker
Sophomore Brandon Walker (6-3, 195, Findlay, OH, Findlay HS), the first left-footed Notre Dame kicker since Harry Oliver, will probably hold off junior Ryan Burkhart (5-11, 195, Wakarusa, IN, Northwood HS) for the place kicker role this fall. Walker hit 22 of 23 PATs last year but was only 6-12 on FGs, a rate that will have to improve.

Punter
Eric Maust (6-1, 185, Alpharetta, GA, Blessed Trinity HS) replaces the graduated (and decorated) Geoff Price at punter. Maust filled in for an injured Price in four games a year ago. A third 2008 ND football player with baseball ties, Maust is a key starting right-handed pitcher for the Irish (5-1, 2.95 ERA)

References
www.und.com
www.cstv.com
www.espn.com
Chicago Tribune
South Bend Tribune