Notre Dame Football: Brian Kelly Kicks Off Spring With Knowledge Bombs
What fresh news did Notre Dame and Brian Kelly have for the media?
Notre Dame and Brian Kelly kicked off spring football with his annual press conference that had a lot of information embedded in it. Color me a little bit surprised. Sure, I was confident we would hear a few nuggets that perhaps no one was talking about since the bowl game, but I didn’t think it would be much.
It felt like they had a list to nail on the church door, and behind Kelly’s pulpit, he let ND Nation in on what was happening with the Notre Dame football program. Let’s chew on some of these thoughts for a moment…
Doug Randolph’s football career is over.
Defensive end Doug Randolph from Virgina (and the same high school as Greer Martini and CJ Prosise) is not cleared for competition. Randolph has been plagued with injuries since his arrival at Notre Dame, and now he has a “narrowing of the spine,” as Brian Kelly put it. He will stay on as a student assistant much in the same way that Tony Springman (another defensive end) did a few years ago.
It’s really too bad. I always liked the possibilities of what Randolph would bring to the table at defensive end, and now a thin position group this spring gets that much thinner.
Test results raise many eyebrows.
While Notre Dame has always listed the weight gains and losses (at least since Brian Kelly started) I can’t remember when we were given info on NFL combine-like test results such as the 40 yard dash and verticals.
What we were given was that name- that special spring name that will roll off of everyone’s lips. That name was junior wide receiver Corey Holmes. Holmes ran a blistering 4.39 40 yard dash and had an incredible 41 inch vertical jump. He was redshirted last year after playing sparingly in his freshman campaign. Now it seems, he is one of many names that look to fill the void left by Will Fuller, Chris Brown, and Amir Carlilse.
Other notable times included Torii Hunter Jr.’s 4.42 40 and CJ Sanders 4.49 40. Essentially, and likely, we could see a trips pairing of Hunter, Sanders, and Holmes for a blazing wide receiver unit- or you could throw in either Equanimeous St. Brown or Kevin Stepherson who both ran a 4.5 and the unit would still be greasy fast. CATCHING CHICKENS IN THE COURTYARD MICK!
SWITCH!
With spring football of course comes position switches somewhere. This year, that honor belongs to two different players. Jacob Matuska will head over to tight end from his defensive line spot, while John Montelus will fill that empty defensive line space (literally and figuratively) after being moved off of the offensive line. Montelus lost some weight this offseason which should help him with the switch.
Matuska could be an interesting player this spring and fall after the departures of Tyler Luatua and Chase Hounshell- both of whom were used as in line blockers. Matuska has the toughness to really help at that position.
New staff members.
While the coaching staff is intact, the G.A. and support staff saw some changes. There are four new G.A.’s and they are Clay Bignell, Pryce Tracy, Harland Bauer, and Matt Biagi.
We won’t dive too deep into this one as I barely know what or who they are. Regardless, I’m sure they will work their ass off to impress Kelly and help advance their careers- so that’s good I suppose.
One other note is that Jeff Quinn may end up being a lifer at Notre Dame and biding his time to take over at an assistant level. He moves from his Offensive Analyst job to Assistant Strength and Conditioning. At some point in the next year or two- I’m betting he becomes
a real boy and not a wooden puppet
a real assistant.
M.A.S.H. Report
Only two players will be held out of all of spring and they are linebackers Te’von Coney and Greer Martini. Other players that will do one thing or the other but probably no contact are Drue Tranquill, Tarean Folston, Shawn Crawford, Devin Butler, Daelin Hayes, and Alex Bars.
Obligatory Quarterback Note
While I have already professed a great disinterest in the “quarterback battle” this spring, it is interesting to note that Brandon Wimbush was mentioned. Wimbush has already been stated to be redshirting this season- but what did you expect? Did you think Kelly would let Wimbush take it easy this spring- knowing that he is one play away from being the guy that comes in for the guy after the next horrific injury?
Next: Top 10 Irish Quarterbacks
Duh. WELCOME TO SPRING Y’ALL!