Notre Dame Football First Spring Practice Videos And Analysis

The Irish took to the field today for the beginning of spring practice.

Spring practice has finally begun.

The Notre Dame football team has recruited well and prepared very hard and efficiently in the new strength and conditioning program led by new Director of Performance – Matt Balis.

There has been a lot of talk about a new attitude and new direction within the program. Here are the videos that were released today of their practice session.

We break down things that we’ve noticed with the personnel of the football team and give our take on improvements that we noticed.

The first thing I picked up on in this video is how active Matt Balis is in practice. There’s something about the energy he brings not only in the weight room, but on the football field. It’s very noticeably and should prove to be an instant upgrade within the football program.

You can see that early enrollee freshman, Isaiah Robertson, looks great physically. He was listed by recruiting services around the 185 to 195 range but he was listed in yesterday’s spring roster at 208 pounds. This is very impressive and he could very well crack the two-deep at free safety.

The tight ends look big, strong and polished. You have to be excited about Alize Mack. He has NFL tight end size with the speed and polished route running of an above average college receiver. I was delighted to see this, yet not surprised.

Brandon Wimbush shows an excellent release. There’s plenty of zip on the ball and his placement looks accurate and well timed. There’s the rhythm there that you want to see. He’s clearly been throwing to his receivers and tight ends often throughout the off season.

I really like the look of Kevin Stepherson’s play. He runs great routes and shows more speed than I anticipated. There’s so much talent at receiver this year. I’m very excited to see how it all shakes out, especially at the X position.

The running backs look primed for success. Adams looks like his regular long, lean self and Dexter shows he’s maintained his explosive burst and quick feet.

Tony Jones Jr. has gotten bigger as well. He was listed at 225 yesterday. He shows great fundamentals and a low center of gravity. I can’t wait to see what he can do out there in ’17.

C.J. Holmes also looks talented. It’ll be hard to get him reps as the fourth back, that’s if Deon McIntosh is still practicing with the receivers at Z. He definitely has natural tools that could help this football team in the upcoming season.

I noticed that C.J. Sanders is taking reps at X receiver. This is something I expect to see more of, receivers moving around to give different looks in an effort to create mismatches – something both Brian Kelly and Chip long have emphasized in their interviews.

Nick Watkins and Shaun Crawford both look healthy after missing most of, or all of in Watkins case, last season. It’s great to see them out there and they look fantastic physically. Watkins’ length looks exceptional in this video.

Donte Vaughn is another player who has added significant weight. At at least 6’2, he is now up to 209 lbs., per yesterday’s updated Spring roster. You have to like the chances of him being a dominant force for the Irish considering the combination of size and skill that he possesses.

Again, Alize Mack looks amazing in this video. I have thoughts of All-American in the back of my mind, although, it’s way too early for those kinds of lofty projections.

Chase Claypool really sticks out as he, too, has raised his bulk to 225 pounds. That’s a big receiver who runs quick, polished routes. He looks far less raw as he did last year after playing his first year of football on American soil.

Ian Book is now at 205 lbs. and shows a nice, crisp throw with good touch. He clearly doesn’t have the zip that Wimbush has on the ball, but his delivery is a warm welcome.

Brock Wright looks like a younger, faster, less physically built version of Durham Smythe. It’ll be interesting to see his progression through spring camp. I’m especially interested to see him block as I’ve heard that is his strong suit.

It’s always great to see these practice clips early in the year. Stay tuned to SlapTheSign.com (@SlapTheSign) for Irish Football practice updates.