Notre Dame Football: Top 10 Players of the Brian Kelly Era
By Jack Leniart
2. Quenton Nelson, OG
Nelson is a boulder-sized man who has been appropriately nicknamed “The Human Lie Detector.” Regardless of what you say or how you look, he will tell you and show you whether or not you are a good player.
Scouts and analysts fell head over heels for Nelson during the 2017 season –which is extremely rare for an offensive guard.
Nelson didn’t see the field until his second year at Notre Dame. He started eleven games as a sophomore — missing two games due to an ankle injury. He avoided the injury bug and started every game in the subsequent two seasons.
Nelson was named a team captain before the start of the 2017 season and he shined in that leadership role. He was selected with the sixth overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft.
1. Jaylon Smith, LB
Smith is one of the most talented players Notre Dame has seen in some time. He basically held together Brian VanGorder’s defense in 2014 and 2015 before leaving for the NFL. That’s saying something.
The coaching staff knew they had a special player the second Smith stepped on campus. He earned a starting job as a true freshman in 2013 and would go on to start every single game over the next three seasons before declaring for the NFL Draft.
Smith’s big frame and elite athleticism made him a menace to opposing offenses. He was projected to be an early first-round draft pick before suffering a serious knee injury in the 2015 Fiesta Bowl.
Next: Top 10 Wins of the Brian Kelly Era
Despite the fact that his injury would require at least a year of recovery and rehab, he was selected with the thirty-fourth overall pick in the draft.