2008 Fighting Irish Fall Practice Review

Floyd has been creating his own buzz in the Fall with complete wide receiver play. He arrived on campus with the size and strength necessary to contribute immediately, and hasn’t done anything to disappoint so far. Running excellent routes, showing good strength blocking, and snagging just about everything around him, Floyd should see the field a lot in 2008.

Freshmen Deion Walker and John Goodman have also shown flashes of greatness in practice. Walker is a very fluid route runner with the ability to get yards after the catch. Goodman has shown great speed. While both need to add size and strength to consistently contribute, the future looks bright for these two freshmen.

Tight End

The tight end position has been a recruiting dream under Weis. The athleticism of the tight ends on the Irish roster is second to none. The depth chart took a blow with the knee injury of Mike Ragone as he was slated to be the starter and looked poised for a breakout year after a good showing in the Blue & Gold game. It’s a tough break for the sophomore who worked diligently in the off-season to add the size and strength needed to shore up his blocking skills.

Behind Ragone are a trio of talented, albeit inexperienced players. Juniors Will Yeatman and Luke Schmidt give the Irish flexibility. Both are solid blockers and receivers with Yeatman playing more on the line and Schmidt likely taking on a H-back role. Schmidt, in particular, looks very comfortable after moving from fullback last Spring. His blocking technique and physicality at the point of attack will prove to be valuable assets for the Irish running game.

The wildcard in the mix is freshmen Kyle Rudolph. Anointed with the starting duties by Weis, Rudolph comes to Notre Dame with much acclaim. He has great size at 6’6” and 250 lbs with a frame that can handle more weight. For his size, Rudolph possesses good speed and agility, giving him the edge over Yeatman and Schmidt in stretching the field. He also has great hands, catching the ball away from his body. The knock on Rudolph may be his blocking ability. While his technique makes up for a strength deficiency, improvement will be needed if he is to become more than just a situational player in 2008.

Offensive Line

Arguably no other unit was more maligned in 2007 than the offensive line. The word on the street is that the unit is improved. However, the little practice footage available doesn’t definitively confirm this.

As mentioned above, the offensive line added size across the entire two deep in the off-season. At times in practice they have looked slow coming off the ball, possibly an artifact of the added weight. Many of the offensive linemen have shown improved technique, staying low, engaging the defender, and keeping their feet driving. When they are able to get good hand position, they usually win the battle as their size and strength prove to be good assets. Cutting the splits down has also led to fewer untouched defenders in the backfield by minimizing space and playing to their size advantage.

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