Notre Dame Link Storm: A Hands-On Offseason
By Evan Reller
Apr 12, 2014; Notre Dame, IN, USA; Notre Dame Fighting Irish quarterback Everett Golson (5) hands the ball off in the first quarter of the Blue-Gold game at Notre Dame Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matt Cashore-USA TODAY Sports
Notre Dame has been awfully quiet this offseason. The football program is looking at a fairly heavy rebuild after 13 players headed off for the NFL.
The Irish will need to rebuild large portions of the defense and will have a battle at the quarterback position. The 2014 schedule looks awfully favorable for Notre Dame and the team should be looking at another 10 win season.
An AP story talked to coach Brian Kelly about new NCAA rules going into effect this summer. Coaches can now work with players for eight hours a week, but at the price of the time strength and conditioning coaches get with the players. The early workouts gave the coaches a chance to look at wide receiver DaVaris Daniels, recently reinstated at Notre Dame, along with quarterback Everett Golson, who returned from academic dismissal.
Matt Fortuna at ESPN answers questions from his Mailbag. He breaks down the schedule a bit, noting the tough end to the regular season. Fortuna also looks at the quarterback battle between Golson and Malik Zaire. Golson has the inside track, but Zaire could push him in camp and Brian Kelly isn’t afraid to utilize multiple QBs.
JJ Stankevitz at CSN Chicago took a look at linebacker Jarrett Grace’s recovery plan. Grace fractured his leg against Arizona State last October and has since had two operations to repair it. Kelly is optimistic that he’ll be ready to go by the August 30th season opener against Rice.
In recruiting news, the Irish have a consensus Top 15 draft class for the coming season. ESPN and Rivals both have them with the 11th best classes in the country. The class consists of 14 3-star players, depending on which ratings you are looking at. Notre Dame will likely fill the holes left vacant by the NFL Draft and graduation with relative ease.
Jamie Uyeyama at One Foot Down looks over future recruiting options at quarterback after Blake Barnett decommitted. There are a number of options, but the quality is questionable this late in the recruiting cycle for 2015.
The Notre Dame athletic office is offering fans a chance to own a piece of the field. A new turf is being laid for the 2014 season and fans now have the chance to buy sections of the old sod.