At Brian Kelly's Navy-week press conference, the Notre Dame head coach touched on what he sees from Navy's offense, linebacker Drew White's development since they played the Midshipmen last season, what they saw in former-Navy player Alohi Gilman and more.
Kelly: “All right. Certainly, like to build off last week's performance both offensively and defensively. We know our opponent very well. I have a great deal of respect for Navy and Ken Niumatalolo and what he has done this year in particular. He's really just put together a really good football team in all phases, offense, defense, special teams.
“Malcolm Perry is a dynamic offensive player. I think he's top 15 in the country in rushing and he's the No. 1 rushing quarterback in the country. Dynamic, explosive player. Last year he played slot. He didn't play quarterback. Now he's back at the quarterback. He's precise, very secure with the football. He's a point guard, distributing, making really good decisions. Very difficult to defend.
“Obviously the triple option, they lead the country in rushing offense. I'm telling you probably everything that you already know. Just a very difficult team to defend. We know them well, and each game is a very difficult game because you're preparing only two or three days for a very, very good and efficient offense.
“Defensively they've done a great job, the changes that they've made. I think what's impressive is the top offenses that they've played, they've kept them to over 100 yards less than their normal averages. Their rush defense is outstanding. They've been very aggressive.
“So from a transformational standpoint, their defense is so much better at everything that they do from coverage to getting after the quarterback, tackling. Again, it shows statistically in terms of where they are and how they're playing.
"Really good football team. Deserving of being nationally ranked, and will be a great challenge for us as we prepare for them this week. So, again, another clash against a very, very well-coached football team in Navy.
“With that, open it up to questions.”
On Drew White’s development since last year’s Navy game:
Kelly: “Yeah, well I think everybody gets their opportunity and chance, and when you get it you need to make best of it. I think he made the best of his one opportunity and chance, and that was his one opportunity.
“Option football requires a discipline. It requires knowledge and awareness. Those instincts obviously serve you well at that position, middle linebacker position. So I think it was a glimpse of things that were to come.
“He obviously was set back with an injury in the spring, but he fought through that and put himself in a position where that game was not just a cameo for him. It was something that was going to be more of what we've come to see this year, and that is really solid play at the middle line back are position.
On Jamir Jones’ development and if that’s surprised Kelly:
Kelly: “No. He's probably - and I think Mike Elston would tell you this too if he was standing here - performance versus trust, and he ranks up there in the top corner of both. In other words, trust in assignment and doing what he's asked to do and performance, he's about as good as we have on our football team. Just a really smart football player. Assignment sound.
“A couple weeks ago against Virginia Tech he was asked to stop the outside zone play against the quarterback, and at the same time, hold on to the tight end on the throwback. That's a tough assignment. You know, you get caught up in the wash there and you forget about them. But we trusted him so much that he could do that dual assignment.
“That's how we feel about him.”
On if Houston Griffith’s move to safety is permanent and how he’s done since making the midseason move:
Kelly: “Yeah, we do. We really like what we see from him in practice. He got a chance to step on the field and make a nice play on third down for us. This is a week where you'll see a little bit more of him. The safeties are really stressed in this offense. You can't just get by on two. We tried to do that last year. We got up on Navy, but we got a little tired at the safety position playing two.
“So you're going to see a lot more depth played at that position, and that's going to require Houston to play for us this Saturday as well.
On what makes Navy’s offense so efficient:
Kelly: “Well, I mean, they've seen everything. First of all, their in-game adjustments, the ability, and certainly the coaching. I mean, Jasper and Ken have seen everything. They can make an adjustment to what you're trying to do in a split second. Not that the coaches at the high school level can't. They've seen it all as well.
“But you've got the best and brightest that are playing at the academy that can make some quick adjustments in-game, at halftime, so they're not going to be fooled by what they see.
“Secondly, they're generally going to have an outstanding quarterback that is going to be able to stress you in so many areas and get the ball on the perimeter and force you to defend him. Because at the end of the day, when you're talking about the quarterback, how do you defend him?
"Really, you have to play a lot of the cover zero against them. If you're not, it's a slow march to the end zone because they certainly do a great job of having a quarterback that can continue to make yards each and every down.
“So I think the reliance on having smart players that can make in-game adjustments; I think the fact that the quarterback-driven offense allows them to really make it difficult on you to defend them. And, again, experience at the coaching staff.”
On if the quarterback or fullback is tougher to stop in Navy’s offense:
Kelly: “Well, I think it's all together, you know, in itself the most difficult, because it strikes on such a wide front. You have to defend inside and out.
“But I think when you have a guy like Malcolm Perry, you know, he's a quarterback obviously that makes this thing very, very dangerous.”
On if Drew White is the new “Greer Martini” as a defensive specialist against the option:
Kelly: “I think it's going to be a collective deal for us. We're going to have to play really well in all facets. The fullback, they've got depth at that position. They've got two very good fullbacks.
“But it requires all 11 players. If you're not attentive to all areas, you're going to have some problems. So it's not really just one player. I think you got to have great effort from all of those players.”
On what he saw in Alohi Gilman when Notre Dame played him on the Navy roster in 2016:
Kelly: “Extremely active; really good tackler; somebody that for us got our attention immediately. I think that when you're playing a team like Navy and you're trying to make sure that you stay up with them in terms of scoring points, anybody that stands out on that defensive side becomes a problem for you because you got to work away from them or you've got to have them in your game plan.
“And he was a guy that you didn't want to throw to his side. You wanted to try work away from him. Consequently, he was noticeable.”
On if he enjoys playing Navy every year:
Kelly: “I think just the respect part of it in terms of who we're going against, leaders of our country, Naval academy, coaching staff, players. That, to me, is what's great about this game, the history and tradition behind it and why this game is being played today because the history and tradition of this game.
“Those are the things that stand out for me.”
On Navy’s move back to more of a triple-option offense:
Kelly: “No, I think we're clearly prepared and identify who they are as an offense. They actually do a couple of different things that they didn't do last year that are not triple option. They run a counterplay they didn't run last year that's not triple option.
“So they're back to their roots, but they can still do some things like toss sweep, get the ball outside, that is not part of their triple. But you have to stop the basic tenants of their offense, and that's triple-option.”
On Navy having a bye week to prepare for Notre Dame:
Kelly: “We've had that the last -- I think this is our sixth team we've played that has had a bye week. We can't come up with any more than what we need to handle ourselves, and then make adjustments as we go.”
On Navy’s improvements under new defensive coordinator Brian Newberry:
Kelly: “Yeah. Well, scheme is definitely part of this, but they've got some veteran players upfront. They're big, they're physical. Two or three 300 pounders that are tough to move upfront. They're getting some sacks off the edge from some skilled players that are part of a very good scheme on second and third down.
“So part of it is scheme, part of it is they got some good players with some experience. I like their safeties. They can play anywhere in the country, both of them. As a matter of fact, we recruited one of them when Mike Elko was here. It's a good football team.”
On the impact defensive end Julian Okwara, who is done for the season, had on the program:
Kelly: “I think he brought a lot of notoriety to our defensive line in terms of development and how you can develop.
“He came in 210, 215 pounds and developed into an explosive, powerful, player. So player development, you can come in here and develop as a defensive lineman. I think a lot of that credit goes to him and our strength and conditioning program.
“But I think it says a lot about him and his want and desire to be the best he can be. All the credit should go to him and our staff.”
On Chase Claypool’s productive season despite having to battle through injuries”
Kelly: “Yeah, he's a warrior. He just has that mindset when he's out on the football field, you know, that's his domain. He just loves to play. He's a great competitor. He's going to do whatever he can to help this football team win. That's why he's respected by his teammates.”
On how he will fill the hole left by Okwara’s season-ending injury:
Kelly: “Well, Ade [Ogundeji] obviously is a guy that gives us that versatility at that position. He's long, he's athletic. He was extremely disruptive on Saturday. Hand up in the face of the quarterback virtually all the time.
“Ovie [Ogoufo] now is going to play. He is a young player that we have great deal of confidence in, so now he becomes part of that rotation. But it would be Ade and Ovie as the two guys now that you see a lot more of on the field.
On if freshman Isaiah Foskey will play this weekend:
Kelly: “Yeah, you probably don't see him this weekend. Yep, you probably don't see him this weekend. We try to hold him back to see where he fits best.”
On Justin Ademilola:
Kelly: “Yeah, he's really played well for us. Both Ademilolas have played really solid football for us, and they would be counted in that as well. Absolutely.”
On Javon McKinley’s role and what he needs to do to produce in big games:
Kelly: “Well, he hasn't played a lot of football, so I think this is his opportunity to continue to grow. I think anything we can get from him this year is a bonus. Yeah, certainly we would like him to continue to grow and step up into a guy that we can get some more plays out of, but he did some good things for us.
“He was really physical in the run game. Opened up some big runs for us on Saturday. I'm not here to wave the flag for every guy that plays for us, but he did some really good things. He did some dirty work for us that doesn't get a lot of recognition.
“He has to continue to grow, but this is his first year playing. Yeah, we would like to see him make some more plays. He would like it as well. I think he's on that track.”
On McKinley’s two big blocks against Duke:
Kelly: "They were. He unleashed two big plays for us."
On if he had flashbacks to the Virginia Tech game when Duke made a run in the second quarter:
Kelly: “It was different. You know, that was kind of an unfortunate call. Really wasn't a holding penalty. The center judge was obstructed in his view. He didn't see it. The defensive end actually tripped and he thought it was -- so it kind of just had a different feel. Kind of more unfortunate than not blocking a middle linebacker.
“So I don't think anybody had the same feel in that situation. It was more unfortunate than anything else.”
On the possibility of freshman defensive end Isaiah Foskey playing five games and skipping redshirt:
Kelly: “Generally speaking, there is not a fifth year for most of these guys, but that doesn't mean we have carte blanche to just throw a guy out there and take that year away.
“I still think it's a decision that we want to be -- we want to take their best interests. For me, I think it's difficult to just throw a kid in there for a sixth or fifth game and not consider the possibility for a redshirt, even though the probability is they're not going to have that.
“It's just my way of doing business. Just my business plan. Others may do it definitely. That's just the way I've erred towards doing it.”
On if he tells them before the season if they will play in more than four games or not:
Kelly: “No, we don't. But when we get up to the number, when we're right there, then I'll have the conversation. And they asked obviously, too. They want to know. Coach, where we going with this? Generally, they all know now that I'm probably not going to play them unless they're a guy like Kyle Hamilton that's definitely impacting from day one.”
On injured wide receivers Braden Lenzy and Joe Wilkins:
Kelly: “Yeah, they'll lift today. If they go through lifting today and are clean -- you know, Wilkins is a little different. He has a soft tissue issue. So we'll continue to progress him.
“Braden Lenzy is a little bit different. He's had some fatigue issues not concussion-related. We have had him on a Mega Wave, which his central nervous system is a bit depleted. I think he's going through a long year of academics and football. We want to get him back up to where he's a full go at 100%. He's doing better. If he's ready to go, we'll certainly get him up and running this week.”
On if they are monitoring Lenzy more closely due to him having a concussion earlier in the season:
Kelly: “No, I think we want to be careful with all of our players. We monitor anybody that's not at 100%. They fill out questionnaires every day that have to be turned in by 2:00. We monitor all of our players. If they're not right, we have the doctor here checking all of our players. The care is first and foremost.
“If we don't think they're right, we're not going to put them in a practice situation.”
On when they saw Alohi Gilman’s potential as a leader:
Kelly: “He's good at it. No, we knew that. When he came in and he couldn't play in that first year, we have developmental lifts. Those are lifts on Friday morning when we're traveling or even at home. They're early morning lifts. He was always part of those developmental lifts and those travel lifts, and he was a vocal leader in those.
“We had a glimpse of what he was going to be like. He wasn't going to be a guy that was off to the side. He was going to be very vocal. He was going to be very instrumental in helping us build the leadership base.
“So we had a pretty good idea of that.”
On having only a week to prepare for Navy’s offense:
Kelly: “Well, we've done a lot of work that's residual work towards that end. Certainly, that work began in earnest a couple of years ago in terms of how we recruited some walk-ons and what we did in spring and summer to keep us in at least a prepared state as we went into these weeks of preparation for Navy.
“So made those decisions a few years ago. It doesn't necessarily mean you have an advantage in any way. But it does -- when you come into Navy week, it doesn't feel like, Oh, my God. Here we go. We've got a pretty solid plan. It just needs to be refined and developed during the week.”
On if that puts them at a disadvantage:
Kelly: “I think we have some drill work. Look, the hardest thing is playing to the speed of what you're going to get, and so how do you develop that with a group that is not as efficient in running that at the highest level.
“We think we've come up with some things that allow us to play fast enough that we can duplicate that model when we step on the field.”
On where his team is now after bouncing back from the Michigan loss:
Kelly: “Well, there is really good leadership not only amongst the captains, but there is real accountability amongst all of the players. That means that it shows up during the week to a standard that's been set in how they prepare.
“They know that you reap what you sew. That means if you work really hard during the week, put in the time, hold each other accountable to that end, that it's going to pay off for them.
“Where are they? They're at a high level of mental toughness in that they hold each other to a level and a standard that has allowed them to continue to work towards getting better as a football team.
“As long as they stay in that mindset, they'll be pretty good.”
On Ian Book’s development over the past few weeks:
Kelly: "I think there was some significant progress made. Maybe just he got back to the starting line for many people that were viewing him, but I think for Ian, playing the quarterback position requires to eliminate a lot of clutter that goes along with the position.
"I think he finally did that and just went and he just went and played quarterback at Notre Dame. It was nice to see. I was happy for him. I think he just needs to continue to do that, have fun, go play, enjoy it, and I think good things will happen to him."
On how important it is that Book play well against Navy:
Kelly: “No doubt. I think it's not just him. Going to have to get a great performance again from all of our guys. Look, Ian Book could put the ball where it needs to be. It has to be caught, the routes have to be run efficiently, we have to block well upfront.
“Yes, he's going to play like he's capable of playing, but got to get the supporting cast to do what it did last week as well.”
On if Jafar Armstrong will have more of a role as a receiver going forward this season:
Kelly: “Yeah, we're trying to figure it out, right? He's a young man that played receiver. We like his ability to catch the football. Obviously, he has that, you know, role right now as both a running back and a guy that we can put in as a receiver, but I still think he's a guy that has a dual capability for us. As we go through the year, kind of trying to identify where he fits and helps our football team the best.
On if Tony Jones is back to 100 percent:
Kelly: “I think he was kind of getting back to where he was. He wasn't certainly the Tony Jones that we saw running against USC. I think you're going to see a guy that's going to be back to 100% this weekend.”
On other programs playing an FCS team while Notre Dame has a touch end-of-the-season schedule:
Kelly: “Well, we're not going to play any FCS teams here, so I've lost that argument a long time ago. It wasn't even up for discussion, so I don't think it was an argument.
“Yeah, I mean, it's a daunting schedule, but that's why you have to have a difficult schedule here at Notre Dame to hold the test up against other conferences. Last year we were like an on-Broadway play. We opened in a theatre near you. We were all over the country. It's the nature of our schedule. We have to prepare for it and train our guys the right way, so when it's time to come to November we are not worn out mentally or physically.”
On Chris Finke’s recent production after overcoming early-season injuries:
Kelly: “Just some nagging injuries, shoulder, ribs, leg. Just fought through them. Just wasn't 100%. He has given everything that he has. He's a captain that's not going to pull himself out of any action. You could tell just this past week he was back to running at a high level. Cuts in and out of his breaks.
“Just kind of sense, and I did. I actually alluded to the ACC guys when they were talking Claypool and other guys, Hey, don't forget about 10; he's going to have a big game, and he did. Because I saw that during the week. He's feeling good. He's in a good place, and I think he'll contribute strongly for us down the stretch.”
On encouraging players to graduate in three and a half years given Notre Dame’s high academic standards:
Kelly: “You're well above my pay grade on that. When they come in they take a pretty heavy load in the summer each summer to keep them here on campus. The way the curriculum is set up it requires them to take a very tight offering that is available to them.
“One thing we don't have a lot of here is one-credit classes, so you're taking three-credit classes for your two summer sessions. So minimum you're adding six every semester at the minimum, so it starts to add up. You can figure out numbers then put you in a position where you're graduating a lot sooner.”
On if that could be tweaked:
Kelly:” Yeah, I think there are always tweaks to it, but there are so many moving pieces to this that, you know, certainly not all of our guys are 4.0s and 35s, and then we're asking them to graduate in three and a half years. You can see how there are some times you wonder that question has some legs. That's all I can say.”
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