Brian Kelly Makes A Point To Involve Irish’s Mid-Year Enrollees This Spring
Brian Kelly’s deployment plan for Notre Dame’s 14 freshman mid-year enrollee’s has endless cliché descriptors.
Throw them in the fire. Drop them in the grease. Make them grow up fast. Learn by doing. On and on. They all apply.
It doesn’t matter if the newcomers are ready or not. Kelly wants their extra semester on campus to be an informative football education rather than simply a head start on the high school to college transition. So much so that he’s allocating them reps at the expense of older players.
“I’m not interested in mid-years to see them on the sidelines,” Kelly said. “We’re going to sacrifice reps for veteran players to make sure we give these kids even more reps than they’ve earned.
“If you’re going to bring them in mid-year and put them in a grinder — they should be in high school, but they’re now in a college academic setting as elite as Notre Dame. We’ve put them in the weight room and pushed them hard. Let’s put them on the football field and get them reps.”
He has a throng of them to accommodate this spring. The 14 early enrollees are the team’s most in a single class since the university allowed the practice in 2006. They also comprise more than half of Notre Dame’s 27-player 2021 signing class. Halfway through the spring, all of them have appeared in at least one of the three-minute video clips Notre Dame releases after each practice.
For some, that work has come on what appears to be the second- or third-team units. The latter is comprised largely of freshmen and walk-ons, with a few exceptions.
The early enrollees who didn’t have a senior season because of their home states’ COVID-19 restrictions on high school football last fall have taken most of their reps with those groups. There are five who haven’t played in a game since fall 2019: Quarterback Tyler Buchner, defensive end Devin Aupiu, defensive end Will Schweitzer, cornerback Ryan Barnes and safety Justin Walters.
In Buchner’s case, the swatted-away senior year hurt his chances of fulfilling a section of Notre Dame fans’ fervent desire — to compete for the starting job as a freshman. He’s a top-125 recruit and a gifted athlete for the position. He has impressed Kelly overall so far. But he’s also playing catch-up and has one high school season as a starter to his name.
“If you want to say who’s made the most progress, it’s probably Tyler Buchner just because he hadn’t played a lot when he got here,” Kelly said. “His motion is really fluid. He’s throwing the ball very well.
“But he’s learning a lot. He has a lot to learn about our offensive structure and the nuances. He knows football. He’s very smart. Tremendously smart. You tell him something in a meeting and his recall is quite amazing. But just because you know it doesn’t mean it happens naturally. You need reps.”
Elsewhere, wide receiver Lorenzo Styles Jr. and tight ends Cane Berrong and Mitchell Evans have been frequently visible in the practice video, even if it has largely been second-team work.
Other mid-year enrollees have earned a few first-team looks at some point in the first seven spring practices. Cornerback Philip Riley made a cameo with several starters on defense in the video from April 8 practice. Offensive linemen Rocco Spindler and Blake Fisher, the class’ highest-rated signee, have been on the first team in a couple practice clips. Fisher, it seems, has worked there the most. All of his snaps on video are at left tackle.
It’s notable they’ve earned a look in those spots, but there’s perspective needed. The first-team groupings in seven spring practices aren’t indicative of final depth chart decisions. And the video clips are just a small portion of practice. In the offensive line’s case, 21-game starting center and probable 2021 starting tackle Jarrett Patterson is not practicing as he recovers from November foot surgery. Kelly made sure to throw some necessary water on the flames.
“I know you’re seeing a lot of them,” Kelly said. “I don’t want to mislead anyone by watching the film and saying, ‘They must be ready to start.’ We’re just trying to give them as much work as possible. They’re all making progress.”
Regardless of their tentative depth chart standing, progress is Kelly’s standard for their success this spring.
“This is what they love to do,” Kelly said. “If they can’t enjoy playing football, why bring them in mid-year? We’re just piling on reps. They’re loving playing football. They haven’t earned all the reps, but that doesn’t really matter. I want them to have so many reps when they come into camp, it’s like they’ve had a full year.”
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